Philippine showbiz’s boy-man of the moment—20-year-old Elijah Canlas who just won Best Actor at the 43rd Gawad Urian—is officially crossing over from his beginnings in indie movies and hit Boys Love online series, “Gameboys,” to mainstream tonight, via TV5’s prime time mini-series, “Paano Ang Pasko.”
A star-studded project from the blossoming free-TV network, Canlas told The Manila Times Entertainment just how overwhelmed he is to be selected for the role of Noel in this family drama. For not only is part of telling a story written by Palanca Hall of Famer Jun Robles Lana, but falls under the direction of meg men he has always admired, namely Enrico Quizon, Ricky Davao and Perci Intalan.
“To top it all off, I get to act with the likes of Beauty Gonzalez, Maricel Laxa and Julia Clarete, who plays my mom in the series, which is just an unbelievable experience,” the popular guest of The Manila Times CSI: Celebrity, Style, Inspiration’s Season 2 pilot guest gushed in earnest.
“As a young actor, my goal in everything I do is learn as much as I can to better my craft and to stay in the industry, and given this script by Direk Percy, our three directors and the entire cast of ‘Paano Ang Pasko,’ you can’t even imagine the amount of things I’m learning here.”
Just when most of the traditional Christmas events and specials have been put on hold because of the pandemic, Canlas takes pride in being part of TV5’s determined vow to bring “bigger and better -Ber months” to the very end of the year with Paano ang Pasko.
This special drama series revolves around a family’s unprecedented holiday gathering and how old wounds and struggles threaten to dampen the supposed joyous occasion. Led by strong female characters, sisters Faith (Laxa ), the loving matriarch who is about to discover a long kept family secret; Love (Clarete), the eldest daughter whose past is coming back to haunt the entire family; and Hope (Gonzalez), the second daughter that has a past with her sister’s husband clash as the pandemic keeps them quarantined as the holidays approach.
In the midst of it all, Canlas’ Noel, the troubled grandson ends up discovering the truth about his lineage.
“Any role I portray, I always make it point I find it challenging but I have to say that somehow, among everything I’ve done so far, I find the most similarity between who I am and Noel,” Canlas admitted. “First of all, we’re exactly the same age and we have many interests and outlooks in common.”
Alongside these remarkable talents, veteran actors Ricky Davao and Allan Paule, Ejay Falcon, John Sweet Lapus, Matt Evans, Danita Paner, Devon Seron, Cedrick Juan and Ace Ismael lend their invaluable support in bringing this touching Filipino value-laden story to life. Justine Buenaflor also plays an introductory role.
Produced by The IdeaFirst Company for Cignal Entertainment, “Paano Ang Pasko” premieres tonight at 9 p.m. on TV5.
Originally published on The Manila Times.
