Whether you are a filmmaker or a frequent moviegoer, you must occasionally check to see if a movie was rewarded a glorious A or failed with a miserable F. Maybe you never see a film before you read about it first or choose to base your decision on the alphabetical ratings you see on your web browser. After all, letters mean something to all of us. Well, Manny the Movie Guy is different from the other film critics you know, and he thinks every movie deserves a kiss. A refreshing and unconventional critic, reviewer, and interviewer, Manny gets the best out of every movie he reviews and every artist he interviews. He asks questions that a regular moviegoer would like to know the answer to and never looses his sincerity and curiosity whether he is sitting across from Ron Howard or talking to an aspiring filmmaker. F.A. How did you start your career as a film critic? M. I’ve always been into films since I was back in Philippines. But I didn’t know that there was a critical way of looking at films until I went to school at Purdue University in Indiana. A professor of mine at Purdue introduced me to the world of film criticism, and from that moment I devoured every film known to men. Back then I was the entertainment editor and film critic for the school newspaper, which was known as the Purdue Chronicle – that was the early 90’s. But little did they know in 12 years, I would be doing this professionally. F.A. When you first started as a film critic, were you only writing or interviewing as well? M. I’ve always been writing. After college, I got accepted to the School of the Art Institute in Chicago for my post baccalaureate degree. From there, I moved to Las Vegas and then here to Palm Springs. I started working here in 2004 as the marketing director of our NBC station, KMIR 6. One day, I met with the radio station here for some community event we were doing. The next morning, they called me and said, “Manny, your personality is all over the place. We want to build a morning show around you. And we’re going to call it Manny, the Movie Guy!” Then our news director here at the TV station heard about that and she said, “Well, you should also do it on TV.” After that, I became a member of the Broadcast Film Critics, The Motion Pictures Association of America, and the studios started calling! Due to our close proximity to L.A., I go there every week for screenings and interviews. F.A. When you are interviewing people, what do you usually try to get out of your interviewees? M. The questions I ask during my interviews are things that normal moviegoers would want to know. For instance, when I interviewed Jerry Bruckheimer and P.J. Hogan, the producer and director of the Confessions of a Shopaholic, my main question was why they changed the setting of the book from London to New York, which was something many fans of the book wanted to know. Some of my questions may come across as offensive to the film or the filmmaker, but I phrase it in a way that my interviewees are happy with the questions in the end. F.A. Do you choose your interviewees yourself or does your TV Station pick them for you? M. No, it’s the studios that send them to you. They open it up to most markets, including my Palm Spring market. But I’m also on the CW Channel (online only at www.cwbayarea.com/entertainment) in San Francisco as well as The Filipino Channel (TFC). And this March, I just started being seen on NBC in Green Bay, Wisconsin. My website is taking off as well, I’m very happy about that. I put all my reviews and interviews there. For example, I blogged the Oscars minute-by-minute and got 8000 hits that night. Last year, I had 50. F.A. How do you integrate your marketing director position at NBC with your job as Manny the Movie Guy? M. When I get the interviews, it’s usually unexclusive for that market, and so we promote it like an exclusive interview with George Clooney. So yes, there is a semblance, a symbiotic relationship between what I do as a marketing director and what I do as a film critic. What I love about both of my jobs is the creativity that goes along with them. If I am not creating, I get bored very easily. F.A. The way I got introduced to you was through the web, your page on MySpace and of course your own website. It seems like you have a big presence online. When did you start putting your articles, reviews, and interviews on the internet? And what are your thoughts about doing film criticism online? M. Anytime an independent filmmaker contacts me and sends me their screeners, I give love to them on my website. I know that this is a very very hard and competitive business. So anytime I can help someone succeed in any way, I do it. This is why my rating system consists of kisses – because every movie deserves a kiss. When I pick movies, I try to analyze both the filmmaking and the movie-going aspect of it. I think being a critic means trying to guide the viewers and let them think. And because of my current presence on the web, there are many people who see me and recognize me. And then sometimes I hear from friends who I haven’t seen in years, and they tell me that they saw my website or saw me on YouTube or Facebook. That’s a great thing as well. It brings people together. What I love the most is interviewing directors. Last year, I got to interview Darren Aronofsky from the Wrestler, Ron Howard from Frost/Nixon, and I love talking to them about their movies. I can really see their passion. Even Kevin Smith from Zach and Miri Make a Porno—these are the directors who had made a difference in pop culture and the film world. For more information on Manny, to read his reviews and to watch his interviews, visit his Film Annex page at www.filmannex.com/mannythemovieguy or go to his website at www.mannythemovieguy.com. Interview by Eren Gulfidan. Contact at www.filmannex.com/ErenGulfidan