Wazzup Pilipinas News and Events

Friday, September 4, 2015

2015 Korean Film Festival Highlights Depth of Human Relationships

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The Korean Cultural Center in the Philippines (KCC) and the Embassy of the Republic of Korea will be opening its annual Korean Film Festival this September to October with the theme, “Strings of Affinity.”

In cooperation with the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), the Film Cultural Exchange Program, Korean Film Cou...ncil, Korea Copyright Commission, Korea Tourism Organization, SM Cinema and SM Lifestyle Entertainment, Inc., the film festival will be featuring seven films that showcase the depths of human relationships in different scenarios.
The film festival will kick off in SM Lanang Premiere in Davao from September 17 to 20 and will be stopping by SM City Iloilo from September 24 to 27. From October 1 to 4, the film festival will move to SM City Cebu and will have its final run in SM Megamall in Manila from October 8 to 11.

The Films

One of the top grossing films in Korea, “The Thieves”(도둑들) is about a group of South Korean thieves led by Popie (Lee Jung-jae) and Hong Kong thieves commissioned by the master thief Macao Park (Kim Yoon-seok) to steal the diamond “Tear of the Sun”. Having their own special skills in stealing, the two teams work together in the biggest heist of their lives, but little do they know that the 10 thieves all have their own agendas.

In “Miss Granny” (수상한그녀 ), the 74-year-old widow Oh Mal-Soon is transformed back to her 20-year-old self after having her photo taken at a mysterious photo studio. With no one recognizing her, Mal-soon decides to make the most out of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. She renames herself Oh Doo-ri and decides to pursue her dream of becoming a singer together with her grandson Ji-ha who doesn’t realize that she is his grandmother.

Porsche Team scores one-two triumph via perfect tire strategy

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Porsche Team followed up its Le Mans 24 Hours victory in June with a one-two finish after a dramatic race at the 2015 6 Hours of Nürburgring August 30. The N°18 Porsche 919 Hybrid overcame three Stop&Go penalties (of five, thirty and sixty seconds), for excessive fuel consumption, to steal second place from Audi Sport thanks, in part, to the tyre strategy that was adopted for Switzerland’s Neel Jani on Lap 143.

The weekend’s competition got off to a solid start for Porsche Team when it secured the first two places on the grid in Saturday’s qualifying, with the N°18 Porsche 919 Hybrid (Dumas/Jani/Lieb) claiming pole ahead of the N°17 sister car (Bernhard/Webber/Hartley). Audi Sport Team Joest, which had topped Friday’s two free practice sessions, had to settle for the third- and fourth-best qualifying times with the N°8 R18 e-tron quattro (Di Grassi/Duval/Jarvis) and the similar N°7 prototype (Fässler/Lotterer/Tréluyer).

Sunday’s 6 Hours of Nürburgring started at the stroke of 1pm in sunny weather with the track temperature standing at 37°C. The cars of Michelin’s partners were fitted with ‘high temperature’ tyres.

After the rolling start, there were no changes to the order established in qualifying once the Porsche Team had cars succeeded in shrugging off the Audis’ early threats. The gap gradually widened until Timo Bernhard (N°17 Porsche) picked up damage to a front aerodynamic appendix. On Lap 24, the car pitted for its first refuelling halt which was brought forward to change the car’s nose. Audi Sport took advantage of the stop to appear in second place with its N°8 car. The N°7 R18 e-tron quattro, in the hands of Marcel Fässler, stopped at the same time but was nine seconds quicker out of the pits.

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Singapore Airlines, in partnership with MasterCard, offers exclusive Singapore Night Race package for KrisFlyer members and MasterCard cardholders. From just USD830, car and racing enthusiasts can get into the action to the much-awaited night race and live performances of international artists with an all-inclusive package that comes with round trip Economy Class flight from Manila to Singapore, 4 days/3 nights hotel accommodation, airport transfers, and a Zone 4 Walkabout Pass valid from September 18 to 20, 2015.

The Zone 4 Walkabout Pass includes access to live performances at the waterfront art center Esplanade and a variety of multi-starred shows at Singapore's biggest outdoor entertainment stage, the Padang Stage. Featured in this year's line-up are world-renowned acts Maroon 5, Pharrell Williams and Bon Jovi. The pass also gives access to numerous food concessionaires, beverage outlets, merchandise booths and activity stations. Cars racing past some of Singapore’s most iconic landmarks can also be viewed through platforms located at strategic trackside positions.

This package is exclusive to MasterCard credit, debit or prepaid cardholders as well as KrisFlyer members paying cash. MasterCard cardholders will also receive an additional 3,000 KrisFlyer miles with every purchase. Be a KrisFlyer member now and sign up for free at KrisFlyer.com

The package is valid for purchase from now until 11 September 2015, for travel out of Manila on 18 September 2015. Hotel stay must be completed by 21 September 2015. To book, call the Singapore Airlines Tours Desk at 753-5151 to 52 or email at tours_mnl@singaporeair.com.sg

Singapore Airlines flies from Manila to Singapore four times daily which conveniently connect to onward flights to the rest of the world. For more information, visit singaporeair.com

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The premier university in Cebu deploys a suite of Sophos UTM appliances and Sophos Endpoint Protection Advanced to safeguard over 27,000 students and 1,500 employees against sophisticated threats and data loss

Cebu, Philippines. September 3, 2015 – The University of San Carlos (USC), the premier university in Cebu and one of the top 10 leading universities in the Philippines, has deployed Sophos for simple, comprehensive protection of its campus network. A suite of Sophos UTM appliances, together with Sophos Endpoint Protection Advanced (EPA), were implemented to protect over 27,000 students and 1,500 faculties and employees against sophisticated threats and data loss.

As USC continued to expand with more users and devices connected to the network, bandwidth consumption became an issue – resulting in decreasing security of its network, as many security features could not be turned on.

With a staff of just nine people, the USC IT team found itself overwhelmed by security incidents. The previous security solutions installed had also proved to be costly and difficult to maintain.

Instead of renewing its previous solutions, which would have cost more than it originally paid for them, USC needed a robust yet resource-friendly security solution to meet its needs. During the evaluation, the IT team was impressed with Sophos’ ease of installation, and its robust and comprehensive security features.

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Tanghalang Ateneo, the longest-running theater company of the Loyola Schools of the Ateneo de Manila University, is celebrating its 37th season with the theme "Staging Revolution/s".

Growing from a fledgling band of student players to one of the country’s leading school-based theater companies, Tanghalang Ateneo will stage this season three works that have been deemed revolutionary when they were first unleashed to the world.

These productions are:

R.U.R. (Robot Unibersal ni Rossum)

written by Karel Čapek

translation by Guelan Varela-Luarca

direction by JK Anicoche

September 30, October 1-3, 6-10, and 13-17

Venue: Ateneo's Fine Arts Black Box Theater

"R.U.R. (ROSSUM’S UNIVERSAL ROBOTS/ROBOT UNIBERSAL NI ROSSUM)" is a science fiction classic by Czech writer Karel Capek. Originally written in Czech, this Tanghalang Ateneo production will use a new Filipino translation by Palanca winner Guelan Varela-Luarca. The play is about the rebellion of human-like creatures called robots that leads to the extinction of the human race. The danger of man’s desires of a utopian and totalitarian world is one of the play's central themes.

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Ballet Philippines opens its season with Body Positive +, A Dance Gala for HIV Awareness. Featuring excerpts from Swan Lake, Mark Bogaerts’ Bolero, Enrico Labayen’s Cloth, and other landmark pieces, the show celebrates the dancers’ innate athleticism in the context of the alarming rise of HIV in the Philippines.

The prevalence of HIV in the country has risen by over 50% in the last 3 years, yet the general public remains largely unaware. Males having sex with other males (MSM) remains the predominant mode of transmission among males and comprised 84% of infections through sexual contact from the study period of January 2010 to April 2015. With around 20 newly reported cases of HIV per day in 2015, Ballet Philippines was compelled to raise its voice about the matter.

On why BP decided to adopt this particular advocacy in its season opener, Ballet Philippines Artistic Director Paul Alexander Morales says, “When the HIV/AIDS epidemic struck many countries in the 80s, the Philippines was mostly unaffected. Now it’s here, and it’s spreading at three times the rate that it was in 2012, but it’s hardly being talked about. Body Positive + is our small contribution towards changing that.”

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Two fresh productions are set to bring Ballet Philippines (BP)’s 46th Season off to a good start. On September 12, 13, and 19, the company will perform Body Positive +, A Dance Gala for HIV Awareness. September 20 brings the comeback of Hugot Sa Rosas, featuring Ballet Philippines 2, BP’s junior performing arm. The performances will be held at the Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino (CCP Little Theater).

Swans, Queers, and the rise of AIDS take the spotlight in Body Positive +. Featuring excerpts from Swan Lake, Mark Bogaerts’ Bolero, Enrico Labayen’s Cloth, and other landmark pieces, the show celebrates the dancers’ innate athleticism in the context of the alarming rise of HIV in the Philippines.

Enrico Labayen’s works add a deeper dimension into the show’s HIV awareness advocacy. A Ballet Philippines alumnus and staunch AIDS activist, Labayen lends his voice to raise up the advocacy in the Be Positive forums at the start of the Body Positive + shows.

For one night only, Ballet Philippines 2’s acclaimed concert, Hugot Sa Rosas, returns for a performance at the CCP Little Theater. Set to music from Vincent de Jesus’ Songs to Slash Your Wrist By, the show highlights the talents of BP’s junior company and its new breed of dancers and choreographers. The show premiered at Ballet Philippines Studio One in February 2015, as part of Fringe MNL.

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MiCab, the Cebu-based tech startup celebrated for its locally-developed and low cost taxi-hailing app for the riding public, welcomes the new guidelines on ride-sharing apps crafted by the Land Transport and Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB).

“As more and more Filipinos use app-based services for commuting, the new LTFRB rules can help level the playing field in the industry and ultimately benefit commuters with better and safer app-based car hire services,” said miCab founder Eddie Ybañez.

For Ybañez, LTFRB’s setting of new regulations for online and mobile-based transport services goes a long way in providing more convenience and safety to public commuters.

“The LTFRB’s new rules make the Philippines the first country to establish guidelines in this brave new world of internet and mobile app-based solutions to public transportation. This is indeed a landmark ruling,” he said.

The LTFRB defines private vehicles for hire that use net or mobile apps for booking and dispatching as a “Premium Taxi.”

Under its new rules, premium taxi operators must have at least 20 units in his or her fleet. These vehicles must be brand-new at the time of franchise application, follow the color set by the agency, and have a maximum age of only 7 years.

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Twitter today expanded its self-service ads platform from 33 countries to over 200 countries and territories. Now, small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) from Honduras to Hong Kong can more effectively reach target audiences on Twitter in 15 languages. In addition, Twitter announced that there are now approximately 100,000 active advertisers on Twitter, including SMBs.

Asia Pacific is Twitter’s fastest growing region worldwide and the platform expansion provides additional support for SMBs in Hong Kong, India, Malaysia and Philippines. According to recent research from the Asian Development Bank, SMBs account for 98% of all enterprises in Asia.

"Small and medium-sized businesses face the most challenges and are least resourced to promote the good work they do," says Emily Huo, SMB lead for Asia Pacific at Twitter. "With the expansion of the Twitter self-service ads platform, we are excited to help SMBs level the playing field with digital advertising."

Since Twitter launched Twitter Ads for SMBs over two years ago, Twitter’s clients have talked about how they’ve used Twitter’s creative, measurement, and targeting tools to drive website clicks or conversions, leads, and app installs or re-engagements. And, with objective-based campaigns, reports, and pricing and other tools available on Twitter’s global marketplace, it’s easier than ever for SMBs to drive results on Twitter while only paying for the actions that align with marketing objectives.

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The many wonders of the world will rule on Discovery Science this month.

A broad-based new science series explores our own planet with the same sense of awe and wonder normally reserved for alien worlds. Secrets of the Earth shows you Earth as you have never seen it before. High-end computer graphics, fun visual analogies and a recurring cast of dynamic experts combine to bring a stunning new perspective to the world you think you know. Catch the Secrets of The Earth in its new season premiering September 4, airing Fridays at 9:50 PM.

Have you ever wondered how things are made? You are not alone. From car tires to eye shadows, find out how many of the everyday objects we use become the things they are. Discovery Science will show you How It’s Made, with the new season premiering on September 5, airing Saturdays at 8:10 pm.

Brand-new series Outrageous Acts of Psych features unsuspecting people on the street, in offices, restaurants and public places unwittingly taking part in hilarious hidden-camera stunts that look like practical jokes but are really social science experiments. The resulting scenarios are analyzed by a rotating cast of experts who help us understand why we humans behave in the funny ways we do. Catch Outrageous Acts of Psych premiering September 21, airing Mondays at 9 pm.