Yes, Tony, we will tie yellow ribbons for you!

Tony Orlando is coming for concert on Wednesday, July 9, at the Newport Performing Arts Theater of Resorts World Manila (RWM), produced by Ovation Productions with The Philippine STAR among the sponsors. (Ticket prices are P13,100, P11,100, P9,100, P7,100 and P5,100. Call RWM box office 908-8000 local 7700.)

Besides Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree (“The yellow ribbon is a symbol of homecoming and hope,” according to Orlando), fans will be thrilled to listen once again sung “live” such TO hits as Candida, Knock Three Times, Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow, Save The Last Dance, Stand By Me and many more.

Funfare did an exclusive e-mail interview with Orlando, Excerpts:

You were CBS Records’ vice president running the careers of artists in the ’70s then you suddenly became a recording artist yourself. Whose idea was it to change direction?

“I was first a recording artist at the age of 16 and recorded Halfway to Paradise, written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin, and Bless You, written by Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann. Those two songs were their first No. 1 hits. There is a Broadway show, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, and the song list includes the pop classics King wrote with Goffin and their friendship with contemporaries Mann and Weil. 

“In 1966, I was hired by Clive Davis as the GM and vice president in charge of music publishing for April-Blackwood Music and CBS Music where I remained until 1970. I recorded Candida for a friend, becoming Tony Orlando and Dawn and the rest is history. I never worked for CBS Records.”

Tie A Yellow Ribbon particularly talks about a man coming home after serving time in prison. It is used as a theme that generally means “welcome home.” Have you heard of a celebrated case or an incident that got media attention where somebody went home that involved using that song?

“The yellow ribbon is a symbol of homecoming and hope, used to welcome home POWs (Prisoners of Wars) from Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, the hostages from Iran and the troops from Desert Storm. It was the theme song for the homecoming of a Filipino (former Sen. Ninoy Aquino). Yellow ribbons were recently displayed for a young kidnapped girl and the three Israeli teenage boys.”

The repertoire of your July 9 concert includes your hit songs Stand By Me, Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow and other familiar songs, plus a Beatles medley. Have you recorded covers of those songs; have you considered doing an all-cover CD?

“Those songs were my original recordings, done as demos or actual recordings and are on the album Bless You & 17 Other Great Hits released by CBS Records (now Sony Music) Collectibles. Those songs were also re-released on an album by Ace Records, a UK label.”

You were working very closely with a Filipino musician before, the late Toti Fuentes who was a good friend of many well-known Filipino performers. Tell us about that experience.

“Toti Fuentes was my keyboard player and musical director for many years and a very dear close friend.”

After watching a Tony Orlando concert, people say that they had a truly enjoyable evening and that your concert was one of the best they have seen.

“It is in the eyes of the beholder and up to them to say why, not for me. I thank God it has been 50 years of reviews like that.”

How do you keep yourself so fit?

“I walk eight miles a day and eat a low-carb diet.”

Pinoy indie films making big waves, and winning awards abroad  

Indie films have been reaping praises and winning awards not only here but also abroad.

Here are some of them:

• Ang Huling Cha-Cha ni Anita by Sigrid Andrea Bernardo received the Volunteer of the Year Award in the Frameline38: San Francisco LGBT Film Festival last June 29. Billed as the world’s longest-running and largest LGBT film festival, this year’s edition showcased films from more than 30 countries including Germany, Venezuela, Mexico, Slovenia, Finland, France and USA.  

According to its website, “Frameline’s mission is to change the world through the power of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) cinema. It shares transformative stories through groundbreaking documentaries, entertaining features, touching short films and cinematic classics.”

Huling Cha-Cha won Best Picture and Best Ensemble Acting in the 2013 (first) CineFilipino Film Festival. Last June, it was screened in Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco and 25th Honolulu Rainbow Film Festival (the festival’s centerpiece film). On July 20 and 21, it will be shown in the 23rd Tokyo International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival in Japan. 

• Norte, Hangganan ng Kasaysayan, Lav Diaz’s epic work, recently won four Urian trophies. It was cited as one of the Best Films of 2014 (shown from January to June) by Variety’s Chief Film Critic Scott Fondas who described it as “immensely rewarding and full of unexpected flourishes...has brought much overdue attention to this gifted filmmaker and his largely unsung body of work.” 

The Film Stage named it one of The Best Films of 2014 So Far and hailed Diaz “whose works are known both for their languorous observations of very human systems and their overwhelming attention to spritual/psychological details, has conceived a work as ambitious as any made by the humanist directors of yesteryear.”

The four-hour-long Norte, which also received 100-percent fresh ratings in the review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, will have its screenings in cinemas in the UK starting July 18.

• Shift by Siege Ledesma will compete in the 1-2 (first-second feature film) section of the 14th Sopot International Film Festival in Poland on July 12 to 20. It will premiere in Catalan City of Vic, Spain, at the 11th Festival Nits de Cinema Oriental on July 20. It’s interesting to note that the festival organizers chose a tarsier, and named it Gwapo, as its mascot in honor of its guest country, the Philippines. Tarsier Gwapo will grace the posters of the event, print and online. It was drawn by Estudi Xevidom and designed by Valdrada.

Shift is a story of Elena (Yeng Constantino), a tomboyish call center agent who fell for an openly gay senior agent played by Felix Roco. It was the Grand Prix (Best Picture Award) in the 9th Osaka Asian Film Festival last March.

• Barber’s Tales. After figuring prominently in international film festivals, the film directed by Jun Robles Lana will finally have its local screenings starting Aug. 13. It received several awards and citations abroad including the 2013 (26th) Tokyo International Film Festival Best Actress trophy for its lead star, Eugene Domingo.

— Reported by Celso de Guzman Caparas