Richard Somes: Last News

EXCLUSIVE: Raven Banner Entertainment has boarded action thriller Trigger (Topakk), directed by the Philippines’ Richard Somes, to executive produce and handle international sales. 

It may not seem like the most obvious choice for a Christmas movie – a brutal action film with a protagonist traumatized by a failed mission in the jungle – but Triggered (Topakk) is one of the ten films selected for this year’s Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) and is opening across the Philippines on December 25. 

EXCLUSIVE: US-based Filipino filmmaker Isabel Sandoval is returning to the Philippines to shoot her fourth feature, Moonglow, starring Arjo Atayde (Trigger, BuyBust).

Philippines media and entertainment company ABS-CBN is set to launch tentpole co-production The Bagman at this year’s Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF) in Singapore, with the star of the series, Arjo Atayde, also attending the event. 

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Action thriller, “Trigger” from writer-director Richard Somes (“We Will Not Die Tonight,” “Supremo”) has wrapped production and is beginning sales at the European Film Market. “Trigger” (aka “Tokakk”) tells the story of a lonely security guard (portrayed by Arjo Atayde) previously discharged from the military due to his post-traumatic stress disorder. He finds himself embroiled in a different kind of war when a young woman (Julia Montes) seeks his protection against a corrupt police death squad. While the pair fight for their lives, the man must confront his inner demons to earn his redemption. The film also stars Arjo Atayde (“Cattleya Killer”), Julia Montes (“Brothers”), Sid Lucero (“The End of History”) and Kokoy De Santos (“Game Boy”) and is produced by Wilfredo C. Manalang of Fusee (the company that co-produced Cannes Camera d’Or prize-winner “Plan 75”), Somes of Strawdog Studio Production, Ria Atayde and Sylvia Sanchez from Nathan Studios and Michaelangelo Masangkay, co-owner of Toronto-based post sound house Theo & Atlas Productions Inc. with Fernando Henna.