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Fresh from their European vacation ang mag-asawang Guidicelli na sina Matteo at Sarah. Kaya naman fresh na fresh din si Matti nang harapin niya ang press para sa kanyang solo press conference for his first movie starrer, ang Penduko, na incidentally ay first ever MMFF (Metro Manila Film Festival) experience din niya.

Before the press con proper, nagkuwento muna nang kaunti si Matteo sa naging bakasyon nila ni Mrs. G.

"[It was] Very good, very good," paunang sagot niya sa pangungumusta ng press sa kanilang holiday. "We visited family in Venice. And then, nag-road trip kami doon. Ayon, kumain...nagfood-trip. Refresher kumbaga. 

"We got to explore new places. Kahit na we're from Venice, kahit we're from there, there's always new places to discover in Italy. Maraming magagandang lugar, pagkain, at kultura... alam mo 'yon? It's nice to refresh kumbaga."

Pangalawang pagkakataon na niyang naisama sa Europe, in Italy in particular, ang asawang si Sarah. Pero ibang-iba raw ang naging biyahe nilang ito kumpara noong una. For one, hindi na raw sila nag-gondola, isa sa mga romantic offerings ng Venice, dahil nagawa na nila ito noon.

"Yeah, we’ve done that before," aniya. "But this time, iba 'yong itinerary namin ngayon. All the time, we visit Venice because my family is from there. And from there, we take a car and we just drive. We drove to Amalfi to Naples and then flew to Spain. We went to a beautiful place in San Sebastián. It's very, very nice."

Hindi raw ito honeymoon, ani Matti, kundi short break lang talaga. 

"I think it's very nice to take a break sometimes and travel to get a refresher kumbaga because sometimes, you know, we're always in the grind of working, working...and it's always nice to sometimes detach and experience different cultures, meet new people... so, it's nice."

Moreover, hindi umano nila kayang mawala nang matagal dahil bukod sa mga showbiz commitments, may mga alagang aso raw silang kinase-sepanx-an nila.

"Ten days is more than enough because we have dogs and we're working. So, it's just a quick break. It's nice."   

Samantala, masasabing taon ni Matteo ang 2023 dahil nasimulan niya ito nang maganda at tatapusin din niya with a bang, ika nga.

Bukod sa pagiging host ng Unang Hirit, maganda rin ang reception ng publiko sa Black Rider, ang isa pa niyang GMA-7 show kung saan may mahalaga siyang role opposite lead star Ruru Madrid. Nakapagpundar na rin silang mag-asawa ng business, ang G Studios na binuksan lang kamakailan. Tapos, heto't ipapalabas na finally ang Penduko at napasali pa sa taunang MMFF. In short, tila inuulan ng blessings si Matteo.

"I’m very thankful," nakangiting saad niya. "You know, sometimes in life when you plan so hard, when you do this... atat ka. Sometimes hindi dumadating. 'Bakit ganyan, ganito?'"

But na-realize daw niya na sa buhay, ang mga bagay na ukol ay kusa nalang bumubukol.

"When it comes, it comes," pag-analisa n'ya. "I guess, in life, you never see. You’ll have to be ready physically, mentally, spiritually... ready all the time because you’ll never know when it comes, you’ll never know when the blessing comes. And when it comes, if you say no to something or you say 'paki-delay,' baka it won't come.

"So, I believe you know, in life, training is every day. You always have to be ready. You have to be physically trained, you have to strengthen your faith, you have to be a good person because when an opportunity comes, you get it and you do you best with it, kumbaga."

"So, I’m very thankful for this year," patuloy niya. "A lot of good things happened, a lot of challenging things also happened, you know. But we're ending the year beautifully. I’m excited for Christmas because MFFF is Christmas…hahaha! So, I’m excited. Very, very excited."

Noon pa man, tila sa action na siya nalilinya. Mula Bagani ng ABS-CBN to Black Rider ng GMA-7, ngayon ay heto't siya ang mapalad na napili sa iconic role na Pedro Penduko.

"Gusto ko talaga action," masayang pagtatapat ng adventurous in real life na si Matteo. "Sana. Gusto ko action. So, I think we're starting to pick more roles in this line."

When asked kung deliberate choices ba niya ito even before, napa-isip muna si Matteo saka sinabing timing ang nagdikta ng lahat.

"Sa industry natin, timing... timing lang din lahat, e. It depends on what the producer picks for you and what you decide on. So, timing... timing lang. I think it's going in that direction."

Pero hindi niya ikinailang ikinasisiya niyang sa action siya nililinya. Iba raw kasi ang adrenalin rush na dala ng mga action scenes.

"Masaya dahil hindi ka lang naka-upo dahil na nag-e-exercise ka habang eksena ba," natatawang lahad niya.

Zeroing in on Penduko, bonus na rin daw na may mahahalagang mensahe sila maipaparating using the Penduko movie as medium.

"It's nice because we represent Filipino martial arts [here in Penduko]. We're using the stick, the arnis sticks... we have hand-to-hand combat, we have knife combat also. It's, you know, doing more things at once kumbaga. We're representing the arts, representing the culture, fighting on screen. So, it's nice. Thrill and Adventure, it's always good."

Aniya, matagal na raw ginagamit a Hollywood ang Pinoy martial arts and it's about time na muli itong mapakita sa local movies.

As for the title action star, tila nahihiyang-kinikilig na napatango naman si Matteo.

"Okay naman...okay na okay kung yan ang mabibigay [na title]. Walang problema. And maganda yan because it's always a nice tagline, if ever."

Samantala, ang Penduko raw ay simula palang ng isang multi-connected project ng Viva. However, ayaw pang mag-leak ng infos ni Matt sa ngayon pero excited siya sa mga nakalatag.

"I think Penduko is one of many that's is going to come. So, exciting times ahead because Viva has big plans for this and the [Penduko] universe . Abangan. Hahaha!"   

Pero bago yon, MMFF muna 2023.

Ang Penduko, written and directed by Jason Paul Laxamana, ay mapapanood na starting Christmas day, December 25 in cinemas nationwide.

Kasama ni Matteo dito ang mga batikang sina Albert Martinez at John Arcilla plus an ensemble of Viva stars that include Rabin Angeles, Migo Valid, Martin Venegas, Charles Law, Kurt delos Reyes, Keagan de Jesus, Michael Keith, ang bibong si Annika Co, Candy Pangilinan, Phoebe Walker, Kylie Verzosa and Mark Anthony Fernandez.

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