Yassi Pressman faces her fears in 'Isolated'

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Yassi Pressman will be the first to admit she's no horror fan.

Yassi Pressman at the media launch of ‘Isolated,’ her first horror-suspense film, opening April 30 in cinemas nationwide. PHOTOS FROM VIVA

"The last horror movie I watched was 'Insidious' — and that was back in 2010," the actress said with a nervous laugh at a media conference on Tuesday for her latest project for Viva Films titled, "Isolated."

"I was really scared when this was pitched to me, but I told myself, this is a nice challenge."

She wasn't exaggerating. Physically, mentally, and emotionally, the making of "Isolated" tested her limits. But as Yassi said, working with a legend like Joel Torre and a director like Benedict Mique was too good an opportunity to pass up.

Opening in cinemas nationwide on April 30, "Isolated" is a suspense-thriller from the Gawad Urian-nominated director. It stars Yassi as Rose, a young nurse who takes on a high-paying job to care for Peter, an elderly man in a wheelchair with dementia. The role is played by none other than the consummate actor, Torre, whose quiet intensity often drives the film's uneasy tension.

Peter lives alone in an eerie, decaying house, and while he may appear harmless, Rose immediately senses something is wrong. Plagued by anxiety, sleepless nights, and haunting visions, she begins to question the nature of her patient — and whether they are truly alone in the house.

Candy Pangilinan, Wilbert Ross, Gwen Garci, Yayo Aguila and Denise Esteban join the cast, rounding out a supporting lineup that deepens the mystery and, at times, lightens the mood to give viewers a breather before the next jump scare.

"Isolated" marks Yassi's first foray into the horror-suspense genre, and she admits it was one of the most demanding yet rewarding experiences of her career.

Viva Holdings, Inc. Chairman and CEO Vicente ‘Boss Vic’ del Rosario Jr. and IPOPHL Director General and lawyer Brigitte da Costa-Villaluz

"Even off-screen, the atmosphere felt scary," she shared. "The script was dizzying, full of twists — nakakagulat [shocking], really. And emotionally draining."

It also served as her long-awaited reunion with Torre, whom she affectionately calls "Tay" (dad) a nod to their time together on the long-running series "FPJ's Ang Probinsyano," which wrapped up in 2022. Yassi confessed she was still starstruck working with him when they filmed their first sequence for "Isolated."

"Honestly, I would just like to say I love working with you always, Tito Joel," she said, turning to her seasoned co-star at the presser. "From Day 1, it's been a blessing to work with someone so talented and respected, but also so approachable. I can ask him anything. He's really open and generous, which is rare [in this business]."

That comfort and chemistry translated into a powerful dynamic onscreen, but Yassi revealed she still had to shake off their old roles. "I had to remove that image of him as my 'Tay.' This was different. This was darker."

Pressman is grateful to have had director Benedict Mique (leftmost) and veteran co-actor Joel Torre by her side as she took an unfamiliar and extremely challenging genre for her big screen comeback.

Despite the film's ominous tone, Yassi said the set was surprisingly relaxed. "It was just the script—and me—who were constantly tense," she joked. "But seriously, 'Isolated' is one of the hardest and easiest films I've ever done. Hard because of the fear, easy because I had amazing co-actors and, of course, Tito Joel to lean on."

With 'Isolated,' Yassi Pressman makes her big-screen comeback into a genre she never imagined herself in. And yet, she proves she can hold her own — trapped in a house that's as isolated as the secrets it keeps.

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Still on news from Viva, another noteworthy development unfolded with the ever-enduring and rapidly growing multimedia conglomerate later that same day — this time shifting focus from Yassi Pressman's eerie new thriller to the very real battle creatives face off-screen: piracy. Viva Holdings, Inc. (VHI) formally partnered with the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) to address the growing threats of pirating and counterfeiting in the entertainment industry and beyond.

The memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed at the company headquarters in Tektite, Ortigas Center, covers 37 companies under the Viva umbrella, with more expected to follow as the multimedia giant continues to expand across various industries. These are led, of course, by film and TV production along with streaming, music licensing, concerts, fitness, skincare and cosmetics distribution, radio, and food services.

"This is great news for all the creators and artists under Viva," said the group's visionary Chairman and CEO and the entertainment industry's beloved and revered Vicente "Boss Vic" del Rosario Jr. at the ceremonial signing. "Viva is the leading content provider in the country, so it's only right that we give all those working with us the highest level of protection for their intellectual property — against piracy and counterfeiting."

A long-standing advocate for creative rights, Boss Vic didn't hold back on how piracy has chipped away at the core of the business. "I think we're losing about 80 percent of our potential revenue. Only 20 percent of our content is being accessed legally because it's just too easy to access pirated material in the digital space," he lamented. "Streaming is huge now, but enforcing copyright laws online is incredibly difficult. The result? We're forced to tighten production budgets instead of growing them like we want to — money that could've gone to developing better stories and stronger productions across the board.

"Honestly, if piracy weren't this rampant, the Philippines should already be ahead of Korea in content quality — because Filipinos are truly excellent creators," he added. "We know how to produce good content, but funding remains a real struggle. Especially now that cinemas are still recovering, we're leaning more heavily on streaming to keep going, which is why protecting that content is essential."

Now, the MOU doesn't stop at shielding creative work. It also covers counterfeit consumer goods, especially unauthorized beauty products being sold online — many exclusively distributed in the Philippines by Viva.

"We want e-commerce to be a safe environment," said IPOPHL Director General and lawyer Brigitte da Costa-Villaluz. "Just last year, we confiscated over P40 billion worth of counterfeit items. That's lost revenue already because those products were made available to the public illegally."

Established in 1998, IPOPHL is the country's lead agency in managing and enforcing intellectual property rights. Its mission is to safeguard innovation, creativity, and economic growth. Thus, with the signing of the MOU, Boss Vic emphasized that Viva's writers, composers, directors, and all other content creators now have a more solid and visible layer of protection.

"Piracy and counterfeiting are massive problems, not just in entertainment but in many industries," he continued. "They don't just cause financial losses — they also show disrespect for our creators, inventors, and innovators. But with this partnership, everyone can be assured that IPOPHL is standing behind them."

The agreement also sets up a streamlined process for the removal of pirated and counterfeit content from major e-commerce platforms like Lazada, Shopee, Zalora and TikTok.

It likewise addresses more elusive forms of digital intellectual property theft that thrive in today's online landscape — from pirated content accessed through QR codes to bootleg files distributed via USB drives.

In closing, Director General da Costa-Villaluz also shared her hope that Viva — true to its reputation as a trailblazer in the industry, and fittingly the first to take this step with IPOPHL — will set the standard for others to follow, paving the way for a more protected, respected, and empowered creative community in the Philippines.

Mention the name Viola Davis and just like Timothée Chalamet, I'm invested. In Prime Video's "G20," the legendary EGOT winner (that's an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and two Tony awards) has fun playing a US President under siege.

She is President Danielle Sutton, who also happens to be an army veteran — she's a good shot and knows her way around close-quarters combat. After seeing her in "Woman King" you know Davis can play a leader you wouldn't want to mess with.

Unfortunately, a disgruntled soldier named Rutledge ("The Boys'" Antony Starr, aka Homelander) is in the mood to make a political statement by holding world leaders attending a G20 Summit in Cape Town hostage.

Because President Sutton is also a mom, she decides to bring her children Serena and Demetrius along to the G20 forum. The movies starts with Serena once again slipping through White House security to go dancing. The president decides to keep a closer watch on Serena lest she be questioned about the effectiveness of handling a nation when she can't keep track of her own wily daughter.

Rounding out the US president's family is First Husband Derek, portrayed by Anthony Anderson. I'm so used to seeing him play the comic relief that it took a moment to adjust to him in the more serious role of a protective father.

Among the hostages is the second most powerful woman in the world, Elena Romano of the IMF, played by Sabrina Impacciatore. Fans of the second season of "The White Lotus" know and love her as Valentina, manager of The White Lotus in Sicily. There's also British Prime Minister Oliver Everett (Douglas Hodge) and the South Korean First Lady (Han Min-seo) who have key roles in this thriller. Incidentally, the US Vice President is Clark Gregg who Marvel fans would know as Agent Coulson. Alas, he could not call The Avengers for help here.

Despite the caliber of talent on "G20," don't expect Shakespeare or consider this a political thriller with clever, thought-provoking machinations. "G20" is a standard but effective and sometimes fun action movie peppered with some comedy — something in the vein of "White House Down," "Air Force One," and "Olympus Has Fallen" with a bit of "Home Alone."

Clearly, this movie was made before the 2024 elections upended geopolitics as we've known it for 80 years. Today, leaders are held hostage in a different way and by a different kind of villain. In one scene, a news ticker reads, "US Economy Crashes." Rutledge wants to crash global markets and see the value of currencies drop. It was kind of funny to watch the screener the day Donald Trump was set to enforce his tariffs.

As far as fictional US presidents go, I wouldn't mind if Davis' President Sutton was the actual president or Martin Sheen's President Bartlet from "The West Wing." I also wouldn't mind the presidents Morgan Freeman and Jamie Foxx played. I'd also take the two Harrison Ford played, even if one of them turns into a Red Hulk.

Oh, and by the way, this movie is also a reminder not to wear high-heeled shoes — apart from hurting your back, you never know when danger will strike and you'll need to run. Fancy gatherings are no exception.

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"G20" was released on April 10 on Prime Video.