WASTED REDUX
(PULP No.25, July 2002)

Most people drown their sorrow in beer and other nihilistic activities, but not this guy. Gerry Alanguilan whips up his pen and paper and starts drawing a mini comic series chronicling, among other things, a parallel story of how a girl broke his heart and the subsequent downfall of his main character, Eric. WASTED, of course, has since been released as a comic book by Alamat and later serialized in PULP magazines (PULP #8-16 / Sept 2000 to June-July 2001).

A recent development in the WASTED saga turns this Dark story into an independent film for the first time, directed by award-winning indie filmmaker Noel Lim (Wolfgang’s “Weightless” video and Magkakahoy, grand prize winner in 1st Southeast Asian Competition in Japan). “He has always been talking about doing a WASTED movie for years but nothing has really come out of it,” comments the WASTED creator. “IT wasn’t until middle of last year when everything became serious. There was really no question about Noel doing a good job. I know his work and I know he will do something good and rather unique. I agreed to the project with the stipulation that I will have final say on the script, if only to ensure that the spirit and intent of WASTED are not lost.”

Gerry has been tasked to write the script, which consisted pretty much of translating the comic book into Tagalog. With meager resources—Noel mostly funding the project with his personal money, with a pledge from Gerry to chip in later on—they have enlisted friends to play characters in the movie. “We’ve already got Uber-artist Dino Ignacio (Bert is Evil/website) to play a part in it. He’s already finish all his scenes and they’re terrific,” Gerry shares. So far, they are still looking for someone to play the pivotal role of Jenny, the girl whose infidelity drove the main character into despair.

Noel had also insisted that Gerry play the lead character himself. “I was absolutely against it. We did a screen test and people seemed to like it so I guess I’m stuck with it… I’m ugly and overweight, but I guess Noel knows what he’s doing,” Gerry dismisses.

Now, a year since it’s appearance in the pages of PULP magazine, WASTED will once again be reprinted in book format as a collector’s item featuring new artwork (Contributors include X-Men’s Whilce Portactio and Leinil Yu, among others), a new intro by Karen Kunawicz and recent WASTED convert Barbie Almalbis, and an afterword by it creator. Retail price is yet to be determined but advanced orders for the WASTED Limited Edition comic book may be phone in at 687-1709 (look for Michelle).