Dreammaker
Anne Curtis is all out playing fairy godmother to the less fortunate
Kapamilya star Anne Curtis has fulfilled many of her dreams across her two-decade tenure in showbiz. These include notching several blockbuster movies, staging big concerts and starring in successful TV shows.
“Throughout my life and my career, ang dami talagang dreams ko na nagkatotoo na maaaring not easy kasi ang daming nagdi-dream shame na mga tao. ‘Hindi ka magaling kumanta, hindi ka magaling mag-Tagalog, hindi ka magtatagal sa industriya.’ But I strived hard for it all (to happen),” Anne told Bulletin Entertainment.
She is near to completing her biggest dream of all: Marrying longtime boyfriend Erwann Heussaff.
“Of course, that’s one of my biggest dreams ever, marrying the man of my dreams,” she said.
Now, Anne is taking time to pay it forward, making other people’s dreams come true through her newest project Dream Machine.
“I have always been vocal about encouraging others to pursue their dreams. So at some point, since ang dami namang magandang nangyaring maganda sa akin, I thought, how can I give back? So, we came up with Dream Machine, a platform na people can submit their dreams then we’ll make it true for some of them. People can write and the dreammakers can decide if they wanna help out directly or just pitch in and make the dreams come true,” she explained.
Anne encourages other to help her in the pursuit.
“This is also for those na gustong tumulong but they don’t know how to help. So they volunteer, lend a helping hand, and make other dreams come true. I know I’m not the only one who wants to help others,” she said.
While Dream Machine is Anne’s project, she doesn’t want to take all the credit for it.
“I don’t want that image na ‘Uy, si Anne ang bait, tumulong.’ That’s not the reason. Yes, I will have my special projects as part of Dream Machine but it’s also about giving other people a chance to help,” she said.
Seed tweet
Anne shared the project came about when one of her followers, a teacher, tweeted her a photo of their classroom. “Nagpadala siya ng photos ng class nila. This was actually one of the trigger points for me. Butas ’yung bubong so naka-payong sila habang nag-aaral. It was a dream of a teacher for her pupils to have a safe, cozy and warm classroom so that they can be educated properly. So pinadala ko ’yung staff ko to check. It was true so we helped with that.” The TV host-actress said they are also willing to sponsor weddings through Dream Machine as inspired by some contestants from “It’s Showtime.” “Minsan ’yung reason nila bakit sila sumasali is gusto nilang magpakasal. Gusto nilang magpakasal but wala silang pangkasal. Andoon ’yung love. So sabi ko this is my way of giving back,” she said. Anne has high hopes for Dream Machine. “Hopefully, it can become a community na people are working hand-in-hand and pushing each other to pursue their dreams. Eventually, I hope it will become like a kickstarter,” she said. Anne encourages everyone to keep striving hard to achieve their goals. “I always make it clear that it’s okay to dream big but you must always have faith in yourself, patience and perseverance that you can make these dreams happen. Dream Machine is here to assist you. We are here but we’ll also filter these things just to make sure na you’re not just waiting for it to happen. We want stories to be told,” she said. But what if she gets married, will she continue helping out? Will she continue with showbiz? “Nothing’s gonna change. This just came at a perfect time. I think I’ll stay as crazy as I am,” Anne said.
Where it starts
There are three categories of dreams that Dream Machine supports: Youth, education and empowerment. Dreamers may start sending in their dreams via www.dreammachine.ph. To kickstart the platform, Dream Machine is hosting the Color Run to empower the dreams of disabled children under the auspices of UNICEF. Anne has been a UNICEF ambassador for two years now.
‘It’s okay to dream big but you must always have faith in yourself, have patience and perseverance ’ that you can make it happen.