Category: Business Mirror

Long lines, packed lobbies, and sold-out cinemas are greeting moviegoers at this year’s Puregold CinePanalo Film Festival, as its biggest edition yet opens to a strong first-week turnout.

Crowds have been pouring into participating cinemas to catch the latest batch of original Filipino films produced for Puregold CinePanalo, with multiple screenings selling out within the festival’s first few days.

And at a time when the state of Philippine cinema has been the subject of intense discussion, the sight of audiences lining up for locally made films is sending a clear message: Filipino moviegoers are still willing to show up for Filipino stories.

‘This year, Pinoy cinema has been the subject of much debate and discourse,’ said Puregold CinePanalo Festival Director Chris Cahilig. ‘However, the success of our first day of screenings makes things incredibly clear: there remains a strong appetite for Filipino stories told by Filipino voices. Puregold CinePanalo has always been proud to uplift the stories of our local artists.’

The excitement was already visible even before the first film rolled.

Long lines were reported at cinemas a full day before screenings began, as fans headed to their cinemas of choice to secure tickets in advance. Cinephiles also rushed to Gateway Cineplex 18 and TriNoma to claim festival passes giving them access to the lineup of full-length films and student short-film sets.

By opening day, several screenings were already sold out.

Among the films drawing packed houses were the coming-of-age story ‘Apol of My Ai’; the supernatural queer films ‘Patay Gutom’ and ‘Multwoh (Patay na Patay sa ‘Yo)’; and the romantic comedy ‘Stuck on You,’ which puts a deadly twist on the genre.

The rush has spilled onto social media, where moviegoers have begun posting updates about sold-out screenings to help fellow festivalgoers plan and find available schedules.

And the demand is not slowing down.

Multiple screenings for the coming weekend have already sold out, with seats for all seven Puregold CinePanalo full-length films particularly in demand during late-afternoon and evening schedules.

Beyond the movies themselves, festivalgoers have also been walking away with souvenirs and giveaways, including grocery bags, custom totes, pins, and personalized souvenir receipts.

‘Puregold CinePanalo is our treat to both artists and fans of cinema,’ said Cahilig. ‘While we continue to uplift the stories of local filmmakers, we also strive to create memorable experiences for those who come to support these films. Attendees will leave with great stories in their hearts and minds, along with giveaways to serve as mementos of the experience.’

All seven full-length films and 19 original student shorts of the Puregold CinePanalo Film Festival will screen until October 4 at Gateway Cineplex 18, TriNoma, Fairview Terraces, Ayala Malls Feliz, Ayala Malls Circuit, Ayala Malls Manila Bay, and Market! Market!

Regular tickets are priced at ?250, while discounted tickets cost ?200. PWDs, senior citizens, students, national athletes, and Aling Puring and Puregold Perks cardholders qualify for the discounted rate.

A ?2,000 festival pass is also available for moviegoers who want to take on the festival lineup. Festival passes may be purchased only at Gateway Cineplex 18 and TriNoma but can be used across participating festival venues.

The Puregold CinePanalo Film Festival 2026 is sponsored by Alaska, Angel, Argentina, Ariel, Bingo, Birch Tree Fortified, Bear Brand, C2, Century Tuna, Champion, Chuckie, Coca-Cola, Colgate, Cream Silk, Datu Puti, Downy, GoodNom Fresh, Great Taste, Del Monte, Jack ‘N Jill, Knorr, Lucky Me!, Maggi, Magnolia Real Mayonnaise, Milo, Monde, MY San, Nestea, Nissin, Nivea, Palmolive Naturals, Pantene, Purefoods, Rebisco, Royal, Safeguard, Sprite, Surf, Wilkins and Zonrox.

‘Our kids.’

That was the simple reply of Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry-Navotas chapter president Paul Santos when asked who chose the bands performing at the Navotas Music Fest 2026 tonight, Sept. 26, at the Navotas Convention Center.

The lineup makes the answer easy to understand. Cup of Joe, Maki, Mayonnaise, KAIA, and Room Sessions are expected to draw thousands of young music fans for an evening tailored to their generation.

For PCCI-Navotas, however, the concert is about more than giving young people a night out. The business group sees it as an opportunity to introduce Navotas as an emerging destination for tourism, culture and commerce.

The Navotas Convention Center, which Santos said can accommodate 4,000 people, will serve as a test of the city’s potential to host large concerts, cultural activities and business gatherings.

The event will also raise funds for the chamber’s programs for nano, micro and small enterprises. Proceeds will support business development and skills training, networking and livelihood projects, as well as youth and community activities.

Santos and his group hope the music fest will encourage more people from neighboring cities to visit Navotas-and perhaps see the city in a new light. Established event destinations, after all, often begin with a single successful gathering that proves people are willing to make the trip.

For one night, PCCI-Navotas is betting that the city’s young people-and the music they love-can help put Navotas on the map.

Nesthy Petecio stamped her superiority in her first fight at the Aichi-Nagoya 20th Asian Games with a Referee Stopped Contest (RSC) victory over Jordan’s Mays Alreem Abukhadijah in women’s 60 kgs class of boxing at the Nishio City General Gymnasium on Saturday.

Referee Lukman Wekadapola stopped the fight in the 1:51 mark of the second round.

The featherweight silver medalist at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paris 2024 asserted her dominance right from the opening bell to get the judges’ nod, 10-9.

The Filipina boxing star then unleashed her sheer power in the second round, scoring two devastating knockdowns against her Jordanian opponent that left the referee with no choice but to wave off the fight.

Petecio joined fellow Tokyo silver medalist Carlo Paalam in the quarterfinals-Paalam defeated Commonwealth Games silver medalist Jadumani Mandengbam of India via a 3-0 split decision earlier on Saturday.

‘Good day today for us as two Olympic medalists Carlo (Paalam) and Nesthy joined (Junmilardo) Ogayre to make it three boxers in the quarterfinals,’ Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines president Marcus Manalo said.

The ABAP chief outlined the crucial upcoming bouts, noting that the national team is now just one victory away from securing podium finishes.

In the quarters, Petecio will face Chengyu Yang of China, Ogayre is pitted against Uzbek Abdumalik Khlakov in men’s 60 kgs and Paalam will go up against China’s Jiaomao Zhang in the men’s 55-kg.

Fresh off a European sprint from the Monza paddock to the Venice Lido to the Madrid grid, I return to find Soho’s festival making its own argument for what independent cinema is worth – on considerably smaller means

I filed my last dispatch from the 83rd Venice Film Festival on a stopover between two Formula 1 assignments – coming off my stint at Monza, and headed next to Madrid – because some detours are worth the itinerary.

I was there when Lav Diaz, the Filipino auteur whose The Woman Who Left won Venice’s Golden Lion in 2016, returned this September to claim the Premio Brian for Makikiraan Po (Let Us Through, Dear Ancestors), a film set during the brutality of Spain’s 1617 colonization of the Philippines – an award given not for spectacle but for cinema that advances a humanist and secular vision of the world. I spent that stretch of the festival among friends: Diaz himself, his longtime collaborator Hazel Orencio, Ed Lejano of the QCinema International Film Festival, and Marija Krunic, President of the International Filmmaking Academy in Bologna – the kind of company that makes clear how small and interconnected the world of serious independent cinema actually is, even at a festival the size of Venice. Diaz, by his own admission, was surprised to receive the award. I wasn’t, having tracked his particular discipline of slow, unflinching cinema since long before Venice caught up to him.

I mention Venice not for color but for contrast. That festival operates with red-carpet infrastructure, a jury system decades in the refining, and a global press corps numbering in the thousands. The Soho International Film Festival, opening its seventeenth edition on October 7 in New York, operates with none of that scaffolding – a seven-day program under the nonprofit SOHO Creative Lab, evolved from a three-day event I remember covering when you knew half the credentialed press by first name because there weren’t enough of us to fill a second row. And yet, watched against what I just witnessed on the Lido, SIFFNYC’s 2026 slate – more than one hundred premieres, thirty-five of them world premieres – is making a version of the same argument Venice makes at ten times the budget: that cinema’s value isn’t measured by the size of the stage but by what the work asks of its audience.

The opening-night selection is the clearest evidence of that ambition. Jackrabbit marks the feature directorial debut of Ballard C. Boyd – a detail that matters more than the press notes let on. Boyd is an Emmy and Peabody Award winner who has directed more than two hundred segments for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, arriving at his first feature with a craftsman’s fluency in pacing, tone, and the mechanics of holding an audience – skills honed nightly under conditions far less forgiving than a festival premiere. Venice can afford to open with an established master; a festival like SIFFNYC proves something different by opening with a debut, betting its most valuable real estate on unproven feature instinct rather than a safer, known quantity.

Shot entirely on New York location, Jackrabbit follows an investigative journalist and a struggling actress forced into partnership when their mutual best friend disappears – a premise that, watched through the lens of someone who has spent a career straddling both trades, doubles as commentary on two professions this city keeps producing in surplus and rewarding in scarcity. Boyd and his cast – Kuhoo Verma, Taylor Ortega, Saamer Usmani, Soojeong Son, and Mark Gessner – are confirmed for Opening Night.

No film in this year’s program carries more unplanned weight than 3 Days Rising, Craig Cukrowski’s reimagining of Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher. It holds the final leading performance of Peter Greene, who died in December 2025 at sixty. Greene built a career on a particular kind of screen menace – the twitchy, dangerous energy that made him unforgettable as Zed in Pulp Fiction and gave The Mask its most memorable villain – and he both stars as Eric Usher and produced the picture himself.

The ensemble around him – Mickey Rourke, Ice-T, Frank Whaley, Paul Ben-Victor, Bo Dietl, Vincent Young, Kelly Monrow, Fredro Starr, and Sticky Fingaz – reads like a registry of actors who built careers on exactly the register Greene specialized in. Watching this lineup assemble around his last performance, after decades spent documenting how New York remembers its own, I find it hard not to read the film as the festival’s own quiet tribute to a strain of American character acting that studios have largely stopped bothering to cast – the kind of tribute Venice pays its auteurs with a lifetime Golden Lion; SIFFNYC pays with an ensemble willing to show up.

Elsewhere in special presentations, Academy Award nominee Harvey Keitel and Academy Award winner F. Murray Abraham share the screen in director Louis Nero’s Milarepa, a post-apocalyptic coming-of-age story set in a world where nature has reclaimed the machinery of civilization, following a young girl’s journey into the magic arts after losing her father. Pairing two actors of this caliber on a festival stage – rather than inside a studio release calendar – is precisely the kind of programming that separates a festival still building its brand from one that has already earned the right to make such asks.

Juliette Lewis stars in Jesus Land, writer-director Saila Kariat’s adaptation of Julia Scheeres’ bestselling memoir, following a white teenage sister and her adopted Black brother whose bond is tested by racism, religious fundamentalism, and an abusive reform school – material Kariat has said draws on her own upbringing across India, Canada, and the United States. And writer-director Andrew Zappin’s The King of Black Goo, starring DJ Qualls alongside Kathleen Wilhoite, Harriet Sansom Harris, Margaret Cho, Michael McShane, and Matt Malloy, supplies the program’s necessary absurdist counterweight – a darkly comic study of a bitter, isolated man undergoing a personality-altering medical procedure in pursuit of love.

The most consequential decision in this year’s lineup isn’t a film at all. SIFFNYC’s partnership with the New York City Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment to host a stop on the ‘Made in NY’ Filmmaker Listening Tour – an initiative led by Film Commissioner Rafael Espinal and Deputy Commissioner Kwame Amoaku – inserts municipal policy directly into festival programming. Venice has the Italian state and the Biennale’s institutional weight behind it; New York’s independent filmmakers get a listening session, and this year, at least, that session is being treated as newsworthy in its own right.

Espinal’s own framing leaves little ambiguity about what’s at stake: ‘Film and television production is back in New York City, but a strong industry also means making sure all filmmakers can afford to create and build their careers here.’ In seventeen years of watching this festival’s press cycle – and far longer covering how this city’s institutions treat its working creative class – I cannot recall an announcement that so plainly treated policy access as a headline alongside the premieres.

The parallel partnership with New York Women in Film and Television, presenting a curated slate of member-directed shorts, extends that same institutional logic – treating a professional network’s visibility as infrastructure worth programming around, not simply a courtesy slot.

The festival’s international selections this year hold up on technical merit rather than novelty alone. South Korea’s Karlovy Vary, a comedy-drama turning the chaos of independent filmmaking into its own subject, stars Lee Je-yeon, Oh Ji-ho, and Shin Ji-won – the singer and actress formerly known as Johyun of the K-pop group Berry Good – with its director crossing the Pacific for the New York premiere. Japanese filmmaker Toshio Sekine’s Shambhala Story, shot over a multi-year production spanning three countries, follows a Tibetan monk sent to Japan to continue his studies, starring Morning Tzu-Yi Mo and martial-arts actress Rina Takeda. And France’s The Gliwensbourg Chronicles, Emilie Tommasi’s World War I-era time-travel fantasy starring Arnaud Thery, Myriam Caucheteux, Romain Pirosa, Laurent Brebion, and Adil Jbilou, arrives already decorated on the international circuit for directing, acting, production design, costume design, and cinematography.

Somewhere in the stretch between Monza, Venice, and Madrid, I found myself thinking about what separates a festival that can crown a Golden Lion from one still building the room to hold it. What this year’s SIFFNYC slate ultimately argues, watched by someone who has tracked this festival from its three-day origins to its current seven-day footprint, is that scale was never the real currency – conviction was. Pairing a director’s first feature, a departed actor’s final testament, and a City Hall listening session inside a single week is a harder festival to build than one that simply books famous faces, and closer to what Venice does with its budget than the size of SIFFNYC’s operation would suggest. That is the argument worth making, on a Grand Prix grid or in Lower Manhattan. I intend to be in the room for it, as I have been for every edition before.

On September 11, the iCAUR V27, an all-round hybrid SUV, won the Best Interior Design Award winner in the Premium Car Category at the 2026 Torino Automotive Design Award (TADA), recognizing its distinctive interior design and reinforcing iCAUR’s ‘Future-Classic’ design language.

Presented on September 11 in Turin, Italy, the recognition highlights the V27’s approach to combining timeless design, intelligent technology, functionality, and user-focused innovation-key elements of iCAUR’s vision for premium new-energy mobility.

Design Recognition from Turin

Turin is widely recognized for its automotive design heritage and industrial roots, with renowned design houses such as Pininfarina and Italdesign having longstanding ties to the city.

Organized by Salone Auto Torino, the TADA celebrates innovation in automotive design, aesthetic expression, and future mobility. Entries are evaluated by an international jury based on key aspects including creativity, functionality, and overall design expression.

The award also highlights the importance of integrating design with functionality, user experience, and the evolving needs of future mobility-areas reflected in the V27’s interior concept.

An ‘Interstellar Cockpit’ Designed Around the User

At the heart of the V27’s award-winning interior is its ‘Interstellar Cockpit’ design philosophy. Rather than focusing solely on the rugged characteristics traditionally associated with boxy SUVs, the V27 combines its commanding driving position, expansive visibility, and practical proportions with a more open and refined cabin environment.

Clean lines, a restrained layout, and premium materials create a cabin designed to balance comfort and functionality. This approach reflects iCAUR’s ‘Future-Classic’ design language, bringing together distinctive SUV character with modern expectations for premium mobility.

The V27’s interior is designed to provide a sense of openness and calm across different driving situations, from daily commutes and family journeys to long-distance road trips. Its ‘Interstellar Porthole’ dual panoramic sunroof allows more natural light into the cabin, enhancing the feeling of space and openness.

The laminated glass is designed to block 99.9% of ultraviolet rays, helping provide a more comfortable environment for occupants during extended journeys.

Intelligent Technology with AIMOGA

The V27’s design is complemented by iCAUR’s approach to intelligent mobility, including AIMOGA, which forms part of the brand’s vision for a more intuitive and connected vehicle experience.

AIMOGA represents iCAUR’s exploration of intelligent interaction between users and their vehicles, bringing technology closer to everyday mobility. Its integration into the brand’s broader vehicle ecosystem supports iCAUR’s goal of creating experiences that go beyond conventional automotive functionality.

This intelligent approach works alongside the V27’s digital interface and cabin technology. The vehicle features a 15.4-inch 2.5K HD central control screen powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8155 chip, placing key functions such as navigation, infotainment, and climate control within easy reach.

By bringing together intelligent technology and thoughtful interior design, the V27 demonstrates how iCAUR aims to make technology an integrated part of the driving experience rather than simply an added feature.

Designed for Everyday Versatility

Beyond its technology and styling, the V27’s cabin places emphasis on practical details designed around everyday use.

Eco-friendly soft-touch materials are used throughout the interior, while 49 storage compartments provide flexible space for personal belongings. The rear seats can also fold completely flat, adding versatility for passengers, luggage, and other cargo.

Together, these details reflect iCAUR’s approach to premium design-where visual appeal is combined with comfort, functionality, technology, and usability.

Continuing iCAUR’s Global Design Journey

The V27’s TADA recognition adds to the growing list of international design accolades for iCAUR’s V Series.

Earlier this year, the iCAUR V23 received recognition at the Red Dot Award: Design Concept 2026, highlighting its distinctive boxy design.

From the V23 to the V27, iCAUR continues to develop its ‘Future-Classic’ design language by combining a distinctive SUV silhouette with contemporary design, intelligent technology, and user-focused functionality.

The latest recognition further reflects iCAUR’s efforts to establish a distinctive global design identity as the brand expands its presence in international markets.

As iCAUR moves forward, the brand remains focused on bringing together Future-Classic design, intelligent technology, and a sustainable mobility ecosystem, with the aim of delivering distinctive new-energy mobility experiences to users around the world.

Across the internet space, child safety remains a priority among the tech giants.

This time, Apple launched an update that will help parents monitor and control their child’s phone screen and experience.

In its latest patch for iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27, the Screen Time update for Apple products now includes an easy-to-use and intuitive interface tool that aims to create a safer and regulated digital experience, according to a blog post by Apple.

‘These updates give parents more flexibility to manage the content their children see, who they can communicate with, and when they have access to apps,’ the blog reads.

The features were previewed in June and were launched in September. It includes: simpler setup experience with essential apps; parents permission for browsing, blocking gore contents with Expanded Communication Safety; adjusting their screen time with Time Allowances; and a redesigned Screen Time that allows the parents to make changes in one tap.

This new rollout has been a part of Apple’s initiative to create a safer environment for children within their ecosystem.

To access this, a parent is required to set up a child account. In doing so, they can freely use the new initiative remotely. It is required for children 13 below, but also available up to 18 years old.

To do so, you may: visit Settings and tap Family; tap the Add Member button; tap Create Child Account; and sign in to the Child Account on their device.

Apart from the aforementioned safety protocols inside the app, parents can also manage when their child can access certain apps.

For example, they can schedule which app they can use on a certain part of the day, especially during school days and homework hours. They can also pause device access during meals to promote a healthy family relationship.

This latest initiative from Apple was guided by online safety and health experts, including the American Academy of Pediatrics.

In retirement, I spend most of my time at home. One pleasure I allow myself is watching episodes of good crime drama series, together with my wife, when household chores allow her to do so.

Thanks to streamers, there’s plenty to choose from. My wife prefers crime documentaries, notably ‘Dark Asia with Megan’, which explores Asia’s most heinous criminals and infamous serial murders, cold cases, and many more. We also like to click on old ones from the FBI Files series from time to time.

Many times, we would patiently sit through true crime documentaries told through actual police body cam footage, including lengthy interrogations inside the police station. These episodes keep us mentally nimble as we observe the way suspects talk and move. They provide minute clues and telling signs that betray the guilt of the persons being interrogated. My wife and I would exchange notes while watching, and most of the time we arrive at the same conclusion, although there are a few times when our choice suspect turns out innocent at the end.

From top rating podcasts to documentaries, crime dramas, especially true crime, have become one of the most popular genres in modern media. In fact, our local networks have joined the trend with their own web channels featuring crime documentaries. I don’t know if a survey has been done on local viewers, but in the US, recent research shows that approximately 50 percent of Americans enjoy the true crime genre, and about 13% say it’s their favorite.

Personally, I avoid the ones with bloody scenes. I prefer watching the more quiet, sedate ones, like British and European crime drama series. I’ve never quite been able to put my finger on it, but perhaps it’s because the British and European crime shows rely on a solid storyline that focuses on character development and give the audience time and space to think and feel they can really solve it on their own.

My best example is ‘Wallander.’ It was originally a Swedish series, adapted from Henning Mankell’s Kurt Wallander novels. Sometime in 2004, a British television series was made with no less than the acclaimed Shakespearean actor Kenneth Branagh playing the title role of the police inspector. I have a collection of DVDs of the English version. Some episodes of the European and British ‘Wallander’ series can also be watched on YouTube.

Unfortunately, ‘Wallander’ doesn’t appeal to a wide audience. In the Philippines, it is virtually unknown. But if you have the liking and the patience for something that is intelligent and realistic, slow paced but still gripping, then it’s worth your time.

What I like about Kurt Wallander is that he is not a caricature of the typical hero detective. He is a deeply sympathetic man. He cares about the victims and the state of the modern world. Seniors in advanced age can relate to him. With each new case, Wallander trudges another step towards retirement, irrelevance and oblivion. He is also afflicted with a health issue that old folks are familiar with-diabetes, memory lapses, signs of Alzheimer’s disease, inherited from his father. But still he plugs away, stubbornly committed to doing what’s right, even as he knows the damage it’s doing to his life.

What I find personally appealing is the show’s more introspective style of crime investigation. The pacing is quiet, keeping the focus on observation, persistence, and the emotional wear of the job. Wallander is also a silent operator, he thinks more loudly than he talks.

Why are we fascinated by crime dramas? Probably because crime shows have a unique way of captivating us, often blending suspense, intrigue, and a dash of procedural order that can be oddly comforting.

Another reason perhaps is that crime investigation dramas offer a sense of justice. A crime happens, it gets investigated, and the perpetrator is usually caught. At the end of each episode, we are left with a sense of satisfaction afterward, as if we played a role in bringing justice.

Then there’s the intellectual challenge they present. Watching detectives piece together clues and evidences can feel like a mental workout. It involves assimilating all the available evidence and clues combined with relentless prodding and questioning. To do that, the eyes and even the ears must be alert, noting all the small details. It’s like a puzzle that unfolds with each episode, satisfying our innate curiosity and love for problem-solving.

Science tells us that an active mind is the most effective immunity against early dementia and brain atrophy. This is why a good and intelligently presented crime drama like ‘Wallander’ is good exercise for the brain. It helps foster mental agility. It also sharpens our critical thinking process by helping develop the habit of questioning the obvious answers and our assumptions, seeing more beyond what everyone can see, and go to where the evidence points.

But they also have some educational value. They equip viewers with skills of observation, analytical thinking, and even an interest in forensic science or law. Over time, I’ve picked up on investigative techniques, forensic science basics, and even some legal jargon. Viewers get exposed to the use of advanced forensic methods, lab tests, and cutting-edge tools. This knowledge, while not always practical, makes us feel more informed and aware. For women, crime shows offer survival tips and a way to navigate fears about personal safety.

What I like about dramas like ‘Wallander’ is their complexity. They go beyond the conventional ‘who dunnit’ police investigation drama. Every episode gives the viewer some insight into human nature or the state of society. Art is meant to disturb as someone puts it. That’s exactly what a good intelligent crime series should do, make us think critically and jolt us from our apathy and complacency about the world we live in.

I wish our Filipino creative artists would come up with this type of crime investigation dramas, which have the elements of police procedural, legal info bits, tension buildup, puzzle solving, bits of action, personal dilemmas and conflicts and most of all, a social and moral advocacy. Manila or any major city in the Philippines is an extremely rich source of gripping crime stories. All it needs is a Pinoy version of Kurt Wallander and a masterful writer and director to make a real splash among international audiences in the crime entertainment world.

The only problem is we don’t have a high regard for police authorities, so it would be difficult for Filipino audiences to empathize with a Filipino hero-police like the highly ethical and dedicated Wallander.

Some time ago we had a film based on a book entitled ‘Smaller and Smaller Circles.’ It was an attempt to be a more substantial crime drama film with Metro Manila slums as the setting. To my recollection, it was the first police procedural thriller from the Philippines, slower, quieter and more intelligent than the action driven shallow crime dramas our local audiences are used to. It bravely tackled the abuse of power in every area of Filipino society, be it in the law enforcement, politics, academe and even in the Catholic church.

I would still give it an A for ‘a-ffort’ even if I was dismayed when I saw it, because it fell below my ‘Wallander’ level of expectations.

Meantime, to my fellow senior travelers who are all whiling away their time at home, watch ‘Wallander’ or search ‘Inspector Morse’ or any other mentally and emotionally engaging crime dramas and documentaries. It’s healthful neurobics for your brain while you get entertained.

May our think-outside-the box educational authorities find the perceptiveness and insightfulness to employ intelligent crime dramas as classroom tools to foster critical thinking and social awareness among our young who will soon take part in building our society. Our nation is a victim of so many crimes. It badly needs real life young Wallanders who think intelligently and have the sagacity to catch these criminals and bring them to justice.

THE Philippines reclaimed its spot as the world’s second-largest banana exporter in 2025 on the back of a rebound in production, according to an international report.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said banana shipments from the Philippines surged by 30 percent to 3 million metric tons (MMT) last year, from the 2.33 MMT posted in 2024.

The international agency attributed the recovery in domestic banana output to better management of Fusarium Wilt Tropical Race 4 (TR4) disease, easing civil unrest, and government interventions.

‘The Philippines…saw production recover from the damages related to a variety of factors including the spread of TR4 and civil unrest experienced in recent years,’ the FAO said in its recent report.

Citing industry sources, the FAO noted that ‘substantial’ investments were funneled into boosting banana production in Cagayan Valley, including the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) provision of farm inputs like fertilizers.

With the recovery in local output, the Philippines officially returned to the previous export ranking it held for six years until 2022, as it slipped to third place in the subsequent years after being dislodged by Guatemala.

The FAO said China and Japan remained the key export markets of Philippine bananas.

While shipments of bananas to China posted a double-digit growth, the international report noted the disparity in quotations of its leading suppliers.

Imports from Vietnam, the leading supplier to China in 2025, averaged $407 per metric ton (MT), while those from the Philippines and Cambodia were around $600 per MT. Imports from Ecuador stood at $755 per MT.

The Philippines continued to corner 75 to 80 percent of Japan’s banana imports, but the FAO pointed to the 38-percent increase in the East Asian nation’s imports from Vietnam.

Despite this, the FAO said the global banana market continues to be subject to uncertainty from several risks that could disrupt trade.

‘With ongoing conflicts and wars weighing on the global economy, the risks of further disruptions to local and global supply chains, fertilizer markets, energy prices, transport routes and access to export markets heighten the uncertainty surrounding the outlook,’ the FAO said.

‘Rising living costs, high interest rates and exchange rate fluctuations may affect demand in domestic and export markets, especially for consumers in lower-income segments.’

The provincial government here has released P3.7 million in financial assistance to 1,314 senior citizens in Antique under its Kabalaka sa Lolo kag Lola sa Probinsya (Concern for Grandfather and Grandmother in the Province) program.

Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO) Social Worker Jason Alagos, in an interview on Thursday, said the initiative aims to provide recipients with cash assistance they can use to buy food, medicines, and other needs.

‘The annual financial assistance is being given to senior citizens, 85 years old and above,’ he said.

The amount released covered the distribution from Sept. 10 to 17.

The amount varies depending on their age group. Those 85-89 years old receive P2,000; 90-94 years old, P3,000; 95-99 years old, P5,000; and 100 years old and above, P10,000.

This local financial assistance comes on top of the newest major legislation for senior citizens, or the Expanded Centenarians Act (Republic Act No. 11982), which expanded cash incentives to include older age milestones rather than just waiting until age 100.

Key provisions of the Expanded Centenarians Act include milestone cash gifts: Senior citizens who reach the ages of 80, 85, 90, and 95 now receive a cash gift of P10,000 at each milestone.Those who reach 100 years old receive P100,000 along with a congratulatory letter from the President.

Meanwhile, the provincial government released P1.3 million in aid to individuals in crisis situation to 239 individuals in Antique over the same period.

IDEAS often move faster than tools can keep up with them. A meeting finishes, people leave the room, and the whiteboard stays behind, filled with arrows, half-written notes, and shapes that only made sense a few minutes earlier. You take a photo because you have to. What comes next is usually the time-consuming part.

Someone needs to redraw the chart. Someone else has to type up notes. Feedback gets split between screenshots, messages, and follow-up explanations. The Oppo AI Pen is designed for this in-between space, where work slows down not because ideas are weak but because translating them takes effort.

This article walks through two practical ways the Oppo AI Pen can streamline your everyday work on the Oppo Find N6: converting hand-drawn meeting notes into clear charts and adding direct, visual feedback to documents.

Scenario 1: Turning meeting chaos into clarity with AI Chart. A whiteboard is brilliant for thinking out loud. It’s less brilliant once everyone’s left the room. The usual routine is: take a photo, then spend time recreating the content later so the team can actually use it. The transition from brainstorming to execution shouldn’t be chaotic. With the Oppo AI Pen, you can start with an image and move straight to a polished chart.

When the meeting wraps up, take a clear photo of the whiteboard with your Oppo Find N6. If a teammate has already sent you an image of their hand-drawn notes, use that instead. Either works.

Open the image that contains the hand-drawn diagram. This is where your Oppo AI Pen does the heavy lifting: press and hold the pen button, circle the area you want to convert, and activate AI Chart. You don’t need perfectly drawn lines. AI Canvas can pick up the structure even when shapes are uneven or spacing is inconsistent.

In just a few moments, the system reads the sketch, pulls out what matters, and builds a clean wireframe. Your Oppo AI Pen helps you turn hand-drawn notes into polished charts, converting rough elements into standard diagrams. Your logic stays intact, just easier to read and share.

When you’re ready, export your chart as an image, PDF, PPT, Excel, or XMind file, depending on the chart type. Drop it into a meeting summary, add it to a deck, or send it along to colleagues.

Scenario 2: Streamlining feedback with Global Annotation. While AI Chart helps you transform brainstorming chaos into structured clarity, Global Annotation makes it easier for you to provide seamless feedback.

On a phone, feedback usually requires multiple screenshots and separate explanations, which reduces efficiency and clarity. With the Oppo AI Pen’s Global Annotation feature, feedback is added directly to the page, making reviews faster, clearer, and more intuitive.

Open the document or image you need to review. Press the button on your Oppo AI Pen to bring up the Stylus Palette, then tap annotate to start full-screen handwriting mode. Your Oppo AI Pen transforms your screen into a seamless annotation space.

Global Annotation lets you scroll through long pages while you keep writing. Circle a point, add a note, and keep moving. Add notes wherever you like, all while staying in the original layout.

Change pen strokes and ink colors so your feedback is easy to scan.

When you’ve finished reviewing, tap ‘Share.’ You don’t need a folder of screenshots. Share as a PDF or JPG in a snap, and send the annotated file straight away. Your feedback lands neatly and in context.