Capturing Amazing Photos and Videos of Ilocos Province with the Vivo V7+

Wazzup Pilipinas!

One of the features I look for when choosing a mobile phone is having a dependable high-resolution camera. I need clear and vibrant photos and videos especially with my work as a blogger and media personality. The ability to capture images instantly is primarily necessary for us who cover news and events. There should always be a smartphone handy enough for easy point and click, and of course to match it with enough storage space to keep all those photos and videos safe and intact.

It has come to a point when my mirror-less camera takes a back seat as it is most preferred to share news immediately via social media, and that would only be possible with smartphones which would allow us to quickly upload on social media like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and the rest.

Though there are already cameras with built-in connectivity, the portability of using smartphones makes it more convenient to use. Nothing can match the lightness of a smartphone as compared to any of the existing cameras out there. I'm hoping very soon that there would come a time when smartphone cameras will take the place of the bulky DSLRs, mirror-less' and point-and-clicks. The future looks so bright and I'm feeling a bit optimistic that it would soon be the reality.

But I think the future is here as I am witness to how smartphones can be used for even professional videography.

Piolo Pascual is Brand Ambassador of Mober Mobile App for On-Demand Delivery Vans and Trucks

Wazzup Pilipinas!
One of the top brand ambassadors, Piolo "Papa P" Pascual, of the country has just added another brand under his name and that is Mober, a mobile app that lets you hire delivery vans and trucks on demand.

Why wait for several days when you could have your items delivered the same day, and without hassle because it's through an app that you could also use to monitor and make sure your items are well secured and in good hands.

The best thing about this new service is that it also allows delivery of pets  from dogs to cats and whatever is in existence that we have. Our pets get a transpo service by its own (if well-trained) or in the company of its owner or any pet caretaker.

Piolo obviously embraces technology since he knows the can find convenience using the Mober app and since he is also in the process of moving stuff to a new house, the Mober app is quite a tool that he could use to facilitate his easy transfer of his beloved possessions.

Since he mentioned that he already lost stuff, like his prized trophies and awards, he is now very careful and selective in choosing the right service provider. And now, since he also has trucks under his businesses, he is also thinking of converting some of his trucks and vans to Mober. Now that makes Piolo an official Mober partner.

A media launch was held at the Metropolitan Club in Makati a few days ago where Piolo was interviewed by members of the media.

I am waiting for an opportunity to try out the service as soon as I have some stuff to be delivered. Itr would be cool to expect a truck or van arriving at home the same day I prompted for it using the mobile app, and then find Piolo as one of the delivery boys. Lol!

We also have special interviews with the Founder and CEO of Mober, Mr. Dennis Ng. Actual coverage of the event are also uploaded on our social media accounts like YouTube, Facebook, etc.

Getting Ready for the Holidays: Your Safe Online Shopping Guide

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Online retailers are gearing up for the biggest shopping day of the year. With more consumers doing their holiday shopping online, additional compute resources and warehouses bulging with inventory ensure that shoppers won’t experience any delays in finding what they want, or making online transactions.

Unfortunately, merchants and shoppers aren’t the only ones getting ready. The holiday shopping season is also a big event for cybercriminals. Fake web sites, intercepting your financial data, charity scams, email phishing attacks, fake shopping sites, texting and SMS scams, and more are all designed to steal you personal and financial information.

So, in addition to checking your credit card balances and making out your shopping lists, you also need to take precautions before doing your holiday shopping online. If done right, it can be a safe and convenient way to buy gifts – if you follow a few simple rules.

Pay attention to where you are

 
In just the past few weeks we learned that WPA2, the encryption protocol used to protect data moving between a computer and the wireless device that connects it to the Internet has been broken. Which means you may want to think twice about doing your online shopping using the public Wi-Fi at your local coffee shop.

And that’s just the start.

Public W-Fi sites are a haven for criminals looking intercept your connection and use it to steal your credit card information, passwords, and other personal data. For example, that guy over in the corner with his laptop open is broadcasting his device as “Free Coffeshop Wi-Fi.” Which means that when you connect to it, he then connects you to the Internet through his device. Which means he can capture all the traffic moving between you and your online shopping site, bank, or social media accounts.

In addition, your phone is always searching for the wireless devices you usually connect to. Once your phone finds a familiar network it will automatically try to connect to it. But there are now tools out there that can detect the name of the devices your phone is searching for and mimic them, allowing a hacker to use that fake connection to steal your data. So be aware of the name of the wireless device you are connected to. If you are in a coffee shop at the mall, and your device thinks it is connected to your home wireless network, then someone is probably trying to steal your data.

Use protection

There are a number of things you can do to protect yourself when shopping online.

· Make sure all your devices are updated and patched. Providers issue regular security updates designed to protect you from known threats. Sometimes people assume that their mobile device is more secure than their laptop, but that is simply no longer true.

· Be careful when downloading new holiday apps, especially on Android phones, because we are seeing a spike in infected or fake apps – especially those not downloaded from official app stores.

· Use your credit card and not your debit card. Most credit cards have built-in fraud protection. Check with your bank or your card provider to learn more about what protections your card provides.

· Make sure your connection is secure. When you are about to make a purchase, look at the address bar of your browser and make sure that it starts with https:// rather than http://, or look for a small lock icon on your browser. These mean that your transaction is protected.

· Consider using a VPN (virtual private network) service. There are a number of low cost/no cost services that will ensure that all your connections are always protected.



Be careful when using unfamiliar sites

If you are shopping at an unfamiliar online store, then you may want to take precautions:

·         Don’t click on links in advertisements sent to your email or on web sites unless you check them first. If you hover your mouse over a link you should be able to see the URL. Look at it carefully. Is the name too long or does it contain lots of hyphens or numbers? Does it replace letters with numbers, such as amaz0n.com? It is best to never open an email or click on an attachment from someone you don’t know – especially when it includes an enticing subject line, such as a cash reward or a bill for something you didn’t purchase.

·         Use your search engine to look for online reviews and ratings of an unknown or unfamiliar site before you shop there. Use words like fraud or scam in your search.

·         Look at the website design. Does it look professional? Are the links accurate and fast? Are there lots of popups? These are all bad signs.

·         Read the text. Bad grammar, unclear descriptions, and misspelled words are all giveaways that the site is probably not be legitimate.

·         Be skeptical. Unusually low prices and high availability of hard to find items are red flags for scam sites. Sure there are some good deals out there. But people invented the phrase “too good to be true” for a reason.

·         Make sure the online retailer uses a secure checkout system that accepts major credit cards. Avoid sites that require direct payments from your bank, wire transfers, or untraceable forms of payment.

As our ability to purchase items, make online transactions, and connect to others through smart devices gets easier, we need to understand that these conveniences come with risks.

Cybercriminals are determined and informed on the latest trends and how to exploit them. Which is why we need to take the time to educate ourselves - and our friends and family – about shopping carefully so we can have a happy, and safe Holiday season.

Written By: Anthony Giandomenico
Senior Security Strategist/Researcher - FortiGuard Labs
Fortinet

National HUMSS Confab Set on February 2018

Wazzup Pilipinas!

CEREBRO is calling all senior high school students taking up the Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS) strand and teachers handling HUMSS-related subjects to attend the National Conference of Humanities and Social Sciences Students on Teachers on February 24-25, 2018 at the Angels' Hills Foundation in Tagaytay City.

Best-selling author and UST professor Eros S. Atalia will be the keynote speaker for the event with the theme "Appreciating the Humanities and the Social Sciences in the Age of Millennials".

Aside from lectures, several individual and group competitions (literary writing, poetry writing, news writing, speech choir, and quiz bee) will also be held, and the Network of Humanities and Social Sciences Teachers (HUMSS Net) will meet for the first time to elect its first set of coordinating officers and to accept new membership registrations.

For more information about this activity, interested participants may contact Mr. Jonald Justine Itugot, project director, at (0917)886-5402/cerebrocavite@gmail.com.

Southeast Asia’s Ecommerce Leader Lazada Smashes Sales Record

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Lazada, Southeast Asia’s leading ecommerce company, started its month long Online Revolution Sale by breaking it’s opening weekend record on 11.11. The Single’s Day event generated USD 123 million of Gross Merchandise Value (GMV), representing 171% year-over-year growth.

With over 6.5 million items ordered, across Southeast Asia, Lazada proved that the region has the purchasing power and connectivity to take e-commerce mainstream. This is proved by the broad scope of purchased items, from traditionally popular mobile phones, to diapers and women’s accessories. Over 70% of orders were placed from mobile devices, showing that shopping at Lazada is fast becoming a personal habit for millions across ASEAN.

Lazada Group’s Chief Executive Officer Maximilian Bittner said: “We aim to provide Southeast Asia’s rapidly growing middle-class the access to a wide range of products with deals and discounts that were previously available only abroad or in the capital cities. We continue to work tirelessly with our brand partners, as well as local and international merchants, to provide consumers with the same shopping opportunities, no matter where they are based. With brand and cross border sales volumes 3-4x of last year, I firmly believe that our differentiated value proposition of providing unique and accessible assortment continues to set us apart in the eyes of the region’s consumers.”



Holiday Shopping Turns to Holiday Savings in the Philippines

The Filipino spirit of gift giving translated well for Lazada during the Online Revolution
Sale. On November 11 alone Lazada Philippines recorded selling hundreds of thousands of items which translated to over 550 million pesos in savings for Filipinos. Lazada empowers the spirit of giving that makes Filipinos such a happy people.

Millennials, who are known to demand higher value, saw the highest participation in the Online Revolution Sale. More than half of Lazada customers were aged 32 years old below. Top selling items include coffee, digital goods, makeup and mobile accessories – essentials in every millennial’s daily survival kit.    

But the Online Revolution is not only for the young adult. There were almost the same number of diapers and tablets sold (19,000 to 20,000) on the first day of Online Revolution. From Millennials to Moms, the savings one gets from Lazada appeals to people from all walks of Philippine life.



The Revolution is still On

The buying spree continues until 12.12. Many surprises and massive savings up to 95% off from millions of jaw-dropping deals await customers. Watch out for December 7-12, the Grand Christmas Sale with even greater deals. More details will be announced in the coming weeks.



Christmas shopping has just begun. Can’t get enough? Visit www.lazada.com.ph/online-revolution/ to find out more.

Industry Leading Technology Partners Join the Fortinet Security Fabric Ecosystem

Wazzup Pilipinas!

New Fabric-Ready Program Partners Further Extend the Fortinet Security Fabric into the Cloud, Virtual Environments and Endpoint Devices

John Maddison, senior vice president of products and solutions at Fortinet

“Fortinet’s open approach enables multiple vendors’ solutions to tightly integrate with the Fortinet Security Fabric in real-time, further extending Fortinet and its partners’ capabilities to protect enterprises across the entire attack surface, from IoT to the Cloud. Fortinet would like to welcome our new Fabric-Ready partners and their ongoing commitment to provide a more secure future for all of our customers.”

News Summary

Fortinet, the global leader in high-performance cybersecurity solutions, today announced the addition of 11 industry-leading information technology providers to its Fabric-Ready Partner Program. These new partners further extend the Fortinet Security Fabric across traditional, cloud, virtual and software-defined environments while simplifying multi-vendor security deployments for enterprises.

• New Fabric-Ready Program Partners include ADVA Optical Networking, Bradford Networks, Cyber Observer, CSPi, FireMon, ForeScout Technologies, Intel Corporation, Microsoft Azure, Ribbon Communications (formerly Sonus Networks) and SentinelOne. 

• The Fabric-Ready Partner Program builds on Fortinet’s robust ecosystem of technology alliances by opening the functionality of the Fortinet Security Fabric to complementary solutions. Partners in this program validate technology integration with the Security Fabric, have committed to sharing roadmaps for consistent interoperability, and will benefit from joint go-to-market initiatives.

• To date, Fortinet has brought together 34 Fabric-Ready Program Partners, representing a cross-section of leading information technology providers to deliver pre-integrated, end-to-end offerings ready for deployment, reducing the technical support burden and costs for enterprise customers.

Working Together to Solve Today’s IT Security Challenges

Enterprises today are adopting new technologies and cutting-edge infrastructure strategies to enable continued growth in today’s competitive digital economy. Most of these organizations have deployed networking and security solutions from multiple vendors, which can pose significant challenges for IT teams to integrate and efficiently operate multi-vendor solutions across heterogeneous environments.

The Fortinet Security Fabric enables customers to maximize their existing technology investments through the Fabric-Ready Partner Program. Working together, Fabric-Ready partner solutions can leverage Fortinet’s well-defined APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) for deep integration with the Fortinet Security Fabric. This integration further extends Security Fabric capabilities across cloud, virtualized and software-defined environments and ensures seamless interoperation with partner solutions and services.

As part of the program, partners undergo solution validation with a commitment to ongoing interoperability. Additionally, Fabric-Ready partners will benefit from joint marketing and go-to-market initiatives with Fortinet. The following new technology partners have joined the Fabric-Ready Program across its various API integration points:

• Cloud: Microsoft Azure and Ribbon Communications.
• Endpoint, IoT (Threat Detection & Response): SentinelOne and ForeScout Technologies.
• Management: Bradford Networks, Cyber Observer, CSPi and FireMon.
• Virtualization, SDN, NFV: ADVA Optical Networking, Intel Corporation and Cloudify.

Fabric-Ready Partners Comment on the Security Fabric Ecosystem

“Communication service providers are driving toward network virtualization and the enablement of cloud-based services for their customers. However, with this transformation comes the need to increase focus on the security implications of these highly distributed environments. As an enablement platform for virtualization, ADVA leverages an ecosystem of partners to deliver industry-leading, best of breed solutions to our customers. This is why we are excited about becoming a Fabric-Ready Partner. With the integration of Fortinet’s advanced Security Fabric capabilities and ADVA’s dynamic network virtualization platform, we are now able to address the critical security requirements for our joint customers as the evolve their networks to become more cloud-native.”

• Michael Heffner, vice president of PLM, Ensemble at ADVA Optical Networking

“In an age where IoT and BYOD devices open the network to ever-increasing threats, becoming a Fabric-Ready Partner helps us provide customers with an integrated solution to manage unsecured devices and mitigate risks. Enhancing this partnership enables deeper integration between our two products, as well as simplifying management and growth, even as both solutions continuously evolve to counter security threats. This tight integration also increases the fidelity of alerts, improves the accuracy of event triage and enables our customers to build a stronger security posture, so they can face today’s security challenges with confidence.”

• Frank Andrus, chief technology officer at Bradford Networks

“Unfortunately, cyber breaches are on the rise and becoming more sophisticated every day, it’s not if – it’s when.  CSPi's nVoy products are integrated with the Fortinet Security Fabric to provide an automated breach detection solution that not only tells you when you have been breached, but identifies the actual critical that have been exposed. As a Fabric-Ready Partner, our joint customers can not only get ahead of breaches,  but also obtain all the forensic detailed records necessary to meet the tightening notification requirements from data privacy regulations such as GDPR as well as those of 49 US states.”

• Gary Southwell, general manager at CSPi

"VNF on boarding is a big challenge for the industry. Cloudify took a path informed by engagement with ETSI/NFV, OASIS TOSCA and the ONAP project. Our goal was to show that VNF deployment can happen on existing infrastructure in a fraction of the time and risk. A big advantage Fortinet has—in addition to platform flexibility and superior support—is its wide selection of supported public and private cloud platforms. So does Cloudify, and together we can address a wide array of multi-cloud and hybrid-cloud scenarios—and going forward, edge-compute—on both brownfield and greenfield deployments."

• Amir Levy, director of technical market development in the CTO office at Cloudify

“As CISOs and senior infosec managers deal with the ever-increasing complexity of their cybersecurity programs, we're excited to partner with Fortinet to deliver comprehensive awareness and insights in a single pane of glass, ensuring that threats are not only being dealt with at the operational level, but that posture, maturity, and resiliency can be understood, managed, and advanced at the executive level.  Partnering with Fortinet, we can provide out-of-the-box configuration and ensure that Cyber Observer is delivering its promise to our mutual clients of deploying within hours and providing real insights immediately.”

• Itzik Weinstein, chief executive officer of Cyber Observer

“The digital transformation is driving the adoption of new technologies that support and sustain continued growth. With this growth comes additional network complexity as well as a far larger attack surface, and it’s up to IT leaders to overcome these challenges and ensure that their networks are secure and compliant, without impeding business productivity.  FireMon is very pleased to join Fortinet’s Fabric-Ready Partner Program. Working together with Fortinet, we can help make our joint customers more secure, more agile, more efficient, and more compliant, all the time.”

• Tim Woods, vice president, technology alliances at FireMon

“The rise of IoT, growth of the mobile workforce and adoption of the cloud are dramatically increasing the demands on enterprises as they transition to best compete in the digital economy. Working together with Fortinet as part of its Fabric-Ready Partner Program, we can help make our joint customers more secure, agile, and compliant as they adopt new technologies that support and sustain continued growth without impeding business productivity.”

• Pedro Abreu, senior vice president and chief strategy officer, ForeScout Technologies

“The digital transformation is driving the adoption of new technologies that support and sustain continued growth. Yet with this growth comes additional network complexity as well as a far larger attack surface, and it’s up to IT leaders to overcome these challenges and ensure that their networks are secure and compliant, without impeding business productivity. We are very pleased to be a member of Fortinet’s Fabric-Ready Partner Program. Working together with Fortinet, we can help make our joint customers more secure, more agile, and more compliant.”

• Kevin Riley, chief technology officer at Ribbon Communications

“SentinelOne is proud to be part of Fortinet's Fabric-Ready Partner Program: Together, we combine the most visionary next-generation endpoint protection platform with Fortinet's full-stack of security solutions, allowing customers to see more and protect more - inside and outside their networks - in an automated fashion.  Next-generation endpoint and firewall, together, are the foundation of a secure digital transformation.  We look forward to taking our integrated solutions to market globally.”

• Daniel Bernard, vice president of business development at SentinelOne

Additional Resources

• Please visit Fortinet’s Partner homepage for more details about the Fortinet’s Fabric-Ready Partner program.
• Follow Fortinet on Twitter and LinkedIn, and Facebook.  
• Join the conversation on the Fortinet blog.

Order Up a Feast for the Holidays with FamilyMart Party Trays

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The best part about Christmas is preparing a lot of delicious dishes, digging into our favorite meals, and sharing the entire feast with the family. Every year, we’re all so excited about having a fantastic Christmas spread on the table. That’s why popular Japanese convenience store FamilyMart is serving up amazing Party Trays to make your upcoming holiday parties a whole lot more satisfying.

If you’re looking for scrumptious finger food to bring to your potluck parties, a tray of Lumpiang Shanghai for only P150 or Lumpiang Gulay for only P230 are both great for sharing. Then add in some Fried Pork Siomai or Fried Sharksfin for P290 each to add some street food flare to your menu.

Complete your festive table for your family Noche Buena with crispy and juicy Fried Chicken trays for P550. Pair up that flavorful chicken with a tray of Lasagna oozing with cheese, creamy Carbonara with bacon bits, or loaded Spaghetti Meatballs for P650 each.

You wouldn’t want anything going missing in your holiday menu, so make sure to order your Party Trays at least two days in advance at your nearest FamilyMart store. Go and have a memorable Christmas get together with your family and friends by ordering up a feast from FamilyMart. 

For updates, exciting products, and awesome deals, like and follow FamilyMart Philippines on Facebook, @familymartph on Instagram, and @FamilyMartPH on Twitter. For store locations or more information on FamilyMart Philippines, log on to www.familymart.com.ph.

FamilyMart is the 2nd largest convenience store chain in the world with over 18,000 stores across Asia. In the Philippines, FamilyMart has branches in Makati, Fort Bonifacio, Quezon City, Mandaluyong, Pasig, Pasay, Alabang and Laguna.

Head Up to Clark on Dec 2 for ColorManila’S CM Blacklight Run

Wazzup Pilipinas!

ColorManila, known as the most aggressive concept fun-run organizer in the country today, will have its 3rd running event in Clark, Pampanga this year, for its CM Blacklight Run.

ColorManila has in fact hosted over 15,000 participants in their events at Clark, Pampanga for the past 18 months, which makes Clark, one of their biggest fun-run venues outside of Metro Manila.

In fact, their CM Blacklight Clark Run held December also of last year, gathered 6,000 people at the venue, with some foreigners flying in from the United States and other parts of Asia, just to join the event.

ColorManila Vice President Justine Cordero says, “This is all possible because of Clark Development Corporation’s support. And we look forward to organizing more events at their venue.”

Cordero continues, “We also want the runners to enjoy the cool breeze of December in this night run, as they go thru various race finishes of 3K, 5K and 10K; and of course, the color stations that everyone looks forward to, along with the color festival.”

Runners have the option of choosing between the Deluxe Kit, Rockstar Kit and the Superstar Kit. The Deluxe Kit priced at P750, comes with a costume singlet, race bib, costume drawstring bag, color packet and a finisher’s medal. While the Rockstar Kit priced at P1,050, comes with a dri-ft shirt, race bib, headlamp, color packet and a finisher’s medal. Lastly, the Superstar Kit which is priced at P1,200, comes with a dri-fit shirt, race bib, headlamp, 3 drawstring bags, headwear, color packet and a finisher’s medal.

CM Blacklight Run co-presented by Sutherland, will be held on December 2, 2017, at the Clark Parade Grounds, assembly time is at 7 p.m.

Registration is still ongoing. For more information, www.colormanilarun.com for more details.

Gear Up for a GEM-Packed Holiday!

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Cheer for a team of underdog players in the sports drama Baseball Brainiacs. Join a group of university students as they make their dreams come true in the relationship drama Sea Side Blue. Attend the reunion of two estranged friends in the mystery special Miman City 2017. Test your general knowledge in the game show Burning Questions! SP1. Finally, end the year with sightseeing and delectable dishes in the cooking travel show MOCO’S Kitchen In Kyoto, and start the next one right with life lessons from We’re Millennials. Got a problem? Special.


Baseball Brainiacs

“You don’t have to be strong to win” is the catchphrase of this unusual coach of a high school baseball team. From being in a top-ranking high school to attending a top university, Tamo Aoshi (Ninomiya Kazunari) has always been on the fast track to success until he met the unexpected shut down of the bio-laboratory where he was working at. Reluctantly, he accepts a teaching position at his alma mater.

With his unconventional background, Tamo becomes a coach to a small team of incompetent but passionate baseball players who reminded him of his past. How will Tamo confront his past and lead this team of unusual jocks to victory?

Baseball Brainiacs premieres December 13, every Wednesday and Thursday at 9PM, first and exclusively on GEM.

Sea Side Blue

Third-year university students are at the crossroads of their lives, confronted with life choices. Matsuoka Aoi (Arimura Kasumi) loves the sea but has given up on her dream of oceanographic research due to her parents’ objections. However, life begins to change for her as she meets students of Kaiyo University at an aquarium they are working in. Love and friendship are entwined as the eight youths pursue their dreams together.

Sea Side Blue premieres December 30, every Saturday at 7.30PM, first and exclusively on GEM.

Miman City 2017

Twenty years ago, a group of teenagers and children became the only survivors after a mysterious virus caused the death of all the adults in the city. In this lawless and chaotic city, Shindo Yamato (Domoto Koichi) and Takigawa Takeru (Domoto Tsuyoshi) with their friends lead these unsupervised children to achieve peace and stability. When all was settled, they parted ways with a promise to meet again in twenty years’ time. Now as 38-year-old men, will they remember their promise? What happened to the city? Was the virus completely eradicated?

Miman City 2017 premieres December 25, Monday, at 9PM, first and exclusively on GEM.

Burning Questions! SP1

This is the ultimate true or false quiz show! Educational yet entertaining, there is no shortage of questions to pique your interest. The celebrity contestants must score the highest number of points to win and get a chance at the final challenge. Their general knowledge is put to the test with intriguing and bizarre questions. Statements from Mr. True and Mr. False muddle the minds of the contestants. Will they be fooled into answering differently? Who will emerge as the winner?

Burning Questions! SP1 premieres December 24, Sunday at 8.30PM first and exclusively on GEM.

MOCO’S Kitchen In Kyoto!
Once again, Mocomichi Hayami travels out of his kitchen. This time he explores the beautiful city of Kyoto! Let MOCO bring you around to see the sights of Kyoto and explore the food that are special to the city. Watch him put on his apron and cook up a storm topped with the flavors of Kyoto.

MOCO’S Kitchen In Kyoto! premieres December 31, Sunday at 8.30PM, first and exclusively on GEM.

We’re Millennials. Got a problem? Special

Masakazu, Kazutoyo, and Maribu are three individuals from the Yutori or “pressure-free” generation with different family backgrounds. As adults, they grow to realise that life is not as simple as they thought it will be. One year has passed since they try to cope with real world problems of love, work and family. Have their lives improved in this one year? What were the changes for their families and themselves? Have this “pressure-free” trio achieved their dreams?

We’re Millennials. Got a problem? Special premieres January 1, Monday at 9PM, first and exclusively on GEM.


GEM is available on SKYCable Channel 116 in Metro Manila and on Channel 222 in Cebu, Davao, Bacolod, Iloilo, and Baguio.

Ballet Philippines Presents a Magical Filipino Christmas in Edna Vida’s The Nutcracker

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Ballet Philippines (BP), the country’s flagship dance company, presents the timeless Christmas ballet in full Filipino splendor in Edna Vida’s The Nutcracker. Nobuo Fujino (formerly a Senior Artist at the Australian Ballet and Principal Dancer with Hong Kong Ballet) returns to BP as guest artist courtesy of Japan Foundation and Tan Yan Kee Foundation, and the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Gerard Salonga, plays Tchaikovsky’s iconic music live on select performances.

A ballet for the whole family, The Nutcracker is a holiday tradition all over the world, with professional dance companies and schools doing their own version of the beloved full-length ballet. BP sets itself apart by adding its own Filipino flavor to the time and tested ballet.

Set in the Philippines in the 1920s, The Nutcracker follows our young heroine Clara on a fantastic journey. At her family’s Noche Buena, Clara receives an enchanted Nutcracker Doll from her godfather, the toymaker Don Alfonso Quintero. Her sister gets the Sugar Plum Fairy Doll and her brother, the Rat King Doll. As midnight strikes, all the toys including her beloved Nutcracker, the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Rat King come to life, and a battle between Rats and Toy Soldiers ensues. Her Nutcracker valiantly leads the soldiers, but is soon overpowered by the evil Rat King. Just as the Rat King delivers his final blow, Clara comes to the Nutcracker’s rescue and the Rat King falls.

As the rats scurry off with their king, Don Alfonso appears and reveals the true identity of her doll—he is the Nutcracker Prince! He and the Sugar Plum Fairy have been trapped in a spell which only a person pure of heart can break.

In gratitude for Clara’s act of courage, the Nutcracker Prince whisks her away to the Kingdom of the Dolls. A feast is celebrated in her honor as she is surrounded by dolls from all over the world, dancing flowers, and the beautiful Sugar Plum Fairy.

What makes this Nutcracker unique is how the late National Artist for Theater Design Salvador Bernal incorporated Filipino design elements into the sets. The turn-of-the-century grand ballroom showcases art nouveau arches with anahaw leaves and framed capiz shells. With additional choreography by Alice Reyes, The Nutcracker is the perfect holiday treat for children.

Fujino will partner BP’s Denise Parungao as the Sugar Plum Fairy. Alternating with Parungao is resident guest artist Candice Adea and company member Jemima Reyes. They will be partnered by Lester Reguindin and Victor Maguad, respectively.

Catch us on December 1-10, 2017 at the CCP Main Theater. For tickets, call Ballet Philippines at (+632) 551-1003, the CCP Box Office at (+632) 832-3704, or Ticketworld at (+632) 891-9999 or Ticketworld.com.ph.

Connect to Ballet Philippines online through the following social media networks:


Facebook: www.facebook.com/balletphilippines
Instagram: @balletphilippines
YouTube: balletph