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| (Image Source: Philippine Concerts/Netflix Philippines) |
Christmas comes early as Netflix kicks off the holiday season by unveiling a See What’s Next: Philippines 2023 lineup of local titles featured in the first-ever Netflix Station ID. The stars of three new Filipino titles coming soon on Netflix — Can’t Buy Me Love (Belle Mariano, Donny Pangilinan), Keys to the Heart (Zanjoe Marudo, Elijah Canlas), and Replacing Chef Chico (Piolo Pascual, Alessandra de Rossi, Sam Milby) — went Christmas caroling at Barangay Netflix together with the country’s sought-after celebrities who starred in recent hits Missed Connections (Miles Ocampo, Kelvin Miranda, Chie Filomeno) and What If (JM de Guzman), two local films that reached the Number 1 spot on Netflix’s top list after their launch on the service. The stars of Seasons (Lovi Poe, Carlo Aquino), another top film that debuted on Netflix, also sent their holiday greetings.
The video is full of Christmas spirit — and Easter eggs for all the Pinoy Netflix titles which includes the following (if you are keen in spotting any or all of them):
• There’s season’s greetings from Seasons’ Kurt and Charlie (Lovi Poe and Carlo Aquino) on a neighbor’s gate.
• Sneak a peek at Keys to the Heart’s Dolly de Leon on a vinyl cover.
• Keys to the Heart’s vinyl record spins as the carolers sing.
• Sing along to Can’t Buy Me Love flashing on a karaoke machine.
• A Bingo shaker, a nod to one of Can’t Buy Me Love’s main characters, doubles as an instrument.
• Peep the Replacing Chef Chico crates as our stars gather for a feast.
Netflix is home to a diverse offering of the best Filipino stories and talents and the See What's Next: Philippines 2023 lineup can become part of Filipinos' own watchlists to celebrate Christmas with their friends and families. At the See What’s Next: Philippines 2023 launch, top local directors expressed how excited they were for their titles to be part of this year’s local lineup and why they’re perfect for the Pinoy Christmas. “Christmas is about family, familial love, friends and it’s during [this] season when we try to evaluate the life that we had the past year, the milestones, failures, disappointment. Just like in our film, What If. What if iba nangyari sa buhay natin in the past year? What if kinuha ko ito or what if ’di ko ginawa ito? So I think it’s also not just a love story, it also helps us reflect kung ano nangyari sa buhay natin,” said Manny Palo, director of What If.
Keys to the Heart director Kerwin Go shared that his upcoming film is a must-watch this holiday season because “Keys to the Heart is a family dramedy. It’s a celebration of family, unconventional families, meaning blended families. It could be a family that you adopt and friends who become family and neighbors who actually become just as important.” “Replacing Chef Chico is about Ella, the sous chef who takes over Hain’s kitchen. I think it’s perfect for the Christmas season because on the top level it’s about love, friendship, and acceptance,” said director Dan Villegas. Replacing Chef Chico showrunner Antoinette Jadaone added, “For Christmas, perfect panoorin with your family, friends, and loved ones yung Replacing Chef Chico because, in every episode, there is a story of family, friendship and/or love, which is celebrated over food. It’s about time that Filipino food gets its proper spotlight. With this series, it’s a Filipino-produced original Netflix series, it’s a celebration of not just family, friends, or love but tayong mga Pinoy will be celebrating the Filipino food that we eat each day. When other countries watch the series, mafi-feel din nila iyon.”
