How PH businessman found his way to Hollywood

Arsenio “Arsy” Grindulo Jr.

US-based Filipino businessman Arsenio “Arsy” Grindulo Jr., producer of the Hollywood sci-fi thriller “Ascension,” said he got into filmmaking “later in life” and “only by accident.”

Arsy, who lives in California, said his main focus for over two decades now has been to oversee a national wholesale insurance company. A few years back, they initiated a trip-to-Hawaii contest and its winner, one of his company’s top producers, brought along her son-in-law, who just happened to be entering the movie world as a director-scriptwriter.

“He was looking for someone who would be instrumental in helping him fulfill a dream feature-film project, and she connected me with him,” Arsy told Inquirer Entertainment. “Despite not having any experience in filmmaking, after much assessment, I agreed to his business proposition. So, this was how it all started.”

It turned out that the son-in-law Arsy was referring to was Ross Wachsman, and their movie eventually became “Ascension.”

The film tells the story of a troubled teenage girl after she discovers that the dark power that drove her mother to commit suicide has also infected her older sister, driving the latter to do terrifying things. It stars Christie Burke (“Breaking Dawn”) and Michael Traynor (“The Walking Dead”), and was released in the United States in 2018.

“I was fully aware that filmmaking is a tough place to be,” Arsy said. “However, with the movie’s unique storyline, suspense-filled scenes and good production values that can be made within budget, I was confident that we could reap some financial rewards and build credibility in the end.”

Arsy, however, said he also knew that “it could go the other way. What I discovered as a first-time filmmaker was that there’s no guarantee that you could produce successful movies, and that you are in competition with other filmmakers, large and small,” he observed. “Therefore, you must differentiate yourself from the rest.”

Fortunately, “Ascension” has since won many awards, including the most recent one, best independent film from the National Film and TV Awards. “It’s a plus factor in arousing the interest of movie audiences and film buyers,” Arsy declared.

Asked what it was like to work with Ross, Arsy described his writer-director as “a perfectionist, and someone who works hard on his craft. Ross’ love and passion for the movies comes through in his work,” Arsy observed. “Despite occasional differences in opinion, something that’s common to any partnership, we worked together with the common goal of making a successful movie.”

“Ascension” was due for release in the Philippines end of February, but Arsy said they had opted to delay it for three more months because of Taal Volcano’s eruption (“which has affected the country’s sympathetic mood”) and the recent health concern that originated from China (“It is driving moviegoers away from the theaters. They are staying home, instead.”).

Despite the series of unfortunate events, Arsy said he was confident that Filipinos would enjoy the movie.

“Having lived in the Philippines for half my life, I remember that action, romance and comedy movies were mostly shown in local theaters—horror movies have not been far behind,” he observed. “For example, the latest Filipino horror movie ‘Eerie’ was a success at the box office. Movies like this have been favorites. They appeal to the Filipino audience because of a good script, right casting and good quality.”—Marinel Cruz INQ