Working with actors according to director Gabby Fernandez

MANILA, Philippines - In his latest film, Mana premiered at the MOA recently, director Gabby Fernandez talks of dealing with two lifetimes — his own and that of his parents.

Presently a chairman of the Production Design Department at the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde, Fernandez was born in Manila descending from the De los Santos and Morenos of Tondo. But he studied in La Salle Bacolod where he had a close glimpse of the Negros upper class.

Still in his mind were tales from the old-world setting, especially after Liberation.

In Mana, Fernandez zeroes in on a family quite unsettled on what to do with a family secret. The result is a beautiful film with old-world charm.

“I think I managed to portray two lifetimes in Mana,” reveals Fernandez who was art director in the Peque Gallaga-Lore Reyes film, Magic Kingdom (1997), Gangland (1998) and Puso ng Pasko (1998). “I was (and still am) fascinated by the sophisticated culture and the strong sense of folklore that is inherent in modern Negros society.”

He admitted he came up with Mana for the reason that sibling relationships and family dynamics have always been a part of his art. He is the eighth of nine children with some 40 plus first-degree cousins. “In Mana, I wanted to capture the complex nature that goes into the structure of big families — something very common with Filipino families in the earlier days.”

Like it or not, Mana has the resonance of Oro, Plata, Mata but the story is focused on family ties and ends in a shocking revelation of a family secret.

He had a blast working with some of the best talents in the industry in the persons of Cherie Gil and her brother Mark, Ricky Davao, Jaime Fabregas and with the special appearance of true-to-life diva, Fides Cuyugan Asensio.

Coaching actors being his specialization as a director, he found a way to enhance and not block the artistic temperaments of his cast. “The one thing I’ve learned through the years is how to get out of the way when your actors know their craft. In Mana, all I had to do was to give them the right atmosphere as well as the space and time for them to work. On some days, I would give them preparation exercises even before they got into make-up and costume. When it was an important scene or shot, I would tell them ‘take your time’ but they were such pros that often they actually do the opposite.  Sometimes when they would attack a scene with total honesty but were going in the wrong direction. I would talk to them on the side and ‘re-direct’ their efforts.”

Even his actors come from two generations: Ricky and Cherie on one hand and Fides on the other.

He knew how easy it was to direct Ricky but he needed another character at the time. “In Mana, I needed an actor who would play a ‘bad guy’ who in his mind was really doing the ‘good thing’ for the family. It needed a ‘thinking’ actor who could analyze that complex character. Ricky being a director himself, portrayed that role perfectly.”

Fides was a gem to work with. “Only she would know the old-world feel I was going for and what a professional she was too! I would always try to shoot her scenes first so that she could get enough rest. But there were times when I couldn’t and she would just wait patiently. I didn’t realize this when I cast her but her experience in opera really helped in terms of how she would portray Doña Concha’s various sounds of pain. And such a witty, funny person!”

Working with Gil for the first time was a big revelation. “She brings such a level of sophistication and subtlety to her character and to her preparation that is unmatched. I think the reason why she is not as appreciated and honored by industry as much as she deserves is because she doesn’t ‘go for the result’ — no stereotypical, over-the-top acting. Even when she is required to portray such roles, she does it with certain truthfulness. She never delivers caricatures or cardboard characters. And let’s face it — Pinoy audiences love caricatures and stereotypes.”

In his book, Peque was not just a film mentor. He taught him all about art and his appreciation for classical music and opera including his exposures to the ’60s-’70s British comedy group recordings, esoteric country and folk musicians.

If he had to choose what he learned from Peque, it would be this: Never to be afraid of failure.

He concludes: “He made me realize that you will learn more from your failures than your successes. If you’re only succeeding all the time, it only means you are not going out of your comfort zone as an artist or trying to expand your range. And who wants that? That would be such a boring artistic career.”

Mana is produced by the De La Salle-College of St. Benilde and will have its commercial run soon.