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Staying true to the narrative, the film's production team made sure to pay attention to every detail, and even went as far as casting a Filipino child to depict the main character's young version.
Meet the adorable Dathan Ysrael Balaaldia Llamoso. In The Childe, which premieres in Philippine cinemas today, Dathan is featured as the baby counterpart of Korean actor Kang Tae Joo's character, Marco Han.
As the story goes, Marco has been residing with his mother in the Philippines, where he also pursues boxing by fighting in illegal stadiums. When his mother gets sick, he searches for his father to help with their surgery bills.
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Little did he know that he'll meet people who'll go after him for reasons beyond him and get entangled in a 'chase of madness.' One of those looking for him is Hallyu heartthrob Kim Seon Ho's character, a mysterious guy called the Nobleman. In search of him, the Nobleman chances upon old photographs showing the baby Marco.
In this brief yet defining scene, the cute little boy featured in the photos was Dathan, who was just nine months old at the time of the shoot. Dathan is now two years old; he is residing in South Korea with his parents Ulysses and Deanne.
As to how baby Dathan landed this part in The Childe, mommy Deanne shares, ''Yung friend po namin, nag-message po sa amin na try daw po namin mag-audition o mag-send ng picture du'n sa recruiter. Nag-send po kami then kinabukasan po, pinatawag po si baby tapos ayun po, mag-shooting na raw po kami.'
Baby Dathan was photographed in a studio with a woman carrying him, and those photos were edited to look vintage for the clip included in the film. Though overjoyed by and grateful for the unique, once-in-a-lifetime experience, Deanne said she wasn't initially sure if that shoot would make it into the film. She only found out that the shoot was indeed used as photo props and that Dathan was even credited in The Childe when it was already released in Korea last June 21. 'Na-shock po ako na nag-appear po siya sa film,' Deanne tells Metro.Style. 'Siya po 'yung baby na Kang Tae Joo (Marco)... siya po 'yung matagal nang hinahanap ng character ni Kim Seon Ho.'
Now that Dathan is two, his parents are noticing that he's quite interested in acting, too. 'Mahilig po siyang sumayaw, kumanta, and nag-a-acting din po siya. 'Pag sinabing paano umiyak, paano masaya, nagagawa niya,' Deanne says.
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But his number one talent is that he plays basketball really well. 'Nag-start po siya nu'ng one-year-old, talagang shooter na po siya,' Deanne says, adding in jest that if and when they return to the Philippines, they're likely to have him audition for a showbiz stint if that's where his interests really lie. She laughs, 'Mag-au-audition na po siya sa Star Magic!'
Should that happen in the future, this bit part on The Childe will surely be a sweet memory to look back on.
Till then, Dathan!
The Childe stars Kim Seon Ho, Kang Tae Joo, Go Ara, and Kim Kang Woo. It is exclusively released in the Philippines by CreaZion Studios, a production company that aims to create content for global audiences. It is distributed in the country with Glimmer Philippines.
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