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Award-winning director Erik Matti admits he has been wanting to do a horror anthology film similar to Shake, Rattle & Roll, which has been a regular entry in the annual Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) for years.

In a recent interview, Direk Erik said, "I've had my own share of short films that I've done. Well, of course, I didn't graduate as a film student, so I never had a short film when I was a student. All my shorts were done when I was already a director. So, once in a while, I really want to dabble in making small shorter films because it takes on a whole different sensibility to tell a story shorter, concise, and faster, di ba?"

Direk Erik did not expect that the opportunity to fulfill his wish would happen during the pandemic.

He recalled, "Dondon [Monteverde] and I were talking about making a movie because there's nowhere to show it on. Then, we discussed it with Roselle Monteverde, who was also in a bind, 'Ano ba ang gagawin natin?' Back then, we still had On the Job, we had Day Zero, may ilang movies kaming nakabangko. Rosell of Regal Entertainment also had a few titles on her belt, but we have nowhere to show it.”

"So, parking that whole idea, we decided, 'Maybe we test out the water,' because of lockdown and the pandemic was loosening up around July or August last year. We thought, 'Maybe we should try out if we could still continue making movies witht this situation,'" he added.

This led UpStream PH executives, Direk Erik and Dondon, to produce the movie Rabid.

According to the movie director, Rabid was a dream come true for him.

He related his conversation with Roselle, whose movie production had produced the iconic movie series Shake, Rattle & Roll, "Sabi ko, sa tagal-tagal ko nang naging direktor, lahat ng direktor nakagawa na ng Shake, Rattle & Roll, ako hindi pa rin. So sabi ko, let's do our own Shake, Rattle & Roll with our own kind of stories and with our own kind of brand.”

He continued, "From there, Rabid was born is a compilation of four stories that we made. It all tackles what it feels like to be on the brink of madness. Kasi, noong nag-lockdown last year, muntik-muntikan na tayong masiraan ng ulo, di ba?

"So, gusto ko lang 'yan mailagay sa pelikula. Not really in a dark way, but looking back at that time, we can look at it as a little bit of fun, a little of enjoyment. At the same time, makikita natin how difficult it was to thrive during that pandemic."

Since this was inspired by the Shake, Rattle & Roll, GMANetwork.com asked why he did not submit the film for this year's MMFF?

Direk Erik answered, "From the very beginning, we made Rabid for UpStream. We never thought of submitting it to MMFF. We have other titles that we thought of submitting to the MMFF sana this year. But Rabid was really thought of as a launch on UpStream as a film. True to the SRR tone, parang ganun siya, a fun horror film that does not need you to look back on your work days, parang mae-enjoy mo lang."

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Aside from Rabid, UpStream PH also produced A Girl and A Guy amid the pandemic. This was among the top Filipino films on Netflix this year.

Rabid is one of the movies cinephiles can enjoy watching at the comfort of their homes via UpStream this holiday season.

While there will be no MMFF entries on the streaming website like last year, Direk Erik assures that they have the best offering this Christmas season for those who just want to stay home to avoid contracting COVID-19.

He said, "From our end sa UpStream, we will continue to provide entertainment for our audience, especially those who want to spend an intimate Christmas sa mga bahay lang nila. May surprise kaming ire-release na list of films that they could enjoy--family entertainment, for teenagers and young at heart, and even adult films meaning mature stories."

Meanwhile, remember these creatures from Pinoy horror movies?