Sometimes, the best casting decisions aren’t made in a boardroom—they start with a genuine “fan” moment. For acclaimed director Dan Villegas, the journey to the upcoming film Almost Us didn’t begin with a pitch, but with an impression from the Cinemalaya Film Festival film ‘Child No. 82.’ After being captivated by JM Ibarra’s acting chops, Villegas found himself diving deep into the world of “JMFyang,” the popular love team with Fyang Smith. What started as professional curiosity quickly turned into full-blown fandom, eventually paving the way for the project to come to life.
“Sobra akong happy from the start kasi first time ko na-encounter si JM (Ibarra) sa Cinemalaya, tapos I was impressed talaga, Sabi ko, gusto kong maka-work ‘tong actor na ‘to. So, nung night na ‘yun, nag-research ako, tapos nakita ko ‘yung love team nila, ‘yung JMFyang. Nanonood ako ng clips nila, kinikilig ako. Tapos, a few days later, minessage ko na si Keith, luckily nasa kanila (Regal Entertainment) ‘yung (movie) contract. Ayun, everything fell into place. Thank you sa generosity ni Keith and Ma’am Roselle na natuloy ‘yung pelikula,” director Dan Villegas shares.
When asked what the initial reaction of Keith Monteverde of Regal Entertainment, Inc. on director Dan Villegas’ proposal, “Yeah. Agad-agad na, kasi I had experience working with JMFyang sa Shake. Kahit sa mga rushes pa lang sa Shake, they were so good, so ang una naming feedback, ‘ano kaya ang next project namin with JMFyang?’ So, good timing, tumawag si direk Dan, sabi niya how’s JMFyang, gusto niya mag-pitch for concept with them, we said yes right away.”
Why choose a JMFyang movie for his comeback in the romcom genre?
“Na-in love ako dun sa dalawa eh. Na-impress talaga ako sa Cinemalaya (movie ni JM, Child No. 82), tapos from there, nag-deep dive talaga ako. Alam mo ‘yung one of those nights na nagsimula ka lang sa isang video, tapos mamaya, 4AM na pala, tapos puro JMFyang ‘yung pinapanood ko. Sabi ko, I really want to work with these two.”
What came first, casting JMFyang or the material/story?
“Nauna ‘yung JMFyang, tapos kasama ko ‘yung associate producer, si Angel, tapos nag-iisip kami ng concept. Si Angel ay isang Gen Z, so parang uso sa Gen Z ‘yung AU or “Alternate Universe”. From there, nagbatuhan kami ng ideas for a film tapos nabuhay na ‘yung story about this girl na na-obsess sa isang idol na may best friend na pining for her.”
Host Eric John Salut shares how one morning, producer Keith Monteverde told him how beautiful the script of ‘Almost Us’ is. What was the initial reaction of Keith when he first read it?
“Yes (gusto ko na agad), kasi when I read the script, usually may edits pa, but the whole time I was reading the script, all I can think of was JMFyang kasi sobrang bagay ‘yung script sa kanila.”
Finally, after two years in the showbiz industry since they enterd the Pinoy Big Brother (PBB) house, Fyang Smith and JM Ibarra, or JMFyang, are the lead stars in Regal Entertainment, Inc. and Project 8 Projects film, ‘Almost Us.’ How do they feel?
“Excited ako sobra kasi first film namin ‘to ni Fyang and siguro mas nangingibabaw sa akin ‘yung excitement ko pagdating kay Fyang kasi excited ako sa kanila na mapanood ‘tong pelikula, kasi seryoso, 100% sure ako na once mapanood nila ‘yung pelikula, mas magmamarka ‘yung pagiging aktres ni Fyang,” JM Ibarra shares.
“Magaling din siya. Sobrang galing niya, as in napahangan niya ako kung paano niya pinortray si RR bilang best friend ko. Hindi naman nagkakalayo in real life, best friend naman kami. So, pero siyempre nagulat ako sa pag-portray niya as RR, kasi, ang galing mo no (looking at JM),” Fyang Smith answers.