Rosy Cheeks Hires Ferdinand Dimadura
By Noli Yu
Ferdinand Dimadura became the first Filipino composer to be hired by a major American entertainment company – ROSY CHEEKS ENTERTAINMENT, the entertainment company founded by Mendrei Leelin. Rosy Cheeks was behind the successful show of the Society of Seven with Lani Misalucha in Las Vegas. This three year show won for Lani Misalucha the Critic’s Choice Award as Best Singer of Las Vegas for 2008 and for the group Society of Seven –the prestigious Walk of Stars Awards, the first Asian group to be honored.
As composer and record producer, Ferdinand will be working closely with American Idol finalist Jasmine Trias with the objective of producing and composing her international album under Rosy Cheeks. Jasmine takes over as the new guest singer of the Society of Seven. Ferdinand will also be producing the Society of Seven’s live album. The group has never had a new recording for almost a decade now.
COMPOSER’S AWARD WINNING FILM NOW –A WEB BLOCKBUSTER
By Noli Yu
Filipino multi awarded composer and lyricist Ferdinand Dimadura’s film, “ Chicken ala Carte” topped the PEOPLE’S CHOICE Award at the Green Film Festival organized by Culture Unplugged. Culture Unplugged is the first film festival to go Online. With more than two million viewers worldwide and still counting – “Chicken ala Carte” is already a certified Web Blockbuster.
With his victory, Composer Dimadura bested more than 300 film entries in competition from all over the world. Chicken ala Carte also won another award in the Festival as “THE MOST SHARED” FILM. Viewed by almost 100,000 people every day over the Internet, the film’s popularity has spread like wildfire and caught the Film Festival organizers by complete surprise.
Written, photographed and directed by Ferdinand Dimadura in 2005, “Chicken ala Carte” was his entry to the 56th Berlin International Film Festival Short film competition held at the Berlinale Talent Campus in February 2006. The film competition’s theme was : Food, Taste and Hunger and Dimadura’s entry bested more than 3,600 entries from all over the world. But it was winning this year’s Culture Unplugged Film Festival that has finally brought his film a worldwide following. From Malaysia to Russia, from Barbados to Brazil, millions of viewers have seen the film when the film festival went online.
What is impressive is the kind of impact this short film generating. It has been dubbed as the “Slumdog Millionaire of Short Films” because of its sensitive and heart breaking portrayal of poor people in the slums. “Chicken ala Carte” has provoked intense emotions from the viewers with many of them declaring it as “ the best movie they’ve ever watched.” One viewer wrote that the viewing of the film should be made mandatory to all the children around the world.
Like the film “Slumdog Millionaire” the short film has also been criticized by some quarters for its honest portrayal of the prevailing poverty in the Philippines. But Director Ferdinand Dimadura is quick to defend his film. For him, the most important achievement of his film is to draw attention to the unresolved problem of hunger around the world. The UN Statistics showed that each year 15 million people die due to hunger and malnutrition. It is a grim reality that many people don’t know about. Suddenly, his short film has made millions of people acutely aware that thousands of people are dying of hunger every day.
In fact, many non government organizations, charity groups and advocacy movements have started using “Chicken ala Carte” to generate awareness to the prevailing poverty in the world. One Filipino group in Chicago emailed Director Dimadura that their group was able to raise 1000 dollars for Charity in less than a week by just showing “Chicken ala Carte.”
The impact of the film on the viewers is such that one viewer emailed that she has sent the film to all the people she know. One viewer said he was knocked out while most said they cried while watching the film. This kind of passion and emotion from the viewers has made “Chicken ala Carte” the most viewed short film in the internet today. Ferdinand Dimadura has another prize winning film at the Green Festival: Binamban ( the glorious food of Lagonoy ) – the film also topped the 2006 Torino Short film Competition, sponsored by the Slow food Movement in Italy.
“It is a great help that I am a composer and musician too.” said Ferdinand Dimadura, himself totally surprised by the film’s success. “My music was the key that opened the viewers’ hearts.” A music graduate of Universidad de Santa Isabel in Naga City, Ferdinand studied music composition under the tutelage of the late National Artist Lucio San Pedro. “The composer Richard Wagner has always been my idol. He was the first major composer to compose his own music and write his own story and libretto. I’ve always wanted to be the first serious composer to ever direct his own film. I’ve always believed that a Composer can make better films. Chicken ala Carte confirmed what I have believed all along. ” His recent project is a full length comedy film which he is writing, producing and directing. “I can make people cry. But I can make people laugh as well.”
In 2006, the musical “Something to Crow About” based on the short stories of National Artist Anding Roces won as Best Musical at the Aliw Awards. Dimadura composed the music, wrote the lyrics and co- wrote the libretto with Anding Roces. The musical made history when it became first Filipino Zarzuela to be performed Off Broadway at the La Mama’s theater in New York. Directed by theater legend Cecile Guidote Alvarez, the musical was performed to standing ovations in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco to standing ovation. Critics noted the ‘beautiful melodies and the exceptionally funny lyrics of Ferdinand Dimadura.’ The musical will tour America once again with the goal of reaching the Holy Grail of theater - Broadway.
With the success of the film “Chicken ala Carte” director Dimadura, who has composed and produced songs for Rachele Ann Go, Jolina Magdangal, Christian Bautista, Francis Magalona, Timmy Cruz, Grace Nono and Alynah, has received numerous invitations to direct abroad. The most recent was an invitation to direct a short film in India to be shown on December 16, 2009 at a prestigious black tie event at the House of Lords in England.
To check his film and music, go to cultureunplugged.com and to his website, www.ferdinanddimadura.com.
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