More daring adventures for Derek Ramsay this 2010

CEBU, Philippines - It’s probably easier for those in the modeling scene to cross over to the land of showbiz more than anyone else, but not everyone emerges from such transition with success.

One model-turned-actor who comes to mind when we speak of “successful crossovers” is Derek Ramsay.

Derek got discovered by a talent scout during one of his vacations to the Philippines, wherein his parents had since relocated from the United Kingdom. He first became a familiar face by doing commercials. He enjoyed further notice when he became a VJ for an international music channel.

“I never really got interested in acting,” Derek begins the exclusive interview with The Freeman. “I just fly to the Philippines and visit my family, and then I’d do commercials, then fly out again.

“When I got back here in 2001, I landed a job in MTV, which wasn’t planned as I was actually tricked into auditioning for it. But I enjoyed it, and I got offers left and right.”

One of those more relentless offers called for his foray into local showbiz. He finally acquiesced by accepting hosting chores for ABS-CBN’s “Entertainment Konek” in 2005.

Dramatic mettle

The 30-year-old actor, who’s known for his smoldering dark looks (which, he says, he owes to his British father and Filipina mother who has Spanish-Indian blood), has since remarkably expanded his resume to include solid acting roles, with drama as his niche.

The year 2009 was undoubtedly the busiest with television projects like the drama-thriller series “Nasaan ka Maruja?” and the light romantic drama “The Wedding.” He also starred in movies “I Love You So,” “Tenement 2,” and closed the year with heavy drama via the Star Cinema entry to the 2009 Metro Manila Film Festival, “I Love You, Goodbye.” In the latter, he plays a guy who rekindles romance with a past love (portrayed by real-life sweetheart Angelica Panganiban) who is about to be wed to someone else, who happens to be the father of his present love.

To have this kind of workload amidst the industry’s cutthroat competition can be overwhelming for Derek.

“I never thought I’d be artista, much more a dramatic actor,” he stresses anew, “on TV, I really started off in ‘Panday,’ then ‘Super Inggo.’ So, I did the action-fantaserye first, before [tackling] drama.”

Then he says, almost like an afterthought, that “the success of my career is getting fast.”

And from the looks of it, things will carry on in high gear for Derek. He will soon be seen in “Habang May Buhay,” a light drama series with a medical theme that pairs him yet again with Judy Ann Santos. This project is a much-awaited follow-up to their hit teamup in the 2007-2008 teleserye “Ysabella.”

Derek will be the first to credit Judy Ann for bolstering his career. (Juday seems to possess that Midas touch when it comes to love teams since she always makes her onscreen pairings with whoever work.) “My partnership with Judy Ann really helped my career,” readily admits Derek. “I feel fortunate that the tandem with Juday clicks kahit walang kissing scene.”

He also reveals that his management is currently negotiating for new partnerships with different actresses this year. “I like learning from my co-stars and new actresses; I’m like a sponge.”

Grateful for fans

Derek might have found himself adapting pretty well to acting, but one thing that he’ll never ever grasp or get used to is the fandom that his celebrity status generates.

In his last Cebu visit as celebrity guest of the Metro Ayala stores, he gamely obliged requests for a kiss from female fans, hugged one that broke down upon finally seeing him in person, and shrugged off security cordon to shake those hands that reached out to him.

“I always ask myself, ‘Why do I get that kind of reaction?’,” he says. “I especially get rattled when I see them cry. It makes me speechless. Still, if it wasn’t for them [fans], I wouldn’t have reached where I am now in the business.”

From what I’ve seen so far, Derek is quite possibly one of the most fan-friendly celebs out there. According to his handlers, they always meet problems when escorting him on provincial and overseas tours because he easily gets caught up in efforts to entertain and accommodate fans. There was this one time when he guested in a corporate event, wherein a group of ladies boldly asked for a smack, on the lips no less! He says, “I’m always a sport. I always try to make fans happy.”

Did he have weirder encounters with fans?

“Not weirder, but maybe different,” he muses. “They pinch you and everything… I have scars to prove it. But one of the craziest things done to me was when this girl in General Santos City put her hand inside my pants, and I was just shocked. I didn’t know what to do. That was really strange!”

“Nevertheless, you can really see that the fans look up to you, so the least thing you could do is to try your best to give them some time. It’s amazing how you can make one person’s day complete by giving them just your time.”

Family, student life

Derek is the first actor in his family tree. “Believe it or not, I was supposed to live in Cebu to take over the family business.”

He shares a bit of the family history: “My dad was one of the highest detective officials for Scotland Yard. He met my mom there in the UK, who was then running a hotel. They fell in love, then they came to the Philippines, and my Dad fell in love with the Philippines, and they started an electronic security business. They’ll never go back to England and I can never go back and live there as well.”

Derek says his parents made sure he was well provided for, especially in terms of educational opportunities.

He attended a boarding school in England, wherein he got seriously involved in extra-curricular activities. He became a prefect (in other words, a student government leader), an experience that afforded a “brownie” like him the chance to stand up for the minority, particularly the Asians.

For college, he studied at Boston University in the US, graduating with a double degree in engineering and business marketing. “I actually studied more than I was supposed to,” he says with a laugh.

Sports, nevertheless, was his biggest preoccupation as a student, yet interestingly so, he had his first hand in acting through college theatre. “I was camera shy back in the day. But I’m the type of guy who likes to get over his fears. I, for one, had a terrible fear of heights, so I jumped off a plane to overcome it. So because I had this fear of talking in front of large crowds of people or even have my picture taken, I joined a stage play back in college.”

Still, taking over the business of his parents appeared to be the most logical thing for him to do next after all the schooling. Yet, his initial involvement in the family business created some sore points in his relationship with his father, which prompted him to run away from home and actually live in a depressed area for months in Quezon City. He had said in another interview that he literally became a “kanto boy,” and this was how he learned how to speak Tagalog, which unknown to him at that time, would eventually give him the edge over other half-breeds who have ventured into acting.

But all’s well now with his parents, whom he calls his “bestfriends.” He looks back on that episode of his life as an essential character-building experience. “My parents are very supportive of me. They did everything they could to be able to provide me with a good life. But I had wanted to make my own life, as I felt at that time my parents were spoiling me.”

“I think I’ve paid my dues already,” he adds.

More adventures

Derek prides himself on being able to strike a balance between his career and personal interests. Thus, this 2010, he hopes to reward himself with more adventures outside his life in showbiz.

Life outside showbiz means sports and more sports. And travel and more travel. After picking up the sport four to five years ago, he’s now the captain of the RP Team for Ultimate Frisbee, has directed his team to tourneys in Taiwan, Shanghai, Bali, Australia, Hong Kong, etc., and was named Most Valuable Player during the past two Asian Championships. He has even sustained injuries for his sport. And while this bothers his handlers, there’s no slowing him down especially now that Team Philippines has already won two tournaments, and is being touted in websites and blogs on Ultimate Frisbee as the next Asian superstars of the sport.

Derek, who also once played for the Philippine Basketball League, says, “I cannot do everything I want to like before, but I cannot imagine myself without my sport.”

He’s also a self-proclaimed “Mr. Travel,” and it was the promise of travel that somehow sealed his showbiz fate. He recalls that early on in his career, he had felt that he wasn’t cut out for showbiz as his first assignment “Entertainment Konek” made him uncomfortable since it discussed issues, some of which were about his friends. But what ultimately convinced him to give showbiz another shot—this time via acting—was the idea of staying in Bohol for several months to shoot the series “Ang Panday.”

Outside work, he’s been fortunate to explore over 30 countries in the Middle East, and all over Europe and Asia. Among his most unforgettable escapades were travelling through Sahara Desert in North Africa, sky-diving in Canada, and going by his lonesome to Beijing for the 2008 Olympics. In the Philippines, his favorite would have to be the white water rafting in Cagayan de Oro, which he had so much fun doing last year with his entire family.  

Derek excitedly bares his plans for this year: “This 2010, I’m going to watch the FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Then, we’re going to go swimming with the white sharks. That’ll be the most difficult thing that I’ll be doing.”

He says his life is, in one way or another, shaped by his sense of adventure. “I enjoy pushing myself to the limits. I enjoy living my life.”

Special thanks to Metro Ayala Stores (through its marketing supervisor, Mr. Ramon Miagan) for the interview.