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This April, GMA Films will have a Roman holiday with Gabby Concepcion, Jolina Magdangal, Rufa Mae Quinto, Mark Herras, Rhian Ramos...
This April, GMA Films will have a Roman holiday with Gabby Concepcion, Jolina Magdangal, Rufa Mae Quinto, Mark Herras, Rhian Ramos, and Eugene Domingo to shoot "My Holiday Off (I trust and love you a.k.a. ITALY)," a new movie to be directed by Mark Reyes. Text by Jillian Q. Gatcheco. Interviews by Connie M. Tungul and Xylen Alamo-Punelas. Photos by Mitch S. Mauricio and courtesy of GMA Films. It's holiday time! In an exclusive interview with GMA Films supervising producer Joey Abacan, he revealed that 80% of the film will be shot aboard a ship. "Syempre doon sa cruise mismo bababa ang staff sa mga iba't-ibang lugar like Naples, Sicily, [and] Barcelona, but basically sa Italy province and Spain. May mga parts sila na babaan doon pero ang medyo matagal-tagal sila is in Genoa, Italy. Hopefully if we would be able to shoot, we would see Rome, and syempre I'm keeping my fingers crossed -- baka makikita niyo rin sila sa Venice."

Among the tentative titles GMA Films chose from were "Love cruise" and "Roman holiday off," but as of Friday, March 7, Mr. Abacan confirmed their final decision. Aside from the breathtaking views that the movie promises is the added anticipation of Gabby Concepcion's showbiz comeback. "We are very excited because we know this is going to be the pathway again for us to be able to showcase a great actor's work through our movie. Matagal na rin nawala si Gabby and marami na rin na nasasabik sa kanyang pagbabalik. At natutuwa naman kami dahil itong pelikulang My Holiday Off [ang] parang magiging window para makita ulit natin si Gabby. At saka noong nakausap namin si Gabby, natuwa rin kami na pinili niya ang GMA Films kung saan makikita siya ulit." Mr. Abacan shares that he spoke with Gabby on the phone about a week ago and it sounded like the actor was quite excited to make a comeback, but also seemed a little nervous. "He said, 'I look different already Joey, baka akala mo na ako pa rin yung dating Gabby Concepcion who left Manila [years ago].' It's really funny because he sent me a picture and he's still cute na parang walang pagbabago -- gwapo talaga!" Back again What does Gabby think of going back to showbiz? "I think masaya si Gabby hindi lang [dahil] sobrang big production [ito], but [because] itong pelikula would of course showcase sila Jolina Magdangal, Rufa Mae Quinto, Mark Herras, Rhian Ramos and Eugene Domingo. Kung titingnan mo yung mga makakasama ni Gabby na tao, mga bida na rin yan sa mga sari-sarili nilang pelikula." He adds, "Ang maganda dito sa pelikulang ito, yung mga artista na kinuha namin are sobrang magagaling, especially sila Jolina and Rufa Mae -- sobrang husay nila with their own craft. Tapos nandito pa si Gabby Concepcion! Para bang for such a long time, it's a first na magkakaroon kayo ng isang malaking production na pagsasamahin ng GMA Films ang mga malalaking artista na ito." Ensemble casting He emphasizes that it's an "ensemble casting" because it will not bank on a love team this time around. Instead, Mr. Abacan describes it as a "situational comedy" which he likens to Hollywood flicks like Everyone says I love you (1996) and Love actually (2003). "Iba-iba yung characters pero lahat yun nakakatuwa, so every person who would watch this movie would really find themselves in at least one of the characters. Kasi ano ba naman ang tao? Ang tao naghahanap talaga ng kung ano ang kinabukasan natin, kung ano ang destino natin sa buhay," he explains. The main cast is supposed to leave on the first week of April, but a few will get a head start in Genoa, Italy for the Gabby-Jolina scenes. The production will prioritize all the scenes outside the country before shooting the parts in the Philippines. Gabby has already signed a contract with GMA Films, and he might also do some shows for the Kapuso Network. "Ang dami-dami pa. We are not only looking at one movie but we are also looking for bigger movies pa," says Mr. Abacan. "He's much matured now and he's telling me that what he really likes is a role that would [make people] consider him to be not only just a cute guy but a guy filled with wisdom that he would be able to share through his [character]. And I think with the script and the storyline that we have gone through so far, I'm quite sure that we are going to be hitting the correct objective and the idea of GMA Films." Visit iGMA daily for more updates on My Holiday Off! In the meantime, tell us what you think about this project in its iGMA Forum thread . Text JOLINA, MARK, or RHIAN to 4627 to Feel the Fun with Fanatxt! To receive picture messages from their phone, text GOMMS (NAME OF CELEB) ON and send to 4627. (Each SMS costs P2.50 for GLOBE, SMART, and TALK N TEXT, and P2.00 for SUN subscribers. Each MMS costs P5.00 for all Networks.) Service available only in the Philippines.