DIRECTOR DONDON SANTOS of “Northern Lights: A Journey to Love”, that opens this Wednesday, March 29, says the movie’s main story concerning a father who is estranged from his son is inspired by the story of his own dad and his half brother. “Years ago, may dumating sa amin, hinahanap ang father ko, kung kilala ko raw si Ricardo Santos, at siya raw si Dondon,” he says. “E, sabi ko, ako rin, Dondon ang name ko. Yun pala, half brothers kami. He’s ten years older than me and he passed away recently. Yun, sayang, they never really got close to each other ng father namin. Dito naman sa ‘Northern Lights’, anak ni Piolo Pascual si Raikko Mateo. Nang magpunta si Piolo sa Alaska, naiwan si Raikko as a baby sa mother niya, si Maricar Reyes. Pero years later, ipinadala ni Maricar si Raikko kay Piolo dahil may terminal illness na pala siya. The story then becomes how a father tries to win the love of his son na lumaking hindi siya kilala.”
When Dondon first pitched his concept to Regal, they liked it and gave it the green light right away. He has never worked with Piolo in a movie before but they worked in the “Maruja” soap starring Kristine Hermosa. “Actually, guest lang siya roon, and after that, di na kami nagkatrabaho uli. But after he read the script of ‘Northern Lights’, nagustuhan niya agad. He’s very cooperative and very collaborative while we’re shooting the movie and he gave a very good performance here. There’s a two minute scene with his parents, Tirso Cruz III and Sandy Andolong, na wala siyang dialogue, puro mata lang ang pinagagana niya, but he’s very good and it’s very effective.”
Direk Dondon is the only member of the movie who got to actually see the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights in Anchorage, Alaska. “It’s really awesome at makikita yun dito sa movie in all its glory.”
