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‘Trailblazer and game-changer’: Why ABS-CBN continues to attract international co-productions

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Miguel Dumaual, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Sharon Cuneta (left) and Arjo Atayde (right) are attached to star in titles under ABS-CBN International Production and Co-Production, a division headed by Ruel S. Bayani (middle). ABS-CBN/ Instagram: @reallysharoncuneta" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2022/entertainment/02/21/20220221-arjo-sharon.jpg"/><figcaption>Sharon Cuneta (left) and Arjo Atayde (right) are attached to star in titles under ABS-CBN International Production and Co-Production, a division headed by Ruel S. Bayani (middle). ABS-CBN/ Instagram: @reallysharoncuneta</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA — ABS-CBN’s track record as a storyteller and content creator has been the main draw of the media company as a partner in international co-productions, as seen in its growing slate of global titles.Currently, ABS-CBN International Production and Co-Production has three projects in various stages of development — and those are only the announced ones.“The Rebirth of the Cattleya Killer,” the modern retelling of the 1996 suspense-thriller “Sa Aking Mga Kamay,” has started filming in Pampanga. The Arjo Atayde-starrer is helmed by director Dan Villegas, with the same local producers of “Almost Paradise,” the first US TV series to be entirely shot in the Philippines.“Concepcion,” a crime family series centering on a Filipino kingpin in Los Angeles, and “Sellblock,” a New Bilibid Prison-set drama that involves an American agent, were both announced in February.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/02/15/22/abs-cbn-co-producing-intl-prison-drama-sellblock">Next on the ABS-CBN sound stages: International prison drama ‘Sellblock’</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/02/15/22/sharon-cuneta-up-for-major-role-in-us-series">Sharon Cuneta up for ‘major role’ in US series co-produced by ABS-CBN</a></li></ul>Those are aside from ABS-CBN’s announced partnerships with foreign media companies and platforms — YouTube, Viu, WeTV, and iflix among them.“For those who know us in the region, they know that we’ve been trailblazers,” Ruel S. Bayani, head of ABS-CBN International Production and Co-Production said, when asked why the Kapamilya group has been an attractive collaborator internationally.“ABS-CBN has been the trailblazer, has been the game-changer sa landscape ng entertainment. It’s important that they know that we’re trustworthy, we’re reliable. They can decide for themselves,” he said.He cited the ongoing success of “The Broken Marriage Vow,” ABS-CBN’s adaptation of the hit BBC drama “Doctor Foster,” as an indication of the appeal of Filipino stories abroad. The mistress drama notably became the most viewed Asian drama in Viu in its opening week.“The partners know that we are very serious about the quality of our production and our consistency,” Bayani said.ABS-CBN was already gearing towards international co-productions and partnerships even before the pandemic, according to Bayani. That the network was beset by another crisis, the denial of its franchise renewal, only reinforced the push for content meant for the global market.“We were really supposed to do it. Na-delay lang tayo because of the pandemic. Now things are improving. We’re going to roll out na.“Remember, this kind of business of ABS-CBN is not dependent on any franchise or any frequency, and this has been a long-time dream of management that we co-produce for global content and to champion Filipino talent,” he said.Bayani sees even wider growth for his group in the coming years, with partnerships yet to be announced set to firmly place ABS-CBN as a trusted collaborator on the global stage.“Hindi siya for show. We need to prove to our partners and to people from Southeast Asia, the region, that we will continue to build on it, continue to learn from all these experiences, and eventually even embark on bigger projects and continue to scale and build this division,” he said.The ongoing production of “Cattleya Killer,” for example, implements practices carried over from ABS-CBN’s co-production with Hollywood’s Electric Entertainment on “Almost Paradise,” according to Bayani.“Kung ano ‘yung system namin sa Cebu for ‘Almost Paradise,’ exactly ganoon ‘yung sistema or workflow or process namin dito, even if wala nang American partners,” Bayani said, referring to the set in Pampanga.“It&#x27;s very exciting kasi dito natin mapapatunayan na even left on our own, kaya natin gawin ‘yung mga natutunan natin. Iyon ang plano namin gawin for all of our productions, to really adapt, na gawin ‘yung prosesong ‘yun, because we will be making a lot of international projects,” he added.Beyond leveling to global standards of entertainment production, Bayani said a main thrust of ABS-CBN International Production and Co-Production is to continue developing talents both in front and behind the cameras.“All the efforts that we’ve done so far consistently, kita naman, that we are serious about it. It’s a lot of hard work. Walang madali sa process na ‘to but kinakaya because we need to show our people that no one is giving up. No one is being complacent. We want to challenge ourselves. We want to create new opportunities for our people.“And, of course, we want to inspire our fellow Kapamilyas that there are so many other ways to continue serving the Filipinos, and many other ways to champion our talents,” he said.

ABS-CBN’s track record as a storyteller and content creator has been the main draw of the media company as a partner in international co-productions, as seen in its growing slate of global titles.

‘Trailblazer and game-changer’: Why ABS-CBN continues to attract international co-productions

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‘Trailblazer and game-changer’: Why ABS-CBN continues to attract international co-productions

Miguel Dumaual,

ABS-CBN News

Published February 18, 2022 05:51 AM PHT

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Updated February 21, 2022 06:18 PM PHT

Read More:

The Rebirth of the Cattleya Killer

The Broken Marriage Vow

Conepcion

Sellblock

Almost Paradise

ABS-CBN International Production and Co-Production

Ruel S. Bayani

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