Jim Pebanco finds ‘Lockdown’ among his challenging projects
“One of my most challenging roles,” said character actor Jim Pebanco in describing his role as a gay cybersex den operator in the Joel Lamangan-directed flick “Lockdown.”
“The first time I read the script, I was very pleased because the role is very interesting and the script was very good. I really took time to study my role.”
When doing a new acting assignment or accepting a role, Jim is always on the lookout for a role that will challenge him. “It should be different from my previous roles. I should be able to do something new. I want roles that are kind of edgy because it keeps me on my toes. Let’s face it, there are some roles that you can do even with your eyes closed but my role here in ‘Lockdown,’ I really had to think how I am going to do it. I can’t afford to make mistakes.”
He said one of the hardest scenes in “Lockdown” was the Russian Roulette scene with Alan Paule who plays a crooked cop. “That was very scary. Before we did the scene, I really had the gun checked several times if there was really no bullet inside. It was a very delicate scene,” he recalled.
“Lockdown” has several man-to-man love scenes and nudity. How was he able to play a gay man amidst all the nudity around him?
“Just focus on the role. Kasi pare-pareho kaming kapit sa patalim. Ang iniisip ko we are doing these things for survival during the pandemic.”
Jim revealed that because of the pandemic, he suffered depression and anxiety – and this added a different layer to his performance.
“Nagkaroon ako ng anxiety kasi ‘yung uncertainties…hanggang kailan kaya ito saka ano kaya ang mangyayari sa atin? Sa totoo lang, muntik na akong masiraan ng ulo. Tapos my sister was dying at that time. Ayaw na niyang mabuhay. Tapos may iba pa akong mga kapatid na kailangan ko rin tulungan. Nakatulong yun sa role ko kasi naisip ko survival of the fittest ang kinakaharap ko,” he said.
It also helped that his co-stars were all game. “They don’t have any inhibitions. We just followed what is on the script and Direk Joel’s instructions.”
It was in Jim’s cybersex hub where Paolo Gumabao worked as a cybersex performer. “I admire Paolo’s willingness in doing all those sexy scenes, including frontal nudity and kissing scenes with fellow actors. He did it for authenticity and artistry.”
Produced by For The Love of Art Films, “Lockdown” starts streaming at KTX.ph today. It is an official entry to the Asian Film Festival Barcelona and will also be shown at the Indienation section of Cinemalaya next month.
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Kapamilya actor Gab Lagman is interested to do a superhero movie. With his height and built, the “Init sa Magdamag” mainstay is fit to play a superhero.
“I believe that we need a super hero movie at this time to inspire hope,” said Gab.
Given a choice, he’d love to play Captain Barbell. Another super hero he’d like do is Lastikman.
Gab is one actor who is willing to take challenges. His role as Kiko “Init sa Magdamag” is something new for him. It is the exact opposite of his real self.
Although initially he had hesitations to take on the role, Gab felt is it better to get out of his comfort zone.
“At first, I really questioned myself if I will be credible in the role. It is a heavy role compared to the one I did in ‘Halik.’ But I am glad that I accepted it. Besides, Alexa Ilacad is very helpful in our scenes together and that makes playing Kiko fun and a little bit easier,” said Gab.
“Init sa Magdamag” airs 9:20 weeknights on TV5, A2Z, Kapamilya Channel, Jeepney TV and Kapamilya Online Live via the YouTube channel and Facebook page of ABS-CBN Entertainment. Its advanced episodes can be accessed on iWantTFC, WeTV and iflix.
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