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Korean director Nam Ki Hoon will helm the film to be produced by local outfit Trifecta Brand Lab alongside Korean producer Ilho Lee.

Among Nam's most recent projects are the series Kiss Sixth Sense (2022), Big Bet (2022), and Confidence Queen (2025).

Through a press conference last week, producer Tristan Cheng announced their collaboration with the Korean director.

“We are very fortunate that Mr. Nam is here and is announcing that we are doing a film that will be a collaboration between Korean actors, talents, and creatives; and Filipino actors, and creatives,” Tristan said.

According to Nam, his collaboration project with Trifecta Brand Lab will be different from his usual work.

In Korean, Nam said, “I've been in the Philippines for several times. And every time I visit here, lagi po akong masaya, lagi may bagong experience na nakukuha.

“To be honest, the film projects I've done before have a dark theme. But, personally, after experiencing the Philippines, I saw how warm, kind, and bright the Filipinos are.

"So, the project that we're preparing at the moment is focusing more on the human side, the good side of the Philippines, and how the main character can experience how warm and passionate the Filipinos are when treating other people. So, I'm very excited to see and express this positive emotion from the Philippines."

Nam shared that he has previously visited Boracay, Cebu, and Manila. However, for this project, they plan to shoot in a location that is not yet familiar to tourists.

He explained, “We are moving away from the popular tourist spots. We want to introduce, through this project, those who don't know much about the Philippines but know that it is very beautiful here.

“In the three or four times I have been to the Philippines for this project, we're continuously searching for a spot where we can truly show the beauty of the Philippines.”

To bring the project to life, Nam will work not only with Filipino actors but also with local creative staff.

“It's a very new experience. Before, if I would have shoots here in the Philippines, mostly we would have staff 80 percent Koreans and 20 percent Filipinos.

"But through this project, it will change. I mean, 90 percent would be Filipino and less [Koreans]. During this process, I'm still learning how to get along with Filipino staff.”

Aside from the location, Nam is also setting his sights on a fresh face—one who embodies a “cute, bright, and energetic” charm and can potentially star opposite a Korean lead actor.

Nam said, “What I'm looking for in an actress is the harmony she can show with our male lead. At the moment, we are still looking for a possible female lead for us. For your reference, we want to have a female lead who is very bright, cute, and energetic.”

For the lead actor, Korean movie producer Ilho Lee shared that they have already shortlisted several Korean actors, some of whom have held fan meetings in the Philippines.

According to Tristan, one of their considerations in choosing the lead actor is the strength of his fanbase in the Philippines.

“We wanna make sure that he has a good following when it comes to his fanbase.”

Meanwhile, Tristan mentioned that as a producer, the project is very personal to him because he admires the work ethics of Koreans.

“Alam naman natin, ang gaganda ng mga show ng Korean, di ba? Hindi naman natin yun matatanggal sa atin. I wanna learn. I wanna be part of it and I wanna be the start of something that is new when it comes to producing this kind of movie, whatever movie output na magawa naming,” he concluded.