Christian Bables: Acting is who I am

MANILA, Philippines — Christian Bables is one of the promising actors that populate the local tinseltown. He has made sterling performances in Jun Lana’s Die Beautiful and Chito Roño’s Signal Rock, and is seen weeknights in Halik.

Christian’s newfound fame is a product of personal mastery that clarifies his vision of himself as an actor.

“I feel honored and I am thankful na yun ang tingin sa akin ni direk Rahyan,” said Christian of being considered as among the notable graduates (along with Arjo Atayde, Paulo Avelino, Jake Cuenca, EJ Falcon, Joshua Garcia, Julia Barretto, Anna Luna, Jessy Mendiola and Alora Sasam) of ABS-CBN Star Magic Workshops led by head Rahyan Carlos. “I think my relationship with the workshop people, most especially with direk Rahyan, hindi na mawawala yan (it will remain forever). This is (the place) where I grew up and honed my acting talent. I will be forever grateful for that.”

Looking back, Christian, then as a work shopper has improved by leaps and bounds. He sees acting more than just a profession.

“Acting, for me, is a lifestyle of learning. It is something that you breathe, you eat, you feel,” he shared. “It’s (in) your veins. In my case, hindi ako mabubuhay nang hindi ako umaarte. It is part of who I am as a person. Parang feeling ko manghihina ako kapag hindi ko na siya (ma)gagawa in the future. For me, it is part of who you are.” Teaching acting is something Christian also wants to pursue.

Going through the nitty-gritty of acting workshops, Christian was introduced to the (Ivana) Chubbuck technique through direk Rahyan.

“Character mapping is very important to me because I have been portraying different characters from Barbs of Die Beautiful to Intoy of Signal Rock, they are very diverse… importante sa akin na may mapa yung character ko,” he said. “Yung karga (an emotional load) na sinasabi ni direk (ay) nasa akin na yun. Huhugut(in) ko na lang (ito). For each  and every time I’m given a scene (to do), kaya ko siyang i-parallel sa sarili ko as Christian Bables (I can parallel my character to that of myself). Hinuhugot ko na lang (ito). I’ve been equipped by the workshops.”

Speaking of workshops, the team of direk Rahyan offers adult and kids acting classes with Carla Martinez, Rubi Rubi, Lynette Concepcion, Heart de Guzman, Air Paz Pablico, Edna Mae Landicho and HB Benitez as teachers this summer. It also has dance workshops (for jazz punk, hip-hop and urban) with Nesh Janiola, Brion Lim and Geejay Romano. Philippine Madrigal Singers alumni Luningning San Jose, Julie Anne Reyes and Roland Roldan handle the voice classes. There’s a workshop, too, for Conversational Tagalog Class for Non-Tagalog Speakers with Weena Sadorra.  

As an actor, Christian simply draws the character and his emotional make-up from a “folder of experiences.”

“Characterization-wise, let’s say si Intoy, ako si Intoy, si Barbs, ako si Barbs, kumbaga pinag-mi-meet halfway ko lang (sina) Christian Bables at yung character,” he said. “And then, that’s the time I fit into the character. That’s my (creative) process.”

Recalling another lesson learned from direk Rahyan, Christian said if his character’s movements are naturally nuanced, it is “because alam mo kung saan ka nang gagaling. It is coming from a real source of pain which no one can mimick. No one can do it except you. Kasi ikaw yun as an actor, kasi ikaw yun as a person.”

With Star Magic Workshops head, direk Rahyan Carlos and teachers Carla Martinez, Rubi Rubi, Luningning San Jose, Edna Mae Landicho, Lynette Concepcion, Heart de Guzman, Air Paz Pablico, Nesh Janiola, Weena Sadorra, Julie Anne Reyes, Brion Lim and Geejay Romano.

Like all professions, acting has its own challenges that its followers have to hurdle and eventually embrace. “It requires so much of your courage, so much of (your) determination and hard work,” he said. At the end, actors have to discover a technique or style that works for them (from Method to Eric Morris’ No-Acting-Please, Viola Spolin to Chubbuck, which, Christian said, “is a combination of all techniques.”

“When I can feel it (my character), when I am on set and ready to face the camera (with the knowledge of) where to draw (the emotions from) for the scene,” said Christian of signs that he is in the zone of having reached sincerity and authenticity in his work, “when I can feel it at handa akong mawasak para sa eksena (and I am ready to tear up for the scene).”

After playing Barbs (the best friend of transgender beauty queen Trisha) and Intoy (a resident in a remote place), Christian wishes to do more challenging roles such as a suicide bomber and a person with schizophrenia.

On actors winning awards, Christian had this to say: “Awards are just awards. Siyempre andun yung prestige, andun yung pasasalamat sa award-giving body na nagbigay sa’yo. It is still your passion and your attitude towards work that will determine who you are as an actor. Hindi yung awards, hindi yun ang makakapagsabi kung ano ka, kung sino ka as an actor, (but) yung work (mo). You are only as good as your last performance.”

(Registration for the workshops starts on March 16 and 17. For details, call ABS-CBN Star Magic at 415-2272 local 5142, 5243 and 5244, visit Star Magic Workshops’ Facebook page or e-mail at [email protected].)