Direk Cathy beyond fairy tales

MANILA, Philippines – In this early evening encounter at Dolphy Theater when LizQuen fans are apt to scream at the mere sight of their idols, direk Cathy Garcia-Molina says her new project is a composite story of life and love as drawn from stories of friends and people she knows.

She has to work closely with her writers to make sure the characters suit the lead actors and the new situations not found in their previous roles. “I am through with fairy tales — at least in this project,” she declares. “I am exploring emotions of people who have been there and back and still asking, ‘Is there life after a breakup?’ How does one cope when the past suddenly reappears in the present? Let’s start with me. I fell in love, got hurt and am prone to ask: How can he even hurt me? Going back to normal after a sad episode is just about what this movie is all about. This movie touches on post-relationship life and is as real as it can get. There is something from my life in it but we have enough materials from other people’s true-to-life stories.”

Liza Soberano and Enrique Gil admit My Ex and Whys is a new challenge as it offers them a new acting landscape in which to trod on a more mature emotional journey. “I know this role is not going to be easy. It is far detached from our telenovela roles. But direk Cathy has a way to get what she wants. She talks to us. She tells us the complexity of our roles and why we can’t use the same acting style in the teleserye.”

Direk Cathy was surprised how easily Enrique got into the part and proved himself. “At one time while observing him do a scene, I was at once amazed how he could transform himself. To the point that I told myself he has the making of a John Lloyd Cruz.”

On the part of Liza, she admits her limited exposure to the complexities of love affairs. She just turned 18 and adjusting to a new phase in her life. “I admit I didn’t have the kind of experiences that my character went through. So, I have to age quickly at least emotionally to show what the character is going through. But thanks to direk Cathy, she knows my capability and my limitations. She allowed me to explore beyond my limited experiences. I must say this is my first real mature film.”

As a mother of two, direk Cathy has obviously gone through a lot herself enough to pass that life changing episodes on to her actors. Her real and reel lives have no sharp boundary and she tries to learn from every chapter of her real and showbiz life.

 She joined showbiz in the summer of 1992 as a continuity script assistant of director Chito Roño. She was later promoted to assistant director and given a directorial break in one episode of Maalaala Mo Kaya in the late 1999.

With the onset of the new millennium, she megged several blockbusters that broke records, among them Close to You, One More Chance, A Very Special Love, You Changed My Life and Miss You Like Crazy, wherein she worked with the country’s box-office stars like Bea Alonzo, John Lloyd Cruz and Sarah Geronimo, among others.

Has she evolved through the years as a mother and as director?

“You put me on a spot with that question,” she says trying to hold back something she cannot quite pin down. “Maybe I am growing and maturing as a person, maybe I am evolving as film director. And if my directorial style evolves, it’s not intentional. As we mature, we absorb new things and discard the old ones. We get to know what will work and what is useless. We grow as a person and our stands on many subjects like love are likely to change as well. It is not intentional. You may like it, you may not like it. The management maybe looking for something that is not in the finished product. But who would want to watch the same rom-com I directed 10 or 15 years ago? Hence, it is likely you will see something new in my latest project.”

But her approach to working with her actors has not really changed much. As she earlier pointed out, being a director is like playing psychologist as well. “I treat members of the cast as my siblings and I have to be able to see through their individual characters and relationships. I make sure I get to know them well and fast as the shooting goes on.”

In all likelihood, direk Cathy will not likely point to a favorite project.

As she earlier said, “Every film I do is different and in all of them, I invested blood, sweat and tears. But for some reasons, some films did stand out because of some interesting reactions. I heard of a couple who told me they patched up and started anew when they saw my film. All my films are memorable but each has its own peculiar share of memories.”

My Ex and Whys opens Feb. 15 in cinemas.

With My Ex and Whys stars Enrique Gil and Liza Soberano. The lady director has evolved as a person and as director after more than two decades in showbiz.