JILLIAN Ward and her co-stars in “Prima Donnas” have reason to celebrate because the return of their show, which was halted by the corona lockdown, was greeted warmly by its loyal viewers. The story continued in the fresh new episodes they taped in a lock in location and the show’s fans are happy to see what has happened to the Donnas, with Jillian playing the eldest one, Donna Marie or Mayi.
“Nakakatuwa po basahin ang comments at feedback nila kasi it shows na na-miss nila talaga kami,” says Jillian. “Ngayon daw, masasagot na ang questions na naiwang nakabitin after biglang maputol noong March ang show.”
Wasn’t it difficult to get back to their characters after being idle for so long? “What I did is I watched past episodes of ‘Prima Donnas’ on youtube to reconnect with my character and the story again,” she replies. “Tapos, with the help of each other and our director, Tita Gina Alajar, it became easier for all of us para makabalik and internalize the characters na aming ginagampanan.”
How is it working under the situation called new normal? “Well, siempre, you have to learn how to adjust kasi bale 3 weeks kaming lock in sa set. Walang uwian. But after a while, I started liking it kaysa sa dating system na puyatan. Now, 12 hours of work lang kami then we go back to our rooms in the hotel where taping is taking place. No more travel time at all but with safety measures.”
So how would she assess working at the time of the pandemic? “Mahirap po, but it’s also kinda fun kasi we’re all together in just one location, our Primas Donna family. We are making good memories together habang magkakasama kami sa location while practising health protocols like yung having swab test together to insure we’re all healthy.”
Since the show’s rating continue to soar higher, they are now about to do another lock in taping for two more weeks. “The episodes we will be taping is until for December na po. We don’t know yet kung matatapos na ang story kasi it all depends sa reception ng viewers. Sana patuloy na mataas ang ratings namin para ma-extend pa kami at may trabaho until dumating ang New Year na 2021.”
Don’t miss the new exciting episodes of “Prima Donnas” every afternoon at 3:30 PM.
Janno happy about new show
JANNO Gibbs has worked with GMA-7, ABS-CBN and TV5. Now, he’s glad to do a show, “Happy Time”, with Net25.
“We started last September and so far, happy talaga kami pati ang management,” he says. “You can see this naman sa feedback ng viewers online. Even our bosses are happy with the feedback from satisfied viewers. We’re glad na napapasaya namin sila.”
He used to be identified as a perennial late comer, but he claims that he has since reformed. “Disciplined na po tayo. Matagal na kong hindi nale-late. Maski sa shooting ng movies na ginagawa ko sa Viva, hindi na ako nale-late. You can ask them. And now, I just feel blessed having a hosting job sa isang noontime show. At daily pa. So I’m really grateful to Net 25 for giving me this show. At kahit na hindi naman ako member ng Iglesia ni Kristo, they treat me well. And of course, it’s a joy to be working with my longtime friend, Anjo Yllana, na nakasama ko na sa ilang movies and TV shows before kaya swak agad kami. Ang co-host namin, si Kitkat, blends well with us, so we’re all happy hosting the show and with the viewer’s favorable response to us.”
How are they faring compared to more durable noontime shows? “Yun nga ang isang gusto kong linawin. We’re not competing with them, with ‘Eat Bulaga’ or ‘Showtime’, kasi ang tatagal na nila sa ere. E, kami, kasisimula pa lang namin and, ang Net25, bago pa rin pa lang sa pagsabak sa entertainment. We just offer ‘Happy Time’ as an alternative show and the important thing is ine-enjoy naming gawin ito and I think it shows naman on screen kaya the online viewers’ comments are all very inspiring.”
We’ve noticed they even mention their rivals in “Happy Time”, like Tito, Vic and Joey. “Yes, hahahaha! Lahat naman, binabanggit at kinukumusta namin, to show we’re very friendly to all. Let’s face it, wala pa ang Net25 sa digibox like TV Plus at sa Affordabox kaya wala pa kaming ganoong kuneksyon o signal na nakukuha sa cable channels. But nakikita rin namin ang lakas namin sa Facebook at sa Youtube. And of course, solid ang support sa amin ng viewers who are members of Iglesia ni Cristo. At siempre, dahil INC ito, very wholesome kami. Walang mga kaberdehan kundi family humor and entertainment lang. Maganda yung segment ko na I do one-on-one interviews then nagja-jam kami sa pagkanta, like sina Vina Morales, Tina Paner, Faith Cuneta. Ang ganda ng feedback doon.”
We know his and Bing Loyzaga’s eldest daughter, Alyssa, is supposed to have gotten married sometime this year. “Dahil sa pandemic, they decided to postpone it, baka next year na raw and it will be held in Australia,” he says.
Aside from “Happy Time”, Janno has three new movies with Viva Films: “A Hard Day” with Dingdong Dantes (completed but can’t be shown because of the pandemic), “Mang Jose” and “Rocketman”.
