Kris Bernal gears up for image revamp

CEBU, Philippines - Homegrown Kapuso Kris Bernal understands it won’t always be her moment in the spotlight.

Her last TV series “Prinsesa ng Buhay Ko” with constant screen partner Aljur Abrenica ended its 18-week run last January, and there’s no news yet what’s next on her plate. Not having a new show though doesn’t mean she’s keeping herself idle or worse, wasting away on unproductive endeavors.

“GMA Artist Center has been keeping me busy with workshops, voice lessons and speech classes. I’ve also been taking pole-dancing classes. I’m making sure my time off is spent on many workshops, so that once I get my next project, I am armed with new skills and knowledge,” shared Kris in an interview with the Cebu press at the Abaseria Deli and Café. The “Starstruck” graduate was joined by fellow network artists Christian Bautista and Rocco Nacino for the lunchtime chat before their scheduled mall shows around the city last weekend.

Is the pole-dancing in anticipation of daring assignments in the near future? “I always get varied dance productions in ‘Sunday All Stars,’ so I wanted to have a specific dance forte that I can showcase on the program and that only a few of the artists know,” she explained. “I’ve had three sessions so far. It leaves me with so much body ache, but my sense of balance has already improved and I can see hints of muscle.”

Apart from these activities, Kris is also using the break to explore with her family what business venture they can invest on. Kris owns fruit-drink stalls as a start-up, and has set her sights on bigger sources of income aside from show business.

She said, “My family is still thinking about franchising a fastfood chain, possibly in Quezon City near the GMA-7 compound. That’s nothing final, though. We’re still choosing between a fastfood chain business or investing on land. It’s just something to secure our future.”

Missing drama

Kris’ last two primetime TV shows – ‘Coffee Prince’ and ‘Prinsesa ng Buhay Ko’ – were of the romantic-comedy kind, that’s why she expressed her desire to return to heavy drama, explaining that “it’s in my drama programs where I felt viewers loved me and where I received more positive comments. If I could choose, I’d also prefer to be given more mature roles.”

At 24 years old, the petite, soft-spoken and youthful-looking star can still pass off for a teenager. While that’s an envy for many who pull out all the stops to delay the mature-looking years, Kris feels it limits her when it comes to being considered for meaty roles.

“If I’m placed alongside the tween stars like Bea Binene and Barbie Forteza, may iba pa nga sa kanila na mas malaki pa sa akin. So yes, I would say my looks sometimes box me in,” she said. “But I have been given mature roles before. I’ve played a student who got pregnant in ‘Dapat Ka Bang Mahalin’ which was the first big break for me and Aljur, and I think I was able to portray the role effectively.”

Transition phase

Her wish for career growth isn’t lost on her handlers. Like her bosses, Kris believes it’s all about good timing. In the meantime, she said she’ll readily accept whatever is handed to her and like any good soldier, readily follows what is required of her.

“At the moment, they’ve been preparing me for changes, in terms of my looks, the way I dress and behave. Each time I have an event or I come out on TV, management has allowed me to wear revealing clothes, which used to be forbidden. Before, they wouldn’t allow sexy clothes and heavy makeup on me,” she added.

She’s also not crying over the lost opportunity to break away from the tweetums mold. This, after a good indie project had to be given up for “Prinsesa ng Buhay Ko” whose major sponsor expected her to maintain a squeaky clean image. The indie film, titled “Ang Tag-Araw ni Twinkle” and directed by Gil Portes was supposed to see her portraying a cocaine addict. The role went to Cebuana actress Ellen Adarna instead.

“I just took it as a sign that it wasn’t yet the right time for me to do such roles. So far, I have no regrets, because ‘Prinsesa’ rated well. And I heard Ellen did well in the film, so maybe the role was really destined for her.”– VAB (FREEMAN)