GLAIZA DE CASTRO has done some truly good indie films, like “Still Life” by Katski Flores, “Rakenrol” by Quark Henares, “Patikul” by Joel Lamangan, “Astig” by GB Sampedro and “Bente” by Mel Chionglo. “Now, kasama na itong ‘Sleepless’ sa favorite films na nagawa ko,” she says. “Maraming makaka-relate sa character ko rito as Gem, a call center agent na bukod sa hindi makatulog, conflicted din siya kasi may relasyon siya with TJ Trinidad, pero hindi niya ma-explain kung on ba talaga sila or what, at may mga gusto siyang gawin na hindi niya magawa. Then she has this kakaibang friendship with Dominic Roco as Barry, isang taong puede mong makausap kapag di ka makatulog at mapaglalabasan mo ng lahat ng feelings na nasa loob mo.”
She laughs when someone insinuated that she might have a romantic connection with Dom, since it’s common knowledge she was once linked to Dom’s twin brother, Felix. “That will be weird kasi kapatid talaga ang turing ko kay Dom. Mas masalita si Dom so mas nakaka-relate ako sa kanya and he’s like an extended member of our family kasi friend din siya ng brother ko (Alchris Galura.)”
She is shown in bed with Dom in one scene. “Yes, may bed scene kami, but not a love scene. Nag-uusap lang kami about love, work, even zombies. Kunsaan eventually napapunta yung mga pag-uusap namin, hindi natukoy sa movie. Baka may sequel.”
Those who enjoyed the classic “Before Sunrise” and “Before Sunset”, where the characters are just shown conversing, will no doubt enjoy “Sleepless”, which starts showing today in selected SM Cinemas as part of the FDCP’s Cine Lokal. Their director, Prime Cruz, is now directing for big companies like Regal, Star and Viva. His “Can We Still Be Friends” with Star starring Gerald Anderson and Arci Munoz is now about to be shown. What can Glaiza say about this?“I’m so happy for Direk Prime. ‘Sleepless’ opened a lot of doors and opportunities for him. Noon parang nahihiya pa siya, but now, I think na-embrace na niya yung strengths niya as a filmmaker and we wish him all the best.”
So what’s next for her after her iconic role as Pirena in “Encantadia” that just ended? “Wala pa. But all of us in the cast miss the show. Nagpaparamdam nga kami kay Direk Mark Reyes ng sequel kasi, sa ending, nagkaanak lahat kami, so may bagong babies sa ‘Encantadia’. At sana naman, yung mga fans ni Pirena, magka-interest silang panoorin itong ‘Sleepless’. Pero habang wala pa akong bagong show, I’ll be busy promoting my new album, ‘Magandang Simula’, which has 8 Tagalog songs, released by PolyEast Records. It’s my tribute to my Lolo na siyang pinagmulan ng title ng album ko.”
What can she say that their “Enca” co-star, John Arcilla, quickly moved to ABS-CBN to do “Ang Probinsyano”? “Nagulat rin kaming lahat ng co-stars namin, pero okay lang, we’re happy na may kasunod agad siyang project. Matagal na raw yung offer na yun sa kanya, e.”
