Dennis Trillo hopes OTJ: The Missing 8 will inspire film industry players
When Dennis Trillo gave his nod to director Erik Matti’s crime-thriller, On the Job: The Missing 8, three years ago, he didn’t expect the film to be noticed by a lot of people, even those from the other countries and especially the award-giving bodies.
“I hope OTJ will become hope to other actors and producers to also fulfill their dreams,” said Dennis. “Once they do their job very well, they will see their hard work will also pay off.”
Dennis encouraged other local filmmakers to follow the path taken by OTJ. Until now, he found it unbelievable that the recognition and accolades given to the film have not stopped.
“We have long finished this film, but being recognized internationally seems unstoppable,” Dennis asserted. “Recently, OTJ is on its way to the Emmys and the Oscars. Thank you, all our efforts are paying off.”
The actor joined the star-studded cast of OTJ: The Missing 8, which won for John Arcilla the prestigious Volpi Cup at the 78th Venice Film Festival last year.
The esteemed roster of actors in the cast includes Christopher de Leon, Dante Rivero, Carlitos Siguion-Reyna, Leo Martinez, Joey Marquez, Lotlot de Leon, Agot Isidro, Ina Feleo, Vandolph Quizon, Soliman Cruz and Eric Fructuoso.
“Every story is very unique,” Dennis maintained. “The story of OTJ is not just the story of one man. It’s the story of an entire town and how it is being run by a crooked system.
“It’s an honor for me to be included in the cast of this film. This is one of the most important projects that I accomplished in my career.”
Dennis undoubtedly gave his trust to his director while filming OTJ and he cannot be thankful enough he became part of the film.
“Direk Erik certainly knows what he is doing,” Dennis said about his megman. “He has long seen this film in his mind. Finally, he can share this with everyone. Everybody will see his vision for this project.”
Dennis is not a bit surprised that OTJ: The Missing 8 is getting to be controversial again because the film hews closely to real-life events that happened lately.
“I cannot really explain,” Dennis said. “There were things that happened before but are happening again now. I believe it’s also important for others to open their eyes and learn the things they didn’t know from the start.”
OTJ: The Missing 8 recently had its premiere at Greenbelt 3 Cinemas, where the cast members, industry veterans and other showbiz stars, all eager to watch and support the film, were present.
Veteran actors, directors, industry stalwarts and even foreign film diplomats have joined forces for a momentous campaign for the Philippine film industry to help push OTJ: The Missing 8 towards its Oscar win in the Best Foreign Language Film category.
Reality MM Studios president and CEO, also the executive producer of the film, Dondon Monteverde, acknowledged the support of their partners for OTJ: The Missing 8 — HBO Asia, Anima (formerly Globe Studios) and Kroma, led by its CEO Ian Monsod and businessman Ernest Escaler.
“We are just overwhelmed about everything that has been happening here with our movie,” Dondon said about the film’s journey. “When we first did OTJ, it’s not really like we were doing a blockbuster film. It was an experimental film. It didn’t really make a big mark at the box-office, but we were happy it made its mark in the global festivals.”
The first OTJ was invited to the Cannes Film Festival in 2013, when it was screened as part of the Director’s Fortnight.
“The journey continued, so we did the second one, The Missing 8,” Dondon said. “We’re so happy that we entered the Venice Film Festival. From there, we were not expecting anything. But because of the grace of God, we won the Volpi Cup for John Arcilla.”
Direk Erik, Reality MM Studios chief creative officer and director of OTJ: The Missing 8, expressed his gratitude to the FDCP (Film Development Council of the Philippines), the French Film Festival, their co-producers, all the actors and the main cast, who were in attendance at the premiere.
“The film already went around,” direk Erik proudly disclosed. “From Venice, the film went to China, Germany, South Korea. It was shown in New York. But it has not been shown in the Philippines.”
Rated R-16 by the MTRCB (Movie and Television Review and Classification Board), OTJ: The Missing 8 is three-and-a-half hours long.
Anne Curtis, who worked with direk Erik in the blockbuster action thriller, Buy Bust (2018), showed her support to the director by gracing the recent premiere of OTJ: The Missing 8.
Other celebrities who attended the event were FDCP chairman Tirso Cruz III, French Ambassador to the Philippines Michele Boccoz, Edu Manzano, Monsour del Rosario, RK Bagatsing, Jane Oineza, Pinky Webb, Nicco Manalo, Bibeth Orteza, director Mac Alejandre, Virtual Playground artists John Vic de Guzman and Rob Gomez.
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