FaceApp reveals what Bohol leaders would look like as members of the opposite sex

Can you recognise these Boholanos? Some well-known faces are almost unrecognisable as they change sex or become younger or older using FaceApp. 

If your social media feeds are suddenly full of gender-swapped photos of friends, families and celebrities, it's because of the 

facial morphing app FaceApp which is making the rounds again.

FaceApp is a photo editing application that allows users to transform their appearance entirely. It allows people to see what they would look like when they are older and change the gender of the person in the photo. 

From our congressmen to mayor, many quickly joined in on the fun. 

Tagbilaran City Mayor John Geesnell "Baba" Yap II took to Facebook on Thursday to try the gender swap trend. 

In a post that has left many amused, he transformed himself into a beautiful woman. 

"Ga lisod ang faceapp sa baba yap hairstyle. Ga tindog gihapon.." Yap said referring to his signature hairstyle. 

His post has collected over 5,800 'likes' and more than 1,600 shares. 

The photos of Reps. Erico Aristotle Aumentado and Alexie Besas-Tutor also garnered a ton of amused comments from netizens. 

Aumentado shared a picture of himself as he transformed into a woman. It only proved that Aumentado is undeniably beautiful. 

On the other hand, Tutor showed a photo of a handsome man with a sexy facial hair. Netizens were loving the shot. 

Board members Aldner Damalerio and Jade Bautista also charmed netizens who reacted to their transformations of a seductive woman and sexy man. 

"Shout out sa mga Ate's ug mga Tita's," posted Damalerio who showed his female persona. 

"Always mi mupahinumdom ninyo nga mag sul-ob ug face mask, social distancing, frequent handwashing, stay healthy by keeping fit and exercise, eat fruits and vegetables, Ok? From your Tita A :) Maki-uso lang ta pang pa good vibes :)," he added. 

Boholano singer-actress-comedienne Scarlet Geulen-Boiser also shared her photos of a young and old lady of herself. Because of her transformation, she captivated the hearts of her fans. 

Fashion designer Rommel Auza also shared a photo of a seductive woman. 

The photo of US-based socialite Mikey Gatal's younger but thin appearance still charmed many netizens who reacted on his post that showed his being a woman. He also appeared to add a lick of makeup to finish off the virtual makeover.

Ariel Fullido of CenterStage Band also transformed himself into a woman. His caption amused many netizens, too. 

While the world was taken by storm by FaceApp, it also faced criticism for reinforcing gender stereotypes and sparked heated debates about gender norms.

A few tech analysts from across the world have accused FaceApp as a blatant breach of data privacy.

Scarlet shocked, sad on Eddie Garcia’s untimely death

Wake-uppers:

Scene:  The 17 official candidates of Sandugo Queen 2019.  The search for Sandugo Queen 2019 is open to transgender females that best suit the five titles up for grabs in a competition that showcases their beauty, wit and talent. The coronation night is on July 26, 8 p.m. at the Bohol Cultural Center.

Seen: A new species of shipworm or a clam with a worm-like body found in Bohol was introduced by a group of scientists this week. What’s interesting is this marine species Lithoredo abatanica eats rocks, rather than the wood diet of other shipworm species.

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The world of Philippine showbiz mourned on the passing of Eddie Garcia, a screen icon and director whose career spanned 70 years.

Scarlet Geulen-Boiser on legendary actor
 Eddie Garcia: “He was very modest, very unassuming.
 He was one of a kind.”  Contributed Photo

Garcia died last Thursday, June 20, after nearly two weeks of being in a comatose state. He suffered a neck fracture after tripping on a cable wire during his taping for a GMA Network teleserye.

Garcia was local Showbiz’s Sexiest Man Alive, a durable sex symbol who continued to amaze and intrigue the public by looking 25 years younger than his age.

He joined showbiz as kontrabida (later metamorphosing into a bida so versatile that he could play a screaming faggot with delightful credibility.  In one of his media interviews, he said that “Tubog sa Ginto,” directed by the late Lino Brocka where he played a closet homosexual in that movie, was considered his best performance out of the hundreds of films he had done.

Known as the original “Manoy,” he was a “Festival King” in his own right, who figured prominently in the Metro Manila Film Festival, Gawad Urian and FAMAS. He won several awards for his acting and directing stints.

Colleagues and friends of Garcia took to social media to remember and pay tribute to the veteran actor including Boholano singer-actress-comedianne Scarlet Geulen-Boiser who worked with Eddie in a TV drama.

Their friendship goes almost 7 years back, so when Garcia died, Scarlet grieved as if she lost a member of her family. 

"What do I remember most about Tito Eddie? Well, he was a very nice person. He was very humble and very down-to-earth. He had no star complex at all, despite his stature as a great Filipino star,” she told VRS.

They were together in the 2012 TV drama “Aso ni San Roque” for about three months. 

She shared that at the actors’ hub (standby area), Eddie was so thoughtful that his co-stars loved him dearly.

“He brought fruits in the set and he convinced me to eat fruits rather than eating cakes,” she said.

Garcia was so generous that he even bought all the “ube jam” of Scarlet and gave them to the people in the set.

“He was very professional,” said Scarlet. He didn’t like people working with him are pabaya sa trabaho. That kind of attitude really bugged him. Sometimes he could not tolerate it.

“He told his co-actors that there are no small roles in acting that you could always do well in your roles,” said Scarlet.

In movies and TV series, Scarlet plays her role, no matter how "small" with such honesty, so natural and so casual as if she's not acting at all.  Thanks to Manoy Eddie for being her inspiration.

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Direk Maryo J: Magnifico!

Acclaimed director Maryo Jarolan delos Reyes—Direk Maryo J to many—had thoughts of retiring in his mother's home province of Bohol where he owned several pieces of property.

He owned a villa on a farmland in Barangay Progreso, Alicia town, about 88 km northeast of Tagbilaran.

The property was an inheritance from his mother, Lourdes, which he converted into a farm which was planted with rice, coconuts and bananas.

The death of famed director Maryo J. Delos Reyes set off an instant
emotional outpouring from a stunned industry including one
of his many talents Scarlet Geulen-Boiser. Contributed Photo

He once said that farming was viable industry that would benefit the townfolk and that he saw himself retiring as a farmer.

Direk Maryo also acquired a property in Barangay Dao, Tagbilaran City, which he named “Celebrityville.” Inside the property were his house and four-unit apartment which he named after his movies --“Pari 'Koy,” “Niño,” “Annie Batungbakal” and “Magnifico.”

Last week, Direk Maryo instructed his caretaker Tata Castillo, 40, to clean his house since he would be there on Jan. 29 with some of his celebrity friends. He also wanted to supervise the finishing touches on his house and the plans to build a pool inside the property.

But Direk Maryo didn’t make it home. He died on Jan. 27 after suffering a heart attack.

His sudden death brought shock to his fellow Boholanos.

“Nakurat ko kay kalit lang jud (I was so shocked because [his death] was so sudden),” said Castillo.

The industry began an outpouring of grief and remembrance immediately after news of his death.  The director’s reputation and generosity evidently touched those across his life.

Among those grieved the loss of such a major and influential talent was singer-actress-comedianne Scarlet Geulen-Boiser, one of Direk Maryo’s talents whom he treated like his children.

“He’s like my second parent, mentor, critic, talent manager and friend. He was a very generous friend. It seemed that I lost an angel who was always helping me,” said Scarlet.

Scarlet started her showbiz career in 1998, but she made a big splash when Delos Reyes pushed her career to star in films and some teleseryes on ABS-CBN and GMA.

She said she learned valuable lessons from Direk Maryo.

“Positive nga tawo si Direk Maryo. He said we should learn to forgive and forget the bad things that happened.

He only wanted positive vibes, really happy,” she recalled.

He constantly told her that there was no point getting depressed by problems no matter how big these were because these would be dealt with by a bigger God.

Another actress TinTin Ng described Direk Maryo as "a big hearted and compassionate man.”

Lutgardo “Gardy” Labad, bosom buddy and musical scorer of his landmark films, described Delos Reyes as a “preciously Boholano and Filipino, a good, true, beautiful human being.”

Last Wednesday, Scarlet (who was with Ms. Rose Sabijon Rara, Architect Niño Guidaben and fellow actor Mark Sepe) broke down as soon as he saw Direk Maryo inside a coffin.

Scarlet was overjoyed by the number of people who love Direk Maryo...people from showbiz, politics, business, all sectors of society.

“Many people love Direk Maryo J,” said Scarlet.

And they keep coming to bid Direk Maryo a fond farewell last Saturday, perhaps less with tears but more with recollection of beautiful memories and anecdotes about Direk Maryo.

Direk Maryo was all that — and more.

Every time we met, he would ask, “Kailan ka ba bibisita sa farm ko?”  Before I could answer, he added,

“Anong masasabi mo sa teleserye?”

In 2013, when he saw me and my nephew Jhelmar Jala during the first Saulog celebration, he convinced me to allow my nephew to enter showbiz. But Jhelmar didn’t enter showbiz because he’s still studying.

The last time we met was in 2016 during the launching of the Blue Way, a dance workshop organized by Gardy.

He asked, “Kumusta ka na Leo? Bakit hindi ka nagpapakita sa akin? Kailan ka ba pupunta sa farm ko?”

He was also very accommodating if I want to interview him or his talents.

Direk Maryo wanted to become a priest. But it didn’t happen when he enrolled at the University of the Philippines College of Mass Communications in 1974.

At that time, he was very active with the Philippine Educational Theater (PETA), the country’s premiere theater group.

From 1965 to 1975, he participated in various art and theater seminars and workshops here and abroad as organizer, moderator and instructor.

He also became a professor and lecturer at the UP College of Mass Communications and began writing for television drama anthologies. He had directed many films and television series since his directorial debut in 1978.

His critically acclaimed drama films were "Magnifico" (2003) which received the Crystal Bear in the 2004 Berlin International Film Festival, "Naglalayag" (2004) which garnered major awards in the 2004 Manila Film Festival, the box-office hit "A Love Story" (2007) and his last film "The Unmarried Wife" (2016).

Despite the fame and recognition, Direk Maryo remained grounded and level- headed.

Close friend Gerry Lugod said that while the director was born and based in Manila, he knew how to remember his roots.

“He felt he was really Boholano even though he was born in Manila,” he said.

In Bohol, he supported students and some schools without any the fanfare and publicity. His family donated a lot for Progreso Elem. School in Alicia.

He accepted speaking engagements and conducted acting and film making workshops.

In fact, Direk Maryo had planned to establish a film school in Bohol and conduct a local film festival.

Direk Maryo made an effort to showcase local talents and promote Bohol when he directed movies such as “Nandito Ako,” “Nagmamahal Sa’yo” and “Bamboo Flowers” which were entirely shot in Bohol.

I once asked him why did he choose to film the movies on location in Bohol?

His replied: “I'm from Bohol and I want to showcase the beauty of my home province.”

Direk Maryo supported Oplan Bangon Bohol (OBB), the brainchild of the Association of Young Boholano Professionals in Metro Manila, to help fellow Boholanos when the province was hit by earthquake on Oct. 15, 2013 which brought Bohol to its knees.

Down-trodden by the tragedy, Direk Maryo offered “Bamboo Flowers” to OBB as part of his contribution to the fundraising.

So long Direk! You’re truly magnifico!

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