he last time we talked to Bing Loyzaga, she gamely answered all questions about Janno Gibbs. Do they have any communication? “Oh yes, we talk,” she says. “We're friends. Hindi pa kami talaga nagkakaayos, but we communicate. Five months na kaming hiwalay and there are still things we need to deal with, to fix.”

Is she hoping for reconciliation? “I've never closed doors for him and all my windows are open. After all, 15 years din kami, so hindi dapat mawala ng friendship for the sake of our two daughters.”

One thing nice about the Janno-Bing separation is that they didn't display their dirty linen in public, unlike what happened to Snooky Serna-Ricardo Cepeda, Sheila Ysrael-Dan Fernandez, and even Ethel Booba-Alex Crisano who hurled ugly accusations against each other. Somehow, you feel sad when a relationship ends badly and both parties trade insults on national television. TV shows and gossip columns turn their messy relationships into a circus for the public to feast on and you really pity their kids for being exposed to such dirt involving their parents.

Veteran writers like us have more or less developed some prescience as to which relationships might survive and succeed and which ones are sure to fail. We're happy when two mature persons face the altar with the resolve to work on their marriage and keep it intact, like Richard Gomez and Lucy Torres. Today, among the younger ones, a couple who has good chances of having a good relationship is Dingdong Dantes and Karylle. They're both level-headed and educated, unlike other stars who are so impulsive and can't seem to think clearly and don't bother to think at all. Another pairing we'd like to prosper is that of Judy Ann Santos and Ryan Agoncillo. Somehow, they seem quite right for each other.

But there are relationships you know from the start would end badly, like Kris Aquino and Phillip Salvador, Kris and Joey Marquez, and now, Kris and James Yap, or Kristine Hermosa and Diether Ocampo, Alessandra de Rossi and Jeremy Marquez. Something tells you they'd be up against a lot of odds to make their partnership work, based on the track record of one or both of them.

But couples are really so blessed these days as there are organizations that can help them grow in their relationship right from the very start. There are programs in the Center for Family Ministries that can guide them to discover if they are really meant for each other and help equip them in pinpointing the areas in their life that can be constant sources of friction even before they get married. And when they're already married, there are also marriage enhancement programs they can join to support their relationship each step of the way. Many couples think marriage is the end of their journey together. On the contrary, it's just the start. You're doomed if you think you'll live happily ever after automatically. It's just too bad that showbiz couples do not take advantage of these programs for them to avoid the pains and tears that go with relationships that end bitterly.

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The Philippine digital film Ang Pagdadalaga Ni Maximo Oliveros, about a 12-year-old gay boy who falls in love with an honest cop trying to bring to justice the boy's criminal father and brothers, reaped another international acclaim as it own the grand prize in the Asian Festival of 1st Film in Singapore.

The film's lead actor, Nathan Lopez, was nominated for Best Actor but lost to Saksham Kulkarni (Pak Pak Pakaak) of India .

The festival is an annual festival of film features and documentaries “to celebrate excellence for first time producers, directors, writers, cinematographers, actors and documentary makers from the Asian Diaspora,” its organizers said.

The Philippine entry, retitled in English as The Blossoming Of Maximo Oliveros, dominated a field of 42 feature films.

Maximo Oliveros earlier won the special jury prize in the Cinemalaya Festival last July. It also won Best First Film at the Montreal World Film Festival and Best Picture at the ImagineNATIVE Media Arts Festival also in Canada .

This month, Maximo Oliveros will be exhibited in the prestigious Sundance Film Festival under the World Cinema Competition. Started by Robert Redford in 1981, the Sundance Film Festival has grown to become the most important American film festival for independent cinema. The World Competition section was added to the lineup in 2005. The World Cinema Competition reflects the Sundance Film Festival's commitment to championing the independent spirit in filmmakers worldwide, while retaining its original focus as the premier showcase for American filmmakers.

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