JACK ROBERTO with DIREK JOEL LAMANGAN & RITA DANIELA
JAK ROBERTO feels so blessed. Right after he did “Never Say Goodbye” with Lauren Young on GMA’s Afternoon Prime, he went to shoot a new movie, “Madawag ang Landas Patungong Pag-asa” paired with Rita Daniela.
And right after the movie was completed, GMA gave him a new soap meant for primetime, “Bolera”, where he is paired with the comebacking Kylie Padilla, and with Rayver Cruz.
“Salamat talaga kay Lord hindi ako matagal nababakante,” he tells us at the presscon preview of “Madawag ang Landas Patungong Pag-asa”.
“At magaganda ang roles na napupunta sa akin. In ‘Madawag’, I play the role of a soldier for the first time. Ako yung leader ng mga sundalong assigned to guard the school in a village called Pag-asa to protect them from the rebels.
"Then I meet Rita who is the teacher there at niligawan ko siya. In ‘Bolera’, friend ako ni Kylie na nagturo sa kanya ng billiards at nang maging professional billiard player siya, ako ang naging manager niya.”
When the press preview of “Madawag” was held at Sine Pop, their locked in taping for “Bolera” has just ended. “Tamang-tama nga, we’re on a break now, but the second leg of our taping for ‘Bolera’ will resume before March ends.”
So how did he prepare for his role as a soldier?
“Not much time to prepare kasi after our story conference, shoot na agad kami on location sa Pampanga. Sinukatan nila ako ng military uniform at yun lang ang suot ko all throughout the movie.
"Hindi ako nagpalit ng costume kaya after the shoot, hiningi ko yung uniform for remembrance at ibinigay naman nila sa akin.”
In the movie, he has a scene where he serenades Rita one evening. But instead of singing as in the usual “harana”, he recites a very long poem about his love for her.
“Nagulat ako nang ibigay sa akin ni Direk Joel Lamangan yung poem na siya mismo ang sumulat. Tapos ang gusto niyang delivery ko, parang yung sa balagtasan. I gave it my best but I wasn’t sure kung tama yung ginawa ko.”
We just saw the movie before the interview and we told him he did well. His role is actually more demanding than that of the other leading man, Albie Casino, who is later shown being killed by the military.
Is it his first time to be directed by Joel Lamangan?
“Sa movie, yes. But we’ve worked before on TV in an episode of ‘Magpakailanman’ about suicide, pero matagal na.
"Dito sa locked in shoot, he’s very efficient. May specified number of scenes lang na puede nyong gawin sa isang araw because of health protocols and he’s very efficient so maaga kaming natatapos lagi.
"And now, when I saw the movie, I’m so happy and proud to be part of it. Very heartwarming ang buong movie, very wholesome at ang daming life lessons na offered lalo na about education and the sacrifices of a teacher.”
So what’s the first thing he did after coming home from locked in taping?
“Nag-dinner kami ni Barbie (Forteza) and her parents. Siya rin just came from doing a hit drama, ‘Mano Po Legacy’, so we’re both happy sa careers namin.”
And when do we hear wedding bells ringing for them? “Naku, matagal pa po. Pandemic pa, e. At mag-iipon pa muna kami.”
What can he say that his younger sister, Sanya Lopez, also has a current hit show, “First Lady”?
“We are all so happy for her sa magandang takbo ng career niya at sa consistent high ratings nila. She deserves it as she really works so hard.”
