Como estas, Segundo Cernadas?

His presence is downright arresting. Green-brown eyes sparkling, cheeks puckering into a wide smile, hands gripping yours in a firm handshake, Segundo Cernadas of the widely-viewed GMA telenovela Monica Brava greets you with the charm of an ardent Latino lover.

The 31-year-old Argentinian just arrived in Manila aboard a KLM flight the previous night, but he showed no sign of fatigue nor even the slightest irritation. Traffic from the airport to Oakwood, his residence for the next four months, was terrible, especially for a tourist like him, but Segundo (Pablo in real life) just shrugs it off.

Why fight windmills? He seemed to ask silently.

The country boy who grew up loving sheep, horses, tomatoes and lettuce would rather concentrate on the work ahead: his series of tapings with leading lady Iza Calzado, Jomari Yllana and others for the upcoming GMA 7 teledrama Te Amo.

Segundo doesn’t have the slightest inkling how the taping will go along, and he’s honest enough to admit he’s unfamiliar with Tagalog. But he’s willing to learn, smitten as he is with the role cut out for him: that of a Spanish prince charming who goes through a lot of adventures and ends up with his lady love.

First of all, the athletic Segundo (he’s a windsurfer, a golfer and rugby player, among others) looks the part. Secondly, the project casts him in a romantic comedy role he can’t wait to sink his teeth into.

A decade ago, a wide-eyed Segundo left his native Viedma to go to the big city in answer to a want ad in the newspaper from the Theater Institute in Buenos Aires.

He did not know what to expect then. He only knew he wanted a change of scene: from the languid, pastoral landscapes of his childhood, to the cosmopolitan hum of the Big City. True enough, what Segundo discovered delighted him no end.

Immersing himself in theater for the next two years, he enjoyed himself so much, Segundo vowed to make acting his lifetime work.

He has never looked back. The rewards soon came a-pouring. Offers came one after another, and Segundo found himself swinging from one end of the acting spectrum to the other. He starred in tearjerkers (the soap Ricos Famosos was one of them) and wacky vehicles (like the comedy Doctor Love), and became known for his versatility. The feat also won him legions of fans and turned him into a sought-after matinee idol.

But if you ask the guy himself, Segundo would rather take the road less-travelled. It may be far less glamorous, but for Segundo, it’s the one which leads to fulfillment: that of being a character actor.

"I don’t mind playing support, as long as the story involving my character is good," he reveals. In fact, he turned down two or three offers because the storyline did not excite him any.

His dream is not to be remembered as a matinee idol girls swoon over and shriek for. There’s enough of that back home.

This serious actor yearns for something with more depth, something his dream role can give him: that of a dark character, a Mafiosi who plots and schemes himself into the thick of things.

His choice of favorite actor, Al Pacino, says a lot about Segundo’s passion for character roles. And, like his idol, Segundo wants to make it big on the silver screen someday.

Meanwhile, our eager visitor has his hands full of plans to make the most of his stay here, never mind the terrorist threat worried friends back home have warned him about.

"I’m taking necessary precautions," says this first-time visitor to the country.

But Segundo is not losing sleep over this, not when days-off from taping allow him to paint the town red.

Bouncing back to cheerful mode once more, the loveless Segundo gushes, "I’ve heard about your beautiful Filipinas!"

Actually Senor, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.