Cogie Domingo Gets Second Chance

Comebacking actor Cogie Domingo says he’s going to make up for lost time. Touted as a major acting find when he first made his entry into showbiz, wherein he did a movie right away with acting heavyweights Lorna Tolentino and Eddie Garcia in the award-winning “Deathrow”, Cogie’s showbiz career came to a halt because of rumors of unprofessionalism and erratic work ethics.

“I have changed for the better,” Cogie defended himself at the presscon of his comeback movie “Muli” co-starring Sid Lucero. The film is directed by Adolf B. Alix, Jr. and is based on a Palanca award-winning script written by Jerry Gracio.

But why do rumors of him backsliding to his old ways persist? The grapevine says Cogie had been holding up shooting and taping skeds (he’s in the cast of the TV5 sitcom “Inday Wanda”). “There’s no truth to the rumor that I am back to my old ways,” he added.

Cogie had watched “Muli” in the premiere night held at UP, but he’s unsure if he would be willing to take on another gay role and do love scenes with another male actor.

Asked why he agreed to do it, he says he liked the script. In fact, he even asked his mother to read it, who liked it as well and who didn’t object when he accepted the role of a closet gay lawyer.

Nevertheless, he is happy with the good reviews for his performance in “Muli” and he didn’t mind that most of those who watched it liked the performance of Sid more. “I also liked his performance. He’s very good and he deserves the good words he received for his work.”

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Should TV stations launching star searches extend the age bracket for aspiring artists? There are certainly aspiring talents who are very talented yet they are no longer 17. Most talent searches on TV peg the age of aspirants at 15 or 18. Maybe the talent searches being done by networks should adjust the age bracket, let’s say from 13 to 25, so they could give a chance to other talents who may not be as young as 15 or 18 but are talented nevertheless.

Many Filipinos look young and maybe there are aspiring singers or dancers, or actors out there who are talented but can’t join these contests because they are beyond the age limit. We shouldn’t discriminate by age. There might be people out there who may be in their late 20’s or in their early 30’s yet they look young for their age. They shouldn’t be deprived of opportunities because of age. We should look at real talents, regardless of age.

If Meryl Streep can be a dancing queen in “Mama Mia” and Angelina Jolie can be an action star in her late 30’s, then maybe we can give a chance to a truly talented Pinoy who is in her late 20’s or early 30’s a chance to showcase her talent and be recognized for it.

If Talentadong Pinoy can give breaks to virtual unknowns regardless of age, then maybe star searches can also follow suit. After all, real talents prevail and endure, while a youthful beauty minus the talent may not exactly spell success.