'Kid Kulafu' airs on Red by HBO
Following its pay-per-view television debut last June, Paul Soriano’s acclaimed Manny Pacquiao biopic “Kid Kulafu” will air this month on the recently rebranded Red by HBO Asian movie cable channel.
Dubbed by Soriano as “a prequel to Pacquiao’s championship career,” the film tackles the challenging childhood of the eight division world boxing champion.
“It starts out with Mommy Dionisia giving birth to Manny and then it shows the mountain life of Manny as a young boy and leads into Manny going into boxing,” Soriano said in an interview shortly before the film’s theatrical screening last April.
“I want to show the Filipinos and the entire world how this world champion grew up and how he was faced with every challenge in the book. He was homeless, came from a broken family, no food, no education. But because of his determination and his passion, he became the best boxer in the world.”
Since its initial theatrical run, the film has been invited to several international film festivals starting with the Guam International Film Festival last August where lead star Buboy Villar won an Achievement in Acting award for his portrayal of the young Pacquiao.
It then started the month with its London premiere at this year’s Raindance Film Festival as popular UK tabloid The Daily Mirror named it as one of the festival’s 10 must-see films.
Later this month, “Kid Kulafu” will travel to Japan for the Tokyo International Film Festival where it will have two screenings at the festival’s CrossCut Asia Section. And then next month, it will join Jason Paul Laxamana’s “Magkakabaung,” Erik Matti’s “Honor Thy Father,” Jerrold Tarog’s “Heneral Luna” and Eduardo Dayao’s “Violator” at the Hawaii International Film Festival.
With regards to the inclusion of “Kid Kulafu” in the October line-up of Red by HBO which is also part of the network’s objective of showing internationally acclaimed titles, award-winners and all-time-favorite Asian movies, Soriano said he is thrilled that many people around Asia will get to enjoy his work in the comforts of their living rooms.
“Not many films get this opportunity and it’s great that Red by HBO has added my film to their line-up, which means that many more people will now get to watch the story of how Manny Pacquiao became the champion and hero he is today,” Soriano said.
“Kid Kulafu” airs on Red by HBO this October 21 at 10 p.m. Other Asian films to watch for in the channel this month are “Conjuring Spirit” from Vietnam, “Ode to my Father” from Korea, “Crush” from Indonesia and “After Images” from Singapore.
All films are available in high definition and will be presented in their original languages with English and other local language subtitles in selected territories.