Mariecar Mendoza May 5, 2021Updated: May 5, 2021, 8:56 am
Dante Basco Photo: Chris Shintani
Fans often recognize Dante Basco for his role as Rufio in the 1991 Steven Spielberg film “Hook.”
“If I’m in public, yeah I get some people goin’ ‘Rufio! Rufio!’ still several times a week. I’ve got my own chant, like I’m a WWF wrestler,” he said, with a laugh. “It’s cool to have a character with a following like that.”
But don’t put this Filipino American heartthrob in a box.
The Pittsburg native makes his directorial debut with “The Fabulous Filipino Brothers,” which gets its California premiere at the 34th annual CAAMFest on Friday, May 14. The film, starring his real-life siblings (Derek, Darion, Dionysio and Arianna), serves as a celebration of his Filipino heritage and his Bay Area roots but also aims to simply showcase an American experience.