After Bohol and Dumaguete, new Cebuanovela to feature Hong Kong, Camotes

For my part, ever since I've written about Amor Chicko in this column in the past, I've had received feedback, especially from college students, commending the acting and story of Amor Chicko. Ratings-wise, according to Donna Ocampo, entertainment head of ABS-CBN Cebu, it posted an impressive 53% audience share and ranked number five (1. Game Ka Na Ba; 2. Wowowee; 3. Homeboy; 4. Wansapanataym) in the list of top multi-weekly programs in Cebu. Congratulations are in order for the cast and crew of the recently-concluded Cebuanovela.

ABS-CBN Cebu people heaped praises on the professionalism of its central characters, played by Davaoeño Charles Christianson and Jagobiao, Mandaue native, Eda Nolan, which translated to their onscreen presence and natural acting, many thanks to the rigors of acting workshops they went through under Star Magic.

It will be remembered that Nolan was personally handpicked by Mr. Johnny Manahan to join its stable of talents. Though she might have been overshadowed by recent hit discoveries from Cebu, particularly in the person of Kim Chiu, she has been steadily and surely making progress. To re-quote Nolan from a previous interview, "I'm proud to have really started from the bottom." Watch out for her major acting breakthrough in the national scene anytime soon as she joins the cast of the Claudine Barretto-Piolo Pascual primetime TV series, "Walang Kapalit."

As of presstime, the production people behind Amor Chicko are back at work, preparing to spin off a new Cebuanovela, which will hopefully sustain the interest sparked and nurtured by its predecessor.

According to writer Jurey Mirafuentes, the latest TV offering titled Summer Sunshine is slightly mature in terms of storyline. It stars Let's Go cutie Blumarc Roces ("Norman" in the said Saturday teen sitcom) who happens to be Bol-anon. He is paired with Sushine Cunanan, who is a regular fixture on regional TV, particularly as a host. "We chose Sunshine because we want to re-package her. So from being a host na pa-tweetums, we want her to move into a serious acting role. This aside from the fact that she is already a familiar face on local TV," explained Mirafuentes.

Apart from the charming island of Camotes, Summer Sunshine also features scenes shot in the bustling streets of Hong Kong. So, from Milyonaryong Mini's Bohol, Amor Chicko's Silliman University in Dumaguete, to Summer Sunshine's Hong Kong, our Cebuanovelas, in an unprecedented move on local TV, are queuing up new vistas by bringing us to more (and farther) places outside Cebu.

Sheryn Regis's original composition "Pusong Lito" is the theme of Summer Sunshine. The TV series would soon debut on a new timeslot, back to back with the "Pangako Sa 'Yo" rerun.

Summer Sunshine will run for three months. Now, the question perhaps hovering on the lips of Cebuanovela followers is: will it be able to duplicate the way Amor Chicko has excited viewers and perked up the ratings?

It is true that the ratings work like a slippery slope, and that any show, whether nationally or locally made, can slide precariously. Nevertheless, it's really the incessant effort to take chances and produce shows that we can call our own that should count the most.