Teleseryes shot in foreign shores

The lead stars of the highly-anticipated ABS-CBN teleserye Princess and I shot scenes in the Kingdom of Bhutan (near the Himalayas) for the new series. In Princess and I, Gretchen Barretto plays a commoner who marries a king and will do everything in her power to have her son inherit the throne. Also in the cast are Albert Martinez, Kathryn Bernardo, Enrique Gil, Daniel Padilla and Khalil Ramos. Since the series revolves around the story of monarchs, expect the stars to wear modish costumes fit for royalty. The forthcoming teleserye will take viewers to various magnificent tourist destinations in Bhutan (which has been hailed as The Last Shangri-la) and give them a glimpse of its rich cultural heritage.

Princess and I joins the long list of television series partly shot abroad. Here is a list of soap operas which have been partly filmed in foreign countries:

 My Binondo Girl — This is the story of Jade (Kim Chiu) who pretends to be her deceased brother Yuan to win her father’s heart. Some of the scenes showing Kim in her gender-bending portrayal, her first wedding to Xian Lim who plays Andy in the primetime series and the offices of the company owned by her Chinese father Chen Sy (Richard Yap) were shot in Hong Kong.

Lovers in Paris — This is the remake of the 2004 hit Koreanovela of the same title starring KC Concepcion, Piolo Pascual and Zanjoe Marudo. In the series, KC plays Vivian, a student who dreams of becoming a film director. In Paris, she meets Carlo (Piolo), a businessman who hires her to pose as his fiancée. The love story from the city of lights and romance becomes complicated when Carlo’s nephew, Martin (Zanjoe), walks into her life and falls in love with her. The beauty and grandeur of the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, and the Avenue des Champs-Élysées were magnificently captured in the series.

Green Rose — Another remake of a Korean drama starring Jericho Rosales as Jerome Delgado, Anne Curtis as Angela Tuazon, Jake Cuenca as Edward Fuentebella, and Alessandra de Rossi as Geena Rallos. Echo’s character falls in love with Angela who is the daughter of his employer. Their love is put to a test when Jerome is framed up of a crime he never commits. He escapes from prison and flees to Korea where he struggles to survive. After several years he returns to the Philippines as Lee Jung Soo to seek justice, regain his honor and punish the people who have wronged him. The cast and crew of Green Rose went to Korea during the winter season early last year to shoot scenes.    

Kahit Isang Saglit — The series is a joint venture of ABS-CBN and Malaysia’s Double Vision. Jericho this time travels to Malaysia as PDEA agent Rocky Santillan to secretly lead an investigation to solve the case of his murdered father. Playing his love interest in the teleserye is international model/actress Carmen Soo (Margaret/Garie) who yearns to find her long-lost father in the Philippines. However, fate plays a trick on the couple because the man who visited Rocky’s dad before he was murdered turns out to be Garie’s father. Scenes in Malaysia include the Petronas, Pink Temple and KL Aquaria. 

Only You — The series is another local adaptation of a hit Koreanovela. In the story, Angel Locsin plays Jillian who relentlessly pursues her dream to become a chef. She goes to South Korea with her best friend Jonathan (Diether Ocampo) who has special feelings for her. In her desperate attempt to succeed, Jillian searches for a woman who can teach her a winning recipe. Then she meets TJ (Sam Milby) who is looking for his mother, the same woman Jillian is after. They end up having a one-night stand. The conflict of the story begins when Jillian finds out she is pregnant.

Vietnam Rose — This is Maricel Soriano’s first foray into soap operas. The story revolves around the life of Nguyen Dang Thien Yeu (Maricel), a Vietnamese boat woman who leaves her country after the war to forget her tragic past. In the Philippines, she rebuilds a new life as Carina Mojica Dela Cerna, a successful businesswoman whose husband (John Estrada) belongs to one of the most influential families in the country. Some of the scenes were shot at the Chua Vinh Nghiem Buddhist pagoda, the Lam Son Square, the Notre Dame Cathedral and the Ben Thanh market.

Crazy for You — The romantic-comedy series was launched simultaneously on ABS-CBN and The Filipino Channel. It is the first television series about overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). Tony Gonzaga plays Janice, a young woman working as a day-hire maid in Barcelona to support her family. One day, Janice is hired to clean a Filipino student’s apartment. She and her employer Wacky (Luis Manzano) never meet and only communicate through notes posted around the house.

Going MAD for music

Ateneo Law Batch ’88 brings MAD for Music, a concert at the Smart Araneta Coliseum tonight.

MAD stands for “Make A Difference” — the rallying cry of the Ateneo Law Batch ’88. MAD for Music spotlights the songs that define each decade, from the late ’60s to the present. Hosted by Grace Lee and directed by Freddie Santos, the extravaganza will showcase the heart and passion of Basil Valdez, Pops Fernandez, Billy Crawford, Nikki Gil, Geneva Cruz, Kris Lawrence, Vince Bueno, Rage Band, Spirit of ’67, Jeffrey Hidalgo, Isabella Gonzales and Kuh Ledesma. 

For details, call Ticketnet at 911-5555 and www.ticketnet.com.ph.