The ‘kubrador’ in Gina Pareño

Gina Pareño was taping Darna last year as the grandma of Angel Locsin when she got a call from director Jeffrey Jeturian saying he has a film for her where she will play the lead role, Kubrador (The Bet Collector).

"Of course, I felt glad about it," she says. "But at the back of my mind, I was wondering if it‘s true. But when he sent me the script and I read it, I really found the role of Amy, the kubrador, a really good one any actress will find very challenging as she‘s in every scene from start to finish."

She was told the shoot would last only for six days. "But since we‘re shooting with a handheld camera at the slums of Botocan near Sikatuna Village and its maze of narrow alleyways, inabot din ng 12 days. I was paid for six days only but I did not charge anymore for the additional six days of shooting as I really love the project. I got bruised in the scene where the cops were supposed to raid the jueteng headquarters and I fell to the ground. The film is about the sad plight of the poor people in our country as seen in the eyes of the bet collector and it was really hard to do this."

But all their efforts paid off as Kubrador won the FIPRESCI International Critics Jury Award as Best Film in the last Moscow International Filmfest (where 800 films from all over the world were submitted) and also won as Best Film plus the Best Actress award for her at the Osian‘s Cinefan International Filmfest in New Delhi, India.

"When I accepted the film, I never thought it would take me to festivals abroad and give me an acting award," says Gina. "The only time I won Best Actress was in the Manila Filmfest of 1974 for Krimen, Kayo ang Humatol‚ by the late Jun Raquiza. But I lost my trophy noong magluka-lukahan ako and got into drugs. I never knew where it went. But now, I have a new trophy to display in my home, at pang-international pa. I owe it all to direk Jeffrey. Actually, nahirapan ako rito as I‘m used to scene-stealing. In my younger days at Sampaguita Pictures, I was doing a scene with the legendary Carmen Rosales when she cut it and reprimanded me, "Ano ba? Nagdadrama ako rito, galaw ka ng galaw riyan!‚" I said sorry. Sabi ko, kasi maldita ang role ko kaya nagre-react lang ako sa kanya. With direk Jeffrey, he always tells me to lessen my acting. He told me to watch Gong Li‘s film, Story of Qu Ju, where she played a peasant woman who acts naturally. So I watched it and tried to be as real as I can in my role. He doesn‘t want me to cry at all, even in the most dramatic scenes. In that scene where I go to the wake of a hit and run victim, I couldn‘t avoid it when a tear fell from my eye and he said, "Why did you cry?‚ I said I remembered my eldest son who died. So I really had to restrain myself all the time to please him. And it paid off. Ayan, nanalo na nga ako ng award."

She calls Kubrador her nth comeback. "My last one for Sampaguita was Contessa. I even played Darna for them in Darna and the Planetman‚ with Vic Vargas as the Planetman. Then I went free-lancing. After that, I went into drugs. For five years, I was down in the dumps. That was the time nasulat na nagtitinda na lang ako ng duster sa Baclaran. What happened was I went to church there and I saw a friend who has a stall selling dusters. I asked her if I could sell some of my personal things like my make-up kits, shoes and bags. I did it for two weeks and earned P80,000. But because of that, the late Ishmael Bernal was able to trace me and I made another comeback in Working Girls‚ where I got nominated as Best Actress. I did more movies like Totoo Ba Ang Tsismis with Gloria Diaz and I played Sharon Cuneta‘s mother in Bukas Luluhod Ang Mga Tala.

Wasn‘t she arrested by cops for drug charges? "Yes, I was. It was the late Ate Luds who helped get me out. Then she guested me in her show, Eye to Eye‚ na bungi ako. Immediately, four dentists called up offering to do my teeth for me for free. Nahihiya pa ako. But after a month, I said, why not take advantage of it? And that‘s how I met Dr. Bong Erana (former LVN child actress Nenita Vidal)."

They became special friends and when Dr. Erana was diagnosed with brain tumor in July of 2003, she resigned from the sitcom she was doing with Aga Muhlach at ABS-CBN to personally act as her friend‘s caregiver. "I owe her a lot as she was the one who helped me get up again. She was not bitter when she died as felt the Lord gave her time to prepare before she left, but I really mourned for her."

Gina is now preparing to attend the other festivals where Kubrador has been officially invited: the 31st Toronto International Film Festival, 11th Pusan International Film Festival, 26th Hawaii International Film Festival, 30th Sao Paulo International Film Festival in Brazil, 27th Thessaloniki International Film Festival in Greece, 37th Vancouver International Film Festival, 33rd Brussels Independent Film Festival, Fifth Asian Film Festival in Mumbai and Seventh Asiatica Film Mediale in Rome."But I know where I stand," she says. "Even though I’m being applauded in other countries and felt so famous when they call me on stage after each screening of Kubrador, I know that here at home, I‘ll just play mother role or lola roles. Okay lang. At my age, I‘m just too happy that I was able to experience doing a movie like Kubrador‚ that I can be proud of as it‘s now bringing honors to our country."