Well, Preview.ph has gone and done it again. The fashion publication recently released its annual Pride cover, and it's even better than the last—if you can even believe that. If last year's cover featured 19 people, this year's iteration has a whopping 32! Highlighting members of the LGBTIQIA+ in the entertainment industry, the spread aimed to raise awareness about the sector's continued fight for liberation and equality.
Let's talk about all the things we ~love~ about Preview's June 2024 Pride cover:
1. It's the first cover to feature 32 (!) people.
We all thought that Preview's Pride 2023 cover which featured 19 transgender Pinays and femme non-binary individuals was their biggest one yet, but they managed to outdo themselves this year by inviting 32 members of the LGBTQIA+ community in the entertainment industry. Wow!
2. They reserved a *seat* for Direk Wenn Deramas.
Technically, there are only 31 people present on the cover, but Preview did reserve a special seat for the late Direk Wenn Deramas. His works, especially the ones featuring Vice Ganda like Sisterakas and Praybeyt Benjamin, became influential for all the queer kids who grew up in the 2000s. His movies were definitely some of the ones we looked forward to every Christmas/MMFF season!
3. We got to see KaladKaren as Darna and Paolo Ballesteros as Valentina.
Darna is one of the most ~*iconic*~ Pinoy superheroes that has been brought to life by many actresses, including Angel Locsin and Marian Rivera. But for Preview's version, we got to see KaladKaren as the titular heroine and Paolo Ballesteros as the equally iconic villain, Valentina. 10/10, would def watch the show starring the two of them, TBH!
4. Sassa Gurl cosplayed as Elsa in Himala.
For the cover's corresponding short film, Preview took some of the cover stars and made them "audition" for the lead role of Elsa in Himala (1982). Among the aspiring ~actresses~, it was Sassa Gurl who stood out, complete with her pre-audition ritual of applying her iconic hotdog-style blush. "May Himala" nga!
Fun fact: It's also Sassa's *third* time gracing the fashion publication's Pride cover, having previously appeared in 2022 and 2023!
5. The digitally recolored portraits of the stars looked ~amazing~.
Aside from the elaborate sets that recreated some of the most iconic scenes in Philippine entertainment, one of the standout images was the solo portraits of the cover stars. According to the brand's Creative Director, they were originally shot in black and white, and then they were digitally recolored to give them that ~*vintage*~ effect similar to the style from early movies.
Read the cover story for Preview's June 2024 Pride cover here.
