Rafael Rosell looks for meaning in his roles

CEBU, Philippines - As an actor, Rafael Rosell strives to strike a balance between doing projects that maintain his mainstream relevance and accepting offers that feed his hunger for the offbeat. He expressed an aversion to cookie-cutter roles that almost always call for a happy ending and willingly leaves those assignments to his network’s more willing romantic male leads.

"When it comes to choosing projects, I always look for something meaningful. If not meaningful to myself, then for the people. So I don't usually choose the typical love stories. I do love stories every now and then because I have an agreement with my handler na I'll do one for myself, then do one for the people. So for the people, I do something that I would not normally choose," Rafael told The FREEMAN before the premiere of his advocacy indie starrer "Tulak" at SM City Cebu Cinema 1 last November 20.

When he says "for the people", we read that to mean something that the general Filipino audience could easily warm up to, just like his current debonair character Marco de Silva opposite Denise Laurel in ABS-CBN's pocketbook romance turned primetime series "Kristine".

A Gawad Urian Supporting Actor awardee for the 2006 indie film "Rome and Juliet", he had previously portrayed the father of the devil in ABS-CBN's "Maligno" where he did a much talked-about rape scene with Claudine Barretto. That kind of anti-hero role is what he yearns for. Now, he got to tick off another entry on his acting wish list which was to portray a drug addict.

"Tulak was one of the projects that I chose for myself without really thinking how it would benefit other people. But when I saw the movie as a whole, I realized the kind of message it would bring to the public, kung paano matutulungan yung mga tao if they watch the movie. It was an awesome journey for me as an actor”, said the Star Magic talent.

"Tulak" revolves around the lives of people in a depressed community teeming with criminals and drug dependents. Rafael plays Tikboy, a man orphaned at an early age and who grew up in an alley called "Kalye walang buhay".

Tikboy's aunt (Ma. Isabel Lopez), an aging prostitute, took him under her wings with her live-in partner, Abdon (Julio Diaz), a low-ranking policeman who is also a pimp/drug user/drug pusher. Tikboy was forced to be his delivery boy and came to be known as "Batang Tulak".

He is forced to leave home for fear of backlash from his uncle when he tried to save his aunt from being beaten to death. The film fast forwards 10 years later where a grown-up Tikboy is released from jail after doing time for robbery and drug-pushing. The ex-convict then goes on a mission of saving his aunt and childhood friends from the miserable life of drug dependency.

The film showed a shabu tiangge where men and women, from an 83-year-old widow to an eight-year-old boy, are badly hooked on drugs. After a difficult journey, Tikboy chose recovery in the end and encouraged his friends to enter drug rehab.

Asked if there was a time he experimented with drugs in real life, Rafael admitted that the worse he did was "a hit of marijuana", but that he never got into it. So that he could translate accurately on-screen the nuances of someone high on drugs, he did his homework.

"I did three weeks worth of research in the internet. One hour every night, just to know the long-term and short-term side effects, where people end up, whether death or just in the gutter. I interviewed people who were using it and who got out of it. I also went to a Narcotics Anonymous meeting just to experience the aura of the people and see what kind of personalities actually get involved in it, and it's all walks of life talaga — the rich and the poor, the introvert and the extrovert."

Rafael said it has been a habit of his to do a little research when tackling unfamiliar ground, but takes caution to distance himself from a character once he hears "cut!" since past experiences saw him imbibing a role's dark side even while cameras have stopped rolling.

"I really research, but I started this year to try not to drown in my character. Sa ‘Maligno’, ‘Rounin’ and this other film that I did, nalunod talaga ako sa character ko and it was so difficult to get out. I'd bring the traits at home, dinadala ko yung bigat ng eksena sa bahay."

"So when I did ‘Tulak’, it was mostly research. I didn't get into it because if I did get into it, sabihin na natin na baka I'll even try it, di ba? There was a point where I almost considered na sige, ita-try ko nalang. But that would be the lazy way eh. I did my research instead. And I found out it's better to do your research, act it out, then get out of the character as soon as possible. The challenge in the acting was not on being high on shabu in the scene, but the downer, the coming out of it. Dahil halos wala na sa sistema mo pero nandoon pa rin yung bigat at galit. Mabilis ka mainis eh pag hindi ka naka-shot."

Rafael was supported by a strong cast namely Liza Lorena, John Regala, Melissa Mendez, Fanny Serrano, Lyka Ugarte, Ynez Veneracion, Criselda Volks, Pia Moran, Ritchie D'Horsie, Rustica Carpio and Anita Linda.

Former beauty queen Maria Isabel (who also served as line producer) joined Rafael in gracing the Cebu premiere, together with her daughter, Mara Isabella, who likewise appeared in the film as a student doing research on drug dependents.

Directed by Neal Tan, "Tulak" is endorsed by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, the Dangerous Drugs Board and the Department of Education. Rafael said that his director is already talking about a possible follow-up, since their producer's personal experience as a rehabilitated drug user is rich in material.

As a former model and being part of the showbiz industry that has its own stories of personalities engaging in drug use, how has he managed to steer off bad influence?

"I think my parents raised me right. I know there's no solution in taking drugs and nothing good is gonna happen to you," he replied. His dad is a Cebuano geologist whose roots can be traced to Daanbantayan while his mom is a Bicolana nurse. Both his parents migrated to Norway, where he was born and raised before embarking on a career here in the Philippines.

Not only does he profess to be illegal substance-free, he has also been alcohol-free since January of this year. He indulges on a cigarette or two when the wait during tapings becomes unbearable, but that's about the extent of his vice.

"That was a personal choice to quit alcohol kasi napansin ko na I was always sluggish the next day because of the hangover. You become very rowdy and violent. You can't drive because your motor skills are messed up. So I thought, this doesn't benefit me or anyone else. Maybe wine, pero pagdating sa alcohol and harder drinks, I'm done with that. It also took me out of the bar scene. I stopped going to clubs all the time, chasing women and that whole routine that repeats itself every Friday and Saturday night."

It was his decision last January to cut out on chicken, meat and pork intake that triggered a change in his lifestyle. His body felt light with the new diet. But then he started drinking alcohol which left him nursing counter-productive hang-over's the next day.

"Sabi ko, ano bang purpose nito? Okay, so we drink to boost our confidence so that you can talk to people and socialize. But if that's what you're doing, you're not being yourself di ba? You're just someone on alcohol. It's the alcohol doing the talking. It was more of a spiritual and mental realization that those things weren't helping me move forward in life."

"I did alcohol for a week just to experiment and I gained four pounds. So for people who are into fitness, alcohol is the fastest way to recover whatever you busted your ass for. Sa iba naman who just regularly drinks, if that's what they want, ok lang. But this works for me. I feel much better."

Replacing his former penchant for the night life is his newfound appreciation of nature and activities that are both insightful and peaceful.

"Last year kasi, there was this spiritual connection with Mother Nature that took over me. Ever since then, it has just been different the way I look at the world. Iba na yung trip ko. Hindi na alak and bar-hopping, but more of hanging out with friends, story-telling, catching up, searching for the meaning of life, more profound conversations, which an alcoholic or someone drunk could never have," said Rafael. (THE FREEMAN)