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'Isa siyang revelation,' Direk Cathy says of Ivana Alawi in 'Partners In Crime'

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Miguel Dumaual, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Ivana Alawi, Cathy Garcia-Molina, and Vice Ganda share a light moment during the December 13 media conference of ‘Partners In Crime.’ Miguel Dumaual, ABS-CBN News" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2022/entertainment/12/14/20221214-ivana.jpg"/><figcaption>Ivana Alawi, Cathy Garcia-Molina, and Vice Ganda share a light moment during the December 13 media conference of ‘Partners In Crime.’ <em>Miguel Dumaual, ABS-CBN News</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA — Known to most as a social media darling, Ivana Alawi was a “revelation” as an actress for director Cathy Garcia-Molina during the filming of their first project together, the Metro Manila Film Festival entry “Partners In Crime.”</p><p>The two also collaborated for the first time with comedy superstar Vice Ganda in the movie — a welcome break from drama for Alawi, coming from her launching teleserye “A Family Affair.” </p><p>But it was also precisely the newness of the undertaking that intimidated Alawi, at least initially.</p><p>“Very different siya, kasi coming from very heavy drama, tapos biglang naging comedy, tapos si Direk Cathy, sobrang na-pressure ako. Sabi ko, ‘Parang hindi ko kaya.’ Tapos si Meme Vice pa kasabayan ko! Sabi ko, ‘Hindi ko kakayanin na makipagsabayan’ sa loob-loob ko,” she said.</p><p>She credited her director for being “hands-on” when it came to admittedly challenging scenes, and her co-star for easing her into the genre and lifting her apprehensions.</p><p>“Sa movie na ‘to, lahat kasi nagtulungan. Si Direk Cathy, super hands-on talaga siya. ‘Pag may mga scenes na nahihirapan ako, talagang sumusuporta siya,” Alawi told ABS-CBN News.</p><p>“Si Meme, talagang pumu-push siya, ‘Ito ang gagawin, kaya mo ‘yan!’ Very well supported ako in this movie and I’m very grateful ako to the team na nandito, kasi talagang naramdaman ko ‘yung suporta. It became easier for me,” she added.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2w2ir3lzL3Q?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><p>Contrasting her debut lead roles on TV and on the big screen, Alawi went on: “Mas natural, mas nag-enjoy ako dito sa comedy kasi hindi ako masyadong umiiyak. Kasi doon sa teleserye, every day ‘yung iyakan namin siguro six times a day, sunod-sunod. Parang ‘yung breakfast, lunch, dinner ko puro luha. Dito naman, puro tawa! Ang saya-saya, ang gaan-gaan.”</p><p>Garcia-Molina, who was seated beside Alawi during the Tuesday media conference of “Partners In Crime,” teased the actress whether she was ready for an assessment of her performance, when asked to describe their working relationship.</p><p>Turning serious, the filmmaker said of Alawi: “Isa siyang revelation.”</p><p>“Nakikita ko siya sa drama. Hindi ko siya napapanood masyado sa vlog, kasi hindi naman ako ma-online na tao. But I’ve seen some of her scenes. I was scared, to be honest, na, ‘Ano ba’ng kayang ibigay ng isang Ivana?’ Kasi, siyempre, si Meme, meron na siyang libong plake na pinapakitang kaya ko ‘to. E, kami? Ako, romcom. Si Ivana, galing sa drama at vlogging.”</p><p>A candid Garcia-Molina also recalled not being particularly impressed with Alawi’s beauty, as seen in the actress’ countless viral posts that have catapulted her as a new-generation sex symbol. That changed when they finally got to work together.</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="tl"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PartnersInCrime?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PartnersInCrime</a> cast, creatives promise “comedy with a heart” in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MMFF2022?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MMFF2022</a> entry.<br/>“Kung stressed ka, panoorin mo ‘to. Nakakatawa ‘to, promise! Itataya ko lahat ng wig ko sa bahay!” Vice Ganda quips. <a href="https://twitter.com/ABSCBNNews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ABSCBNNews</a> <a href="https://t.co/KL0zmLbWxf">pic.twitter.com/KL0zmLbWxf</a></p>— Miguel Dumaual (@migueldumaual) <a href="https://twitter.com/migueldumaual/status/1602608767824433154?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 13, 2022</a></blockquote><div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charSet="utf-8" type="text/javascript"></script></div><p>“Ang totoo, hindi ako nagagandahan kay Ivana — until nag-look test kami. Sabi ko, ‘Ang ganda naman palang bata nito.’ Mahal siya ng kamera. Of course, siyempre, mabait. Hindi naman puwedeng hindi mabait sa akin, ‘di ba. Naggo-grow siya sa akin,” the director said.</p><p>Garcia-Molina echoed Alawi’s statement about Vice Ganda being instrumental in letting the actress out of her shell as a newbie comedienne.</p><p>“I told him (Vice Ganda), ‘Hindi ka madamot na tao.’ Nakikita ko kung paano niya alalayan si Ivana sa mga scenes. Minsan nagbibigay siya ng punch line kay Ivana, minsan bubulong ‘yan. Minsan ako, ‘Ano na naman niluluto nitong dalawang ‘to?’ Meron silang sariling usapan!” she recalled, laughing.</p><p>Beyond Alawi’s newfound comedic timing, Garcia-Molina commended the actress for disappearing into the role; that is, not having a trace of the ubiquitous social media darling in her portrayal in “Partners In Crime.”</p><p>“Ivana, I think, portrayed this character well. In fairness, walang Ivana sa movie. And I hope you see that, too. When you watch this, you will not see Ivana. You will see Barbara Nicole Rose Albano,” she said.</p><div><strong>Related video:</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EdC4HMff2Fg?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

Known to most as a social media darling, Ivana Alawi was a “revelation” for Cathy Garcia-Molina as an actress during the filming of their first project together, the Metro Manila Film Festival entry “Partners In Crime.”

'Isa siyang revelation,' Direk Cathy says of Ivana Alawi in 'Partners In Crime'

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'Isa siyang revelation,' Direk Cathy says of Ivana Alawi in 'Partners In Crime'

Miguel Dumaual,

ABS-CBN News

Published Dec 14, 2022 09:35 PM PHT

Read More:

Ivana Alawi

Cathy Garcia-Molina

Vice Ganda

Partners In Crime

Star Cinema

Viva Films

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