LOCAL show business has a lot of major-major ?ganda? points this year, one of the most prominent being Charice?s wildly raved appearance in the hit Hollywood television show ?Glee.?

Speculations on the Filipina singing sensation?s participation in the eagerly followed musical comedy series spread like wildfire even before Charice made an official announcement on the matter.

The diminutive Filipina, who also scored a Billboard hit with her song ?Pyramid,? portrays Sunshine Corazon, a Filipino exchange student who poses a threat to lead star Rachel?s stardom on the campus stage.

Videos of her performances on ?Glee? were quickly uploaded on multimedia sharing website YouTube and became instant hits, not only with Filipino fans but among other nationalities as well.

The positive reviews of Charice?s ?Glee? videos encourage deeper patriotism and pride in one?s Filipino roots. Now is certainly a good time to be Filipino, especially when you?re in a karaoke joint in Manhattan.

Within the country?s shores, the Filipino music scene also scored a big boost with the revitalization of the Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit (OPM), led by singer-songwriter Ogie Alcasid. The group?s new board also includes young balladeer Christian Bautista, whose involvement is seen to inspire young musicians to cooperate and take part in the organization?s causes for the local music industry.

Not only are local songs getting major airtime in radio stations as a result of OPM?s reorganization, Filipino-produced albums are also steadily cornering huge shares of record bars? sales, ushering in a new golden age for Original Filipino music.

Local bands are emerging once again, with a slew of amateur band competitions scouring the archipelago for the next Eraserheads or Parokya ni Edgar. This has resulted in the growing appreciation for band music, originally-written songs and home-grown talents.

But perhaps the biggest, and most welcome, surprise in the local music scene is the phenomenon called Jovit Baldovino.

The probinsiyano (someone who grew up in the province) who wowed the judges at the local edition of an international talent competition also lords over the airwaves with his cover songs culled from his back-to-back albums released in less than a year?s interval. His albums also attained multiple-platinum status a few weeks after release, which could mean a third album may likely be out in a few months? time.

Jovit?s quick rise to superstardom dispels previously held notions that one has to look ?artistahin? to make it big in the business. Real talent will find its place in the industry, thanks to this siomai vendor turned rock star.

The Filipino audience also has something to be grateful for, with this year?s developments on local television. The rejuvenation of fledgling station TV5 posed a serious shakeup of the decades-long duopoly between ABS-CBN and GMA.

After Malaysian investors shook the local television station with out-of-the-box programs, magnate Manny V. Pangilinan stepped in and took over what the foreign players started, adding winning strokes to the station?s attempts at snagging ratings dominance from the ?Big Two? players.

The result: alternative programming that sent the two leading stations scrambling for viable projects that would reverse their dipping ratings.

Recent viewership studies still put ABS-CBN in national dominance, with GMA securely holding on to Metro/Mega Manila leadership. But TV5 has been sneaking in some winners in the top programs lists, most notable of which is the talent competition ?Talentadong Pinoy,? which has been topping the weekend ratings charts. TV5 reports that the contest, hosted by Ryan Agoncillo, is No. 1 in both Saturday and Sunday rankings.

?Talentado? has yet to produce a huge star like ?Pilipinas Got Talent?s? Jovit. But the program has undeniably inspired the incarnation of different talent contests on other stations. Some have folded up, while some are still surviving, like ?Showtime? on ABS-CBN.

But unlike other talent searches where the contestants and winners hog the spotlight, ?Showtime? thrusts to superstardom one of its judges, the effervescent Vice Ganda who was a staple of comedy bars for quite some time before securing a regular gig on television.

Vice Ganda gave local audiences a refreshing glimpse of homosexuality, one that is flamboyant and stern, entertaining yet serious. His brand of critiquing performances gave birth to the popularization of the catchphrase ?may nag-text? and spawned a legion of followers who look up to someone queer even if they are ?normal? themselves.

?Showtime? was launched in 2009, but it was in 2010 that Vice Ganda achieved mainstream superstardom. It was this year when his first solo movie, the remake of ?Petrang Kabayo,? was released in cinemas and became a huge hit, both commercially and critically.

Another comedy movie worth mentioning too??Here Comes the Bride,? released last summer. The film gave Filipinos a taste of superb ensemble acting, with the excellent portrayals of Eugene Domingo, Angelica Panganiban, Tuesday Vargas, John Lapus and Jaime Fabrigas.

Writer-director Chris Martinez?s crazy soul-swapping film hit it big in the box office, at the same time scored high among critics.

The seamless narrative is peppered with sharp punch lines from start to end. The characters? lines, particularly Angelica?s, appeared in many status updates on social networking sites, sealing the movie?s fate as another cult classic reminiscent of Joey Gosiengfiao?s ?Temptation Island? in the 1970s.

But local movies not only made waves within our shores. Independent Filipino films flourished overseas and received numerous accolades from important international film festivals.

More feathers have been added to the cap of filmmaker Brillante Mendoza, the first Filipino to be proclaimed Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival this year.

His film ?Lola? won three awards at the 11th Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival held in Spain?the Lady Harmiguada de Oro (grand prize), best cinematography for Odyssey Flores and best actress for lead stars Anita Linda and Rustica Carpio. It also bagged the Ecumenical Jury Award, Don Quijote Award and special mention at the 24th Fribourg International Film Festival in Switzerland.

Anita and Rustica also shared acting honors at the Urian, given out by the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino.

Actress Meryll Soriano, meanwhile, was Best Actress in this year?s Brussels International Festival of Independent Film. Her movie ?Donor? was also cited as Best Film in the same festival.

Filipino filmmaker Adolfo Alix Jr. (?Donsol,? ?Manila?) was included in The Hollywood Reporter?s ?Next Generation Asia 2010,? which lists 20 young entertainment personalities in the continent.

International film magazine Cinema Scope, meanwhile, lists Lav Diaz?s 10-hour epic ?Ebolusyon ng Isang Pamilyang Pilipino? in the Top 10 Films of the Decade. Diaz was also selected as a jury member for the Orizzonti (Horizon) section of the International Venice Film Festival this year. Another Filipino filmmaker, Khavn dela Cruz, was one of the judges in this year?s Dokufest competitions at Prizren, Kosovo.

Pepe Diokno?s debut movie ?Engkwentro? was judged Best Asian Film at the 11th Jeonju International Film Festival in South Korea. The award is bestowed by Netpac or Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema, composed of film critics from the region.

Filipino Ralston Jover received the Best Screenplay award for the docu-drama ?Bakal Boys? at the 7th Skip City International D-Cinema Festival in Saitama, Japan. Another Filipino film, Raul Jarolan?s ?The Red Shoes,? received the Jurors Recognition Award at the 27th Bogota International Film Festival held in Colombia.

And just recently, Chito Roño?s musical ?Emir? bagged the Youssef Chahine Prize (for Best Artistic Contribution) at the 34th Cairo International Film Festival in Egypt.

But another international recognition that should not be left unmentioned is Venus Raj?s performance in the 2010 Miss Universe pageant. Her fourth runner-up finish ended the country?s 11-year drought in the international competition after Miriam Quiambao placed second in 1999.

Venus was the only Asian to crack the Top 15 and rose all the way to the Top 5. Asians were completely shut out in the semifinals last year, so Venus? accomplishment served as a major come back for the continent.

Her dusky complexion also proved to be an asset when she stood out beside fair-skinned competitors. This should serve as a call for Filipinos to embrace their natural color and not resort to whitening potions just to become whiter and, they hope, more beautiful.

The farm girl from Bato, Camarines Sur, gained prominence even before the competition commenced in Las Vegas because of a tussle with the Binibining Pilipinas organizers which almost cost her the national crown.

Her triumph against the odds and international accomplishment inspires many Filipinos to chase their dreams, fight for what they believe is right, and embrace their true color.

What a colorful hodge-podge of major-major accomplishments 2010 has been for local show business. This should pave the way to a brighter 2011 for artists and artistes who will hopefully make music, programs, films and achievements every Filipino should be proud of.