The Walwal Generation

Produced by Regal Entertainment, Inc., Walwal shows how different today’s millennials are from the preceding generation.

If you don’t know what the word walwal means, you belong to the past generation and, sob and sigh, have a lot of catching up to do with today’s millennials who have their own vocabulary — you know, such as mema (as in me masabi), etc.

Perhaps Walwal, produced by Regal Entertainment, Inc. (and showing nationwide starting on June 27), can help bridge the gap between the two generations.

Written by Gerald Mark Foliente and directed by Jose Javier Reyes, Walwal stars Donny Pangilinan, Elmo Magalona, Jerome Ponce and Kiko Estrada (along with Jane de Leon, Devon Seron, Sophia Senoron and Kisses Delavin).

Let’s lend an ear to the four male millennials.

From left:Donny, Kiko, Jerome, Elmo, Devon Seron, Sophia Senoron, Kisses Delavin and Jane de Leon

What does the word “walwal” mean to you as a person (and how “walwal” can you get)??

Donny: Walwal is basically about forgetting everything and living in the moment.

Elmo: To me, walwal can be a lot of things, but the most meaning it has is to let loose. To let yourself be loose in life, to be immersed in all the things you tackle. As a person, I try to apply this mentality as much as possible. I try to be a happy-go-lucky person most of the time.

Jerome: For me, ang meaning ng word “walwal” is magulo like rollercoaster sa mga nangyayari and at the same time, nag-e-enjoy na bina-balewala.

Kiko: Well, for me, the term walwal is going all out.

Describe your role and how you identify with it.?

Donny: I am Bobby, the eye of the group, an aspiring filmmaker. I want to be the next Brillante Mendoza. A lot of people doubt that I can succeed. But I believe in myself.

Elmo: I play as Dondi, the wannabe-lawyer of the group. In terms of his goals in life, he’s very ambitious but also scared at the same time, to the point that he only always follows what people expect him to be. His father always puts it in his mind that he “should be like this” and because of this, he doesn’t know how to approach his dad and politely informs him that he wants to pursue something else. In terms of love, he is a close-minded person, just as close-minded as everything else he sees in life. You will find out why when you watch Walwal.?In terms of his bond with his friends Marco, Intoy and Bobby, it’s something that is really solid. Making the film, I completely believe that we were a barkada or a group of friends who grew up together. In fact, in some of our scenes, I felt like I was really back in my high school days, because I remembered some of my friends in them.?

Kiko (son of Gary Estrada and Cheska Diaz): My parents always remind me to give my work my best shot. They know how much I am obsessed with acting…

Jerome: My role is Intoy, athlete scholar na hirap sa studies at puro laro lang, makulit and jolly but has a soft spot when it comes sa family niya. Iisa ang tanong sa buhay and it’s about his dad.

Kiko: I define Marco as a lost boy trying to find what he really wants in life. But if you want me to say it, yeah, he’s the ladies’ man sa group. I wanted there to be a reason why he was like that. The character back story was that he grew up with a mom. The character lacks a father figure. So you can now imply that he is afraid of commitment because of his parents’ failed relationship. Luckily enough, my mom in the film is my real mom (Cheska Diaz) so things were easier on the set. I relate to Marco in a way that I try to understand and not judge him and somewhat instill some of me but not too much to avoid messing up the uniqueness of the character.

How was it being directed by Joey Javier Reyes??

Donny: A blessing. He gave us so much freedom to express ourselves and go beyond the script. He was my mom’s director in her best movies, and it was such a privilege to be under him this time.

Elmo: If I recall it right, the casting for this movie was handpicked, and direk Joey really chose us for the parts. It’s such an honor that someone like him did that. Working with him, I think he’s a great director, truly deserving to be respected, and I’m so happy and thankful to be a part of this wonderful project.?

Donny (son of Maricel Laxa and Anthony Pangilinan): My parents always remind me to be grounded… to give Glory to God always…

Jerome: Direk Joey is a very jolly person who is really passionate when it comes to his craft as a director. Sa shots specifically alam niya precisely ang gusto niya at saka binigyan niya po kaming lahat ng sari-sariling lugar para gawin ‘yung trabaho namin para sa characters namin. And one more thing, talagang first take ang kinukuha niya mostly dahil ayaw niya na “ma-overcook” ang scene para natural na natural.

Kiko: It’s always an honor and a pleasure to work with a master director.

How was your relationship (the four of you) on the set? Magkaka-pareho ba kayo ng ugali, ng taste sa girls, ng trip??

Donny: Lahat kami nag-click kaagad. We had so much in common so we got close right away. I can’t imagine working with a different group of guys. They made work so much more fun and easier.

Elmo: It was so much fun to work with all of them. First time to work with some of them (Jerome and Donny) but I did a film with Kiko just recently (My Fairy Tail Love Story). The good thing about working with them is that we realized we were different from each other. But it was so good to have those differences because we were able to use them to make us distinct from one another, and it helped in making the movie, too.

Jerome: Isa sa mga pagkakaibigan na hindi ko mabibitawan at makakalimutan. Halo-halo kami ng trip, ng gusto, pero pag sama-sama, iisa lang. We have different perspectives but we learn a lot sa isa’t-isa kapag may kelangan at tanong.?

Elmo (son of the late Francis Magalona and Pia Arroyo): My parents tell me, ‘Love what you do and you will never have to work your entire life…’

Kiko: We’re like brothers on and off set. Tastes vary depending on who you ask. We have same opinions and different opinions on certain topics...but that’s what brothers are. Not everyone is the same but we got each other’s back when needed.?

How do you think today’s millennials are different from your parents’ generation??

Donny: Social media would be the biggest difference. There is an entirely new world that was non-existent during our parents’ generation.

Elmo: Very different, especially in certain influences, what we grew up on versus what they grew up on. There are some things that... growing up, I could never, even if I force myself to understand from listening to one of my parent’s stories “back in the day.” There’s a gap and we try to find ways to fill in those gaps so we can understand each other’s generations better.

Jerome: They are different in a way na super-strict dati at talagang ’pag bawal, bawal; pinapagalitan ng sobra. But now, mas may freedom and may social media na so lahat madali, like getting details about people, going places, acquiring something. What’s different from my parents’ generation is takot sila mag-decide agad-agad. Walang YOLO (You Only Live Once).

Kiko: In a lot of ways. Well, I guess it’s because of the Internet and how privacy is like lost in today’s world…how young kids prefer trolling the Net rather than living.

How would you describe your parents (liberal or strict or just like a friend to you) and how would you describe yourself as a son??

Donny (son of Maricel Laxa and Anthony Pangilinan): My parents are my support system. They are strict when they need to be. As a son, I know I’m not perfect. But I’m blessed to have amazing parents who are there every step of the way.

Jerome Ponce (dad is former actor Jessie Delgado): My parents always remind me, ‘Gawin mo ang gusto mo basta wala kang taong na-aapakan…’

Elmo (son of the late Francis Magalona and Pia Arroyo): My parents are half and half. One half was very strict, the other very liberal. I think you can already tell who is what, hahaha!!! But as their son, growing up in their household, I learned to embrace that I needed both kinds of parents to be who I am today.

Jerome (son of actor Jessie Delgado): Separated po parents ko. I didn’t have that much time para maka-bonding sila kasi busy si Papa and si Mama was always out of town. But now, we are catching up.

Kiko (son of Gary Estrada and Cheska Diaz): A balance of both, I guess. Well, my mom was strict but at a certain age, she just allowed me to experience life and learn from it.?

What’s the best advice from your parents that you always keep in mind??

Donny: Stay grounded. Never forget where you came from. Give glory to God always.

Elmo: Love what you do, and you will never have to work your entire life.

Jerome: Gawin mo ang mag-papasaya sa’yo basta wala kang na-aapakan na tao.

Kiko: Be patient and give quality to whatever you do. They know how much I am obsessed with acting and how much a role I accept means to me. I try to give justice to every role that I play.

Direk Joey on what  Walwal is all about

Selfie time with direk Joey and the Walwal cast

‘I am the only senior citizen on the project,’ direk Joey Javier Reyes unabashedly admitted. ‘The writer and the actors are all millennials.’

The writer, Gerald Mark Foliente, is described by Joey as the best student in his writing class in La Salle.

‘He’s the youngest accepted workshopper of Ricky Lee,’ said Joey. ‘Except for my few inputs, everything in the script is from his point of view. Well, who would be a better person to write about millennials than a millennial himself?’

According to Joey, Walwal is an updated version of his 1994 film Pare Ko about that time’s youth, starring Jomari Yllana, Mark Anthony Fernandez, Gio Alvarez and Jao Mapa.

‘Walwal is a growing-up film,’ explained Joey. ‘The word walwal means walang paki-alam, used by millennnials to describe their easy-go-lucky lifestyle when they go out to have fun, to have good time, when they go out drinking or dancing to forget their problems, to de-stress themselves. During my time, the word used was nagwawala (letting go).’

As a professor in La Salle, Joey is surrounded by millennials so he’s not a stranger to them.

‘Life then was simple,’ added Joey. ‘There was no social media, mas kampante ang mundo. Ngayon, ang gulo-gulo! That’s why the problems of today’s youth are far different from the problems of the previous generation. Before, we lived for the future. Today, the millennials live for the moment.’

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