Raymond Bagatsing pursues his hollywood dream

RAYMOND BAGATSING is thankful that right after “Amaya”, he was quickly cast by GMA-7 in “Time of My Life” where he got to act with Jean Garcia and Cherie Gil for the first time. “They’re both good kaya masarap katrabaho,” he says. “And they have different styles of acting. Cherie is intense, matapang. Si Jean naman, ang daling umiyak, like she has a lot of tears. So binabagay ko ang acting ko sa kung sino sa kanila ang kaeksena ko.”

How about the younger stars in the cast like Mark Herras, Kris Bernal and Rocco Nacino? “Nakakatuwa sila kasi they’re very dedicated, very focused sa career nila at magagaling sila. They really want to learn so they even ask tips from me.”

What happened to his dream of cultivating a career in Hollywood? “I’m still at it. I got my green card in 2010. I studied acting there. My teacher, bilib na bilib sa’kin, even using me as an example to other students who later got me as their acting coach. I’m now putting together a demo reel for my agent who wants me to try not just Hollywood but also the European and Japanese markets. So I’m doing scenes where I deliver lines in French, in Japanese and even Russian. It’s exciting. I plan to go back to the U.S. next year, pero nag-iipon muna ko rito para may panggastos ako roon while auditioning there. Actually, nakuha na ko to do three small films. So I’m still testing the waters. But I’m so glad na kahit four years akong nawala rito sa atin, kinuha pa rin uli ako. First sa ABS, and now with GMA-7. I’ve also finished two new films here, ‘Captured’ with Direk Dante Mendoza where I play Janjalani of the Abu Sayyaf with French actress Isabelle Huppert, and ‘Boundary’ with me as a taxi passenger na hinoldup ng driver, Ronnie Lazaro, without him knowing hired killer pala ako.”

Raymond is now managed by Manay Lolit Solis. He says he’s so happy to do a dance serye like “Time of My Life”. “Dancing is really my first love, so natuwa ako dahil lumabas dito yung side ng pagka-dancer ko.”