iStyled Stef Prescott and Mara Lopez for Manila Bulletin 03282012

Too Hot Too Handle

Article By ALDO J. AVIÑANTE

Photos by JERICO MONTEMAYOR

Styled by JP Diche and PIERRE PERALTA

Makeup By RHINA MONTEMAYOR

Grooming by ANPY TORIO

Hair by KLICK VIKTORIA

Clothes and Accessories from SM DEPARTMENT STORE

 and FOLDED AND HUNG

Shoes from SUELAS

Male Models: Migo Ybanez, Miguel Gonzaga, and Troy Cuizon



unpublished photo



Steff Prescott, Swim Fan

A passionate swimmer and licensed scuba diver, Stef Prescott comes out from a successful stint in Survivor Philippines with renewed confidence, all ready to meet new challenges.

At first glance, this mestiza stunner looks intimidating with her strong features. But really, she is quite the opposite.

“I just look maldita. But after Survivor, mas nakilala na ako. People approach me more,” Stef says.
The Seattle-born showbiz newbie came to the Philippines originally to pursue swimming as a sport. But she was quite disappointed to learn there are not much opportunity for her to continue her passion.

“Since I was a kid, swimming was all I did. We didn’t have beaches in Seattle, but there were indoor pools. Parati akong laman ng indoor pools. I really love the water. I would have wanted to be a member of the swimming team, but it seemed basketball is the top priority here,” she adds.

The Survivor Mentality

Steff showed strength of character and poise throughout her Survivor stint. After all, she went into the competition armed with a clear strategy and wits to outlast her competitors.

“Survivor for me is a mental game. It doesn’t matter if you win the challenges, what’s important is who is going last in the voting system. I planned out strategies in my head, picturing different circumstances to ready myself. I learned some tricks from watching Survivor,” recalls Stef, who has been a fan of the show since it premiered in the US.

But still, there were things she chose to keep to herself even if Survivor was a reality show. “I didn’t want to bring the real Stef. Ang dinala ko lang dun ‘yung pagiging maldita ko.”

Survivor has given Stef a different outlook in life. She has learned to value and appreciate the things that are constantly overlooked and unnoticed.

“Life after Survivor has a lot more meaning. There, I experienced what it’s like to live with nothing. It makes you work hard for the things you want in life,” she looks back. “Before, I underestimated myself. After Survivor, I’ve become more flexible and open. To succeed, you don’t need someone telling you what to do. Trust yourself and keep your eye on the goal,” she ends.



unpublished photo

Mara Lopez Yokohama, Surf Girl

Survivor Philippines is the coming-out party of 20 year-old professional surfer Mara Lopez Yokohama.
After her successful stint in the reality game show, where she was partnered with her mom, beauty queen/actress Maria Isabel Lopez, the young De La Salle University graduate is ready to move on to the next level – to be a serious actress.

“I miss everything about Survivor because that is my lifestyle. It was a dream come true for me to be stuck on that island. The only thing I needed was my surfboard and I was all set to stay forever,” Mara says. “My mom and I are best friends. I was the one who insisted that we join Survivor. She motivates me to achieve more than what she has achieved.”

Indeed, Mara and her mom played to win.

“Our huge advantage was we were the only blood-related partners in Survivor, so we were certain we wouldn’t betray each other,” explains Mara, who is slowly but surely stepping out of her mother’s shadow, as the vibrant professional surfer is now ready to face the waves of show business head on.
Dreams And Aspirations

More than the glitz and the glamour, Mara’s first passion really is surfing.

“I started surfing when I was around six years old. Surfing for me is very spiritual. It’s something that I share with my Dad, that I share with the ocean,” she says.
Mara may not follow in her mom’s footsteps as a beauty queen, but she dreams of walking the red carpet in international film festivals. Her first taste of acting was when she played the young Maria Isabel in a true-to-life drama anthology.

“I want to be really involved in terms of making advocacy films. I want to go to the Cannes Film Festival like mom,” says Mara, who has done mostly independent films including “HIV”, “Tulak”, and more recently, “Happy Land”, which is about underprivileged kids who aspire to become football players. Mara will next be seen in an entry for the upcoming Cinemalaya Film Festival.

Although Mara is still young, she has her priorities and goals in check.
“Aside from my dream of going to Cannes, I hope to travel the world before I’m 25. I also want to finish my master’s degree in Japan or maybe take up Marine Biology,” she quips.

unpublished photo



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Article from mb.com.ph

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Richard Gutierrez Feature On Manila Bulletin 03142012

Just Like Starting Over

Article By JASER A. MARASIGAN

Photo by JERICO MONTEMAYOR

Styled by DONALD ELIZAGA

Grooming by JC CANTOS

Clothes from BENCH

MANILA, Philippines — Richard Gutierrez would have been an athlete by now. In fact, he would find himself imagining donning the Philippine colors, or representing the country in sporting events like basketball, martial arts or swimming.

“Being an athlete was really the direction I was pursuing. I’m the type of person who is constantly looking for new challenges. And I like pushing myself,” the 28-year-old actor says.

Richard is no stranger to staying fit and healthy. He’s been into martial arts since he was a kid, even winning medals for it. He was also a member of the basketball varsity team back in high school in De La Salle-Zobel. But fate had different plans for Richard. When he got back in the country after years of having stayed in the United States, Richard gave acting a shot. Showbiz, after all, is his family’s business.

“At first, what lured me was the prospect of earning my own money. I could go out on the weekends and stuff. Until eventually, I learned to love and appreciate the art, the collaboration of people in terms of creating a movie or TV, and to produce entertainment for the people. Acting just grew on me,” he shares.

Richard has been in the public eye since he was three years old. He appeared in several commercials with twin brother Raymond. When they reached their teens, the two went on separate ways, and worked on their separate careers. Richard went on to acting, and has since then essayed the role of some of TV’s well-loved characters in “Mulawin”, “Sugo”, “Lupin”, “Zorro” and “Captain Barbell”, as well as a leading man in several films.

READY FOR BIGGER CHALLENGES

Today, Richard declares he is ready for bigger challenges. He says he just wants to get out of the box, far away from his comfort zone. While all these years he has maintained a wholesome image, he is now open to all kinds of roles – daring, offbeat, even villain roles.

“I really want to challenge myself this year – to choose the right projects for me, to be hands-on, and to look for new roles. Now is the time for me to explore what more I can deliver, what more I can do, be experimental. I’m at a turning point in my life now. I know I haven’t really reached my maximum potential yet. I feel like I’m just about to start again. And looking at it at that angle excites me,” says Richard, who is starting on a new primetime TV series on GMA soon.

ENTERTAINMENT IS PUBLIC SERVICE

But while Richard is eager to be reinvented as an actor, he intends to remain as host of Survivor Philippines. He also hopes to continue with his environmental programs for GMA News and Public Affairs, which have been winning awards here and abroad.

While everyone else deems the entertainment industry as merely showbiz, the young actor sees it differently. For him, working as an actor is public service.

“Giving entertainment to your audience is public service. It feels great also being an actor, in front of the camera, knowing that you have an audience that appreciates you. It makes your job more fulfilling,” he enthuses.

GOING FOR GREEN AND MANY MORE

A Green Peace advocate since 2007, Richard says that doing documentaries is his modest contribution to the cause. The DVD boxed sets of the documentaries “Signos”, “Planet Philippines”, “Wildlife for Sale”, and “Oras Na” have been donated to various schools, barangays, and fishing villages. Environmental forums are also being hosted by GMA in several schools.

“In the house, medyo weird na nga ang tingin nila sa akin,” he laughs. “I’m quite OC (obsessive-compulsive) when it comes to things like waste segregation. Medyo nagiging hard core na nga ako ngayon. My brothers are starting to get into it and my family,” he adds.

Richard also sends several underprivileged children to school through World Vision. He wishes to have more time for worthy humanitarian causes.

“As celebrities, we also have that responsibility to our audience. If you’re a celebrity and you know that you have a base audience, and you know that people are watching you and that kids are aware of you, do your part and help a cause that you’re passionate about, to create awareness and reach out,” says Richard, who made quite a turnaround, from being that rebellious and mischievous teen as he himself admits, to a hard-core advocate of education and environment.

Richard’s dream now is to produce a big-screen documentary, a la Leonardo DiCaprio’s “The 11th Hour”.

“My long term goal is to make my own movies. Now I’m trying to gain more experience with the documentaries we make. I’m an observant, that’s why I love working with different directors because I get to observe how they work, how they take their shots, how they teach an actor. All these things are like learning for me. I want to go back to school and take up cinematography soon,” says the frustrated photographer/cinematographer.

COMPETING AGAINST SELF

As one of the most eligible bachelors in the country, it is almost impossible that someone like Richard would be single. “For this year, I will focus more on my work. And I’m married to triathlon right now,” he claims.

It is Richard’s newfound love for cycling that steered him to his next sporting destination – triathlon.

“I think the ultimate challenge for fitness is really triathlon. So I started with running. And then I got bored with running so I cross-trained it with swimming and biking. I’m still a rookie. I only started last year. But I plan to join the big races this year,” he says.

Last year, Richard participated in the Ironman Philippines, the country’s top triathlon event, held in Camarines Sur. He was part of a relay team in which he did the 90-kilometer bike ride. He set a target of finishing the 90-km trek in three hours and 15 minutes, and he crossed the line at three hours and five minutes. “I beat my target time by 10 minutes. But I felt like I could’ve performed a million times better,” he says.

Richard enjoyed his first Ironman experience so much that now he is organizing his own triathlon event slated around June in preparation for the next Ironman Philippines.

“Training and getting your mileage up is a lot of hard work. But I’m the type of person who challenges and pushes myself to the limit, and I think triathlon is the perfect sport for me. You’re competing against anyone else but yourself. The rewarding part really is when you see yourself improving coming from a hard training and hard workout,” he says.

He is quick to admit that he still has a long way to go, but with Noy Jopson as his training coach, the first Filipino Ironman winner no less, and cycling coach Patrick Joson, Richard just might finish first!

XoXo

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Article from mb.com.ph

iStyled: Sam Milby for Manila Bulletin's Spotted

Sam Goes To Hollywood

Spotted

By ANGELO G. GARCIA

Photo by CROMWELL TORIO

Styled by JP DICHE and PIERRE PERALTA

Grooming by RHINA MONTEMAYOR

Clothes by FOLDED and HUNG

MANILA, Philippines — The list of Filipino celebrities who try their luck in Hollywood grows longer and longer. Some have succeeded, more have failed.

On account of their birth rights, Filipino-Americans however have greater chances at the Hollywood dream. There’s comedian Rob Schneider and drama/action star Lou Diamond Phillips.  Then there is the younger batch of Fil-Ams including Vanessa Hudgens, lead actress of the then popular TV movie series, High School Musical, and Ana Maria Perez de Tagle, who came out in Camp Rock.

Their success has inspired singer/actor Sam Milby to temporarily hang up his local showbiz mantle and hie off to the United States to do auditions for various television shows. Born and raised in Troy, Ohio, Sam entered showbiz through the backdoor, via the reality show Pinoy Big Brother in 2005.

“Kinda scary but very excited. It’s a new chapter in my life. I’ll be there over three months and do auditions. It’s pilot week season so there are a lot of new shows from the network,” shares the 27 year-old actor.

Sam is hoping that he has gathered enough materials for his acting portfolio to be let in the door. Among his more notable works are as as JB Roxas Berenguer in the television series “Maging Sino Ka Man” and his drama-romance-comedy films such as “My Big Love”, “Babe, I Love You” “and “Forever and a Day.”

LEAVING HOME

Last month, while Sam was busy packing his bags and tying loose ends, the Students and Campuses Bulletin team was allowed to peek into his inner sanctum in a Pasig City house he invested in and built. Sam is entrusting the upkeep of the house to some relatives while he is away.

The three-bedroom home, which he intended to be modern and Japanese inspired, is spacious and even has a theater on the second floor. A wooden faux wall where a flat TV is installed is built between the dining and the living area and it swivels 180 degrees so that TV screen may be seen from either the two rooms.

“I was really hands-on building this house, I wanted to have a staircase with no hand railings. I wanted to have this swiveling part with the TV,” he explains.

His favorite part of the room, beside his bedroom, is understandably the home theater.

“I stay in the theater room a lot. I love watching movies, I have a collection of original BluRay discs. I watch everything. My favorites are Inception, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, it’s a great movie, I was surprised it didn’t do well in the box office, it’s such a good movie. Some of my all-time favorites are Braveheart, Interview with the Vamipre, Fight Club,” he says.

Yet, Sam doesn’t like watching his own film. “I hate watching myself. ‘Yun talaga ang isang bagay na ayaw ko talaga, ‘yung panoorin ang sarili ko. The premiere night is the first and last time I watch my movies.”

He also has his own fully-equipped gym with a sauna and of course a pool. But he admits that he hasn’t used the gym in a while. Last year, he only used the gym for less than 10 times!

Sam describes himself as a “health conscious freak”. He only drinks soy milk, eats wheat bread,  and will not touch fried foods with a ten-foot pole. This is how he stays lean, he says, and only needs minimal work out.

HIS DREAM HOME

One of his favorite places in the house is his loft-type bedroom. His bedroom on the second floor has two floors. His bed and a balcony are located on the second floor of the room while his living/entertainment area, walk-in closet, and bathroom are on the first floor.

On a lazy day, Sam says he loves sleeping in because he is basically a night owl. “I’m a night owl and I want to change that. There are times when I don’t have work in the morning I tend to sleep at 4 a.m. and I hate that. The book that I am reading, “A man who wakes up before dawn, 360 days a year will never let his family hungry.” I need to start disciplining myself to go to bed early and wake up early. I hate the feeling like I wasted a day. There’s always something I need to get done. When I wake up late, it’s already a wasted day,” Sam explains. He is also a gamer, owning multiple game consoles and mobile gadgets. This is another thing he wants to change so he can read more books.

Yet, this is still not Sam’s dream home. He envisions that dream house to have – don’t look now – a motocross track!

“I really want a motocross track. I love the outdoors and I want a spacious house and lot. Kahit maliit ‘yung bahay basta may motocross track, dream house ko na ‘yun,” he says.

(Spotted is a regular feature on campus personalities and young celebrities about their favorite hangout places.)

Thanks to Cornerstone Talent Management for allowing this shoot to happen..

to Manila Bulletin- Students and Campuses please like their Facebook Page HERE 

and to Folded and Hung for the Clothes!!

XoXo

Sam Milby's Home... BTS Photos for Manila Bulletin SAC Shoot

A few month's ago, I had the privilege to style Sam Milby for a feature in Manila Bulletin...

It was the week before he left for his quest in Hollywood. So it is a bit special because I was able 

to bid farewell and goodluck to him personally (kilig!!!).. 

The feature consists of him and his house (that's why "Spotted"), that's why it is special.

Having to be in the house of one of the country's hottest hunks is definitely a privilege!! lol..

So as soon as I received the invite, pak na pak na YES agad!

Here are some of the photos of his home, and behind-the-scenes photos during the shoot.

Our first task that day was to find Sam's house. 

Situated in the middle of one of the busiest areas in Pasig. Challenge hanapin but 

thanks to Caress (from Cornerstone Talent Management) for guiding us.

When we arrived, we were greeted by this modern-minimalist/ Japanese Inspired home.

The receiving area opens up to a very light and homey living area!

I feel in love with that stairs!! But given my lack of balance when Im drunk, 

it will not be good for me... The interior is very masculine!

We waited for a few minutes while Sam prepped up (Thus photos) lol.. 

That's his kitchen and bar, which he said is rarely used! His La Germana Oven (according to Sam) 

is still a virgin (as in never been used) lol

And then Sam here while being interviewed by Angelo of MBSAC 

and groomed by Rhina Montemayor...

preppin for the first layout!

First layout... Pool na agad!! hehe... yeah that's his swimming pool. 

He said he swims to workout.. 

2nd layout... Gym... Yes he has a gym with sauna at home.. He said he works out there

when he needs to beef up for a project! 

  

Sam while waiting for the setup...

3rd layout... The Living Area and The Theater Room

Some of Sam's displays in his living area.. and yeah that's him in that photo!

Sam said his favorite area in his house is the Theater room. He said he sleeps there sometimes.

and that's him showing his folding bed/side table.

Sam loves to watch movies. and here he is showing his collection of Blu Ray DVDs.

Take note!! All of it are original!! NO TO PIRACY! :P

And so we are off to our last layout..

And was shot at (for me) the most important part of the house, THE MASTER'S BEDROOM

We were greeted by a very masculine yet kabog room!! The room is almost as big as

a separate condo unit. It has a mezzanine area where his bed and some other stuff are located.

You can easily say that the owner of the room loves music, just by looking at the 

equipment inside his room's base floor.

Pose muna...

Sam has a 3d LED TV. and he loves playing with that PS (i dont know what version, im not techy sorry)

3d Glasses!!

That's the stairs going to the Bed area inside his bedroom!

And here's his oddly shaped bed!

 A view from the mezzanine area of his bedroom!

 Of course! Kailangan may photo on his bed!! Sam is really good at smizing!!

I love that painting!!

Some stuff beside his bed! 

And then we're off to his hidden walk-in closet!!

Hidden kasi you will not notice that there is another room inside his room

because of the unnoticeable door in the base floor!

That wall beside the TV, that's the door to his Walk In Closet!!!

We were greeted by his extensive set of wardrobes on the right...  

It is organized properly, and yeah! his walk in closet is just effin fabulous!! 

(I just have to say that!)

Shoes and more shoes!! 

Hats!! I saw quite a number of Folded and Hung Shirts and Fedoras in there!! 

On the left side of his walk-in closet is his Lavatory area.

 Bath tub... shower and loo!

Sam Milby (i think) has a good chance of making it to Hollywood. Im sure he'll come back with a big surprise to us Pinoys! He said more than personal reasons he also wanted to make us Pilipinos proud. So Im hoping and praying that good things will come to him!!

It was a long yet fabulous day! Sam went off to Bandila after our shoot and we are off to our 

usual trips. Sam and his mom were very hospitable. I'd like to extend my special thanks

to Manila Bulletin- Students and Campuses for allowing me to post these photos and

to Cornerstone Talent Management for making this shoot happen!

If you wanna read the official feature with all the photos... it will be posted right after this blog post!!

XoXo

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