Mexican Filmmaker Inspired By Manny Pacquiao For New Short Film ‘Cross’

An independent Mexican-American filmmaker has talked about where he got his inspiration for his short film titled "Cross." Gerry Maravilla, who is based in Los Angeles, is currently in preproduction for the movie inspired by Filipino eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao.

Maravilla told local Filipino channel ABS-CBN News that Pacquiao has initially inspired him to do the movie, which is about a Filipino-American who is forced to resort to desperate measures to pay for his ailing mother's medical bills. Maravilla said he grew up in a neighborhood that was primarily populated by Latino and Filipino.

"So that's all my friends were," Maravilla said. "When I wrote a story I kind of based on him (Pacquiao), I decided to keep the race as the same," he added.

Covina-born Filipino-American actor Jason Mordeno stars in the film. Mordeno had his first acting stint in 2013 in the American adaptation of Korean drama "Boys Over Flowers." Mordeno's role in "Cross" is his first lead role in a short and feature film. Other actors in the film include Fernando Noor, Ottoniel Mejia, and Leo Oliva.

According to a statement posted on Seed and Spark, the movie will be shown in various cinema screenings in the U.S. Then, it will be distributed on the online via the Internet.

Pacquiao's rags to riches story remains an inspiration to many. He was born in a poverty-stricken family. He already had interest in the sport of boxing when he was a young boy. He had been visiting nearby towns just to compete in boxing matches.

Pacquiao began his professional boxing career at 16 years old in 1995. It has been said that the death of a young aspiring boxer had influenced Pacquiao to go after his boxing career. Since turning professional, Pacquiao has showcased great boxing skills and won 11 consecutive fights. He has collected millions of prize money from his fights with some of t world's greatest boxers including Oscar DeLa Hoya, Erik Morales, and Shane Mosley.

Pacquiao's 64^th professional fight will take place on Nov. 22 at The Venetian Macao in Macau, China, He will face unbeaten American boxer Chris Algieri, where his World Boxing Organization Welterweight title is at stake.