Gloria Diaz: Doing drama is easier than comedy
Let’s give a round of applause to Gloria Diaz, not for being the country’s first Miss Universe (1969), neither for her grand 1974 entrance to showbiz as the most beautiful animal on the face of the earth (Celso Ad. Castillo’s Ang Pinakamagandang Hayop sa Balat ng Lupa) clad in a wet kamison that kicked off the wet-look trend in Philippine Cinema nor for being a most outspoken beauty queen (whose unsolicited advice to pageant also-rans is to stop bashing the winner and just continue joining other pageants, try and try again until...well, we all know how Pia Wurtzbach did it, don’t we?) but for being...drum roll, please!...a natural comedienne.
Gloria has amply proven her comedic mettle in several movies such as Carlo J. Caparas’ Andres de Saya series (with the late Vic Vargas), the Danny Zialcita witty comedies (Nagalit ang Buwan sa Haba ng Gabi, May Daga sa Labas ng Lungga and May Lamok sa Loob ng Kulambo, usually with Eddie Garcia as her philandering husband) and in Oh My Dad (OMD, with Ariel Ureta as her suitor-lover), which airs 5 p.m. Sundays on TV5/Cignal TV in which she plays the neighborhood tsismosa who monitors the lives of people around her, in contrast to her glamorous role in the Netflix series Insatiable in which she’s “typecast” as a former beauty queen who serves as the adviser of a beauty-contest candidate.
Said Jeffrey Jeturian, OMD director, “I’ve directed Gloria and Ariel in the Kapamilya comedy series Dream Dad (with Zanjoe Marudo, Jana Agoncillo and Beauty Gonzalez). Their chemistry is tried and tested. I grew fond of Gloria because she would tell me stories of her Miss Universe experience, plus her foray into show business. (Jeffrey is a member of Aces & Queens, the team that trains beauty queens. — RFL.) Nakaka-aliw ‘yung mga kuwento niya. She brings that candidness and winsomeness into the character she’s playing kaya effective siya as a comedienne.” (Aside: Gloria and Ariel have also starred as a couple in Star Cinema’s Metro Manila Film Festival/MMFF entries Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo and Sakal, Sakali, Saklolo, both written and directed by Joey Javier Reyes.)
But Gloria told Funfare that drama is easier to do than comedy.
“Yes, drama is much easier. Shouting, slapping, crying and breathing heavily and you’ve got it,” she explained, “whereas comedy is very hard. I don’t want slapstick, though. In comedy, you must have good timing, a good script and a good situation, and that requires a lot from you.” (Gloria also excels in drama, having won FAMAS Best Supporting Actress for Sagrada Familia in 2010 and Nasaan Ka Man in 2006, and the same award from Gawad Urian for Batang Westside in 2002.)
OMD is one of the two shows (the other is I Got You/IGY, starring Beauty Gonzalez, RK Bagatsing and Jane Oineza, airing 2 p.m. also Sundays on TV5/Cignal TV) that Joji Alonso is producing for Albee Benitez’s Brightlight Productions. The sitcom OMD is about a former PBA player (played by Ian Veneracion) who migrated to the US after getting involved in a scandal, only to get enmeshed in another scandal as he returned home when three people (played by Sue Ramirez, Louise Abuel and Macoy Dubs) show up claiming to be his children by three different women.
Asked how she conceptualized OMD and IGY, Joji (a lawyer who runs her own Quantum Films), said, “For OMD, I was looking for a material that would cater to both male and female audiences. I wanted something light and fun. Two things resonated in my mind. It should revolve around family and since we were on TV5 (the station that airs the PBA), why not work around the life of a former basketball player who soared to fame but whose life is now in shambles?”
Early this year, related Joji, Alpha Habon (who wrote her company’s MMFF entry Buy Now, Die Later) sent her some concepts and one material struck Joji as better off as a series.
“I called him and asked him to tweak the material I liked and make the protagonist an ex-basketball player. When he came back with his concept of Matmat Balderama (Ian’s character) and the three children who show up at his home one day, I could already imagine the so many possibilities of the storyline. Jeffrey also added layers to the story and characters to complete the cast.
“For IGY,” continued Joji, “Erickson Raymundo and Jeff Vadillo (of Cornerstone) called me to suggest a light-hearted drama with lots of funny moments. It would deal with a past relationship which turned out to be an even bigger failure. Rod Marmol would be writing the material with his team and Dan Villegas would direct it with Tonette Jadaone producing it. That was already a dream team.”
Line-produced by CS Studio and Project 8, I Got You brings together three of the best actors of their generation. Jane, RK and Beauty who are beyond ready to offer this mini-series, all the while adjusting to the new taping normal which was quite a challenge for them but has also helped them make this show a certain success. Guided and directed by Dan (known for his works such as Hintayan Ng Langit, Exes Baggage, English Only Please) has brought to life the story of a newbie therapist named Del (Beauty) who fell in love with a soldier with PTSD, Louie (RK) and together they ride a rollercoaster of romance and heartaches. Years after their break-up, Risa (Jane) will be the person who will then again reconnect the old sad couple but this time, Risa will be Del’s client and Louie’s fiancee.
Then, Joji presented the two materials to the Brightlight team (Albee; Corinna Vistan, who used to work at Marvel Films, head of Brightlight Marketing; and Pat-P Daza, head of admin) which thought that the concepts had great potential.
“And the projects were given the green light for scripting,” said Joji. “After several revisions of the pilot and the storylines per episode, we were good to go.”
How has the shoot changed under the pandemic?
“There’s really not much difference,” noted Joji. “We impose an entry PCR test before the stars and crew enter the lock-in set and an exit PCR text prior to their going home. In our case, it includes even the extras on the set. Everyone must observe the wearing of masks, face shields and even PPEs if needed and social distancing. We have three accredited safety-control officers on the set and a medic as well who do their rounds on the sets and villas where everyone is housed and do a temperature check regularly.”
During the recent Zoom interview, the stars of both shows were all praises for the protocols, resting assured that they feel safe on the set (in Clark, Pampanga), so they can focus on their work.
Said Gloria, 69 (Ariel is 73), “They really take good care of us, especially us seniors. Even the food is superb.”
“No more buffet-style service of food,” added Joji. “Everyone is served an individually packed meal which cannot be shared.”
(E-mail reactions at [email protected]. For more updates, photos and videos, visit www.philstar.com/funfare or follow me on Instagram @therealrickylo.)
- Latest
- Trending
