Eugene having the best of both worlds

Eugene Domingo does not have the luxury of sleep these days. She jumps out of the bed as early as 5 a.m. to ready herself and pack her things again for another long work day that usually lasts until 2 a.m. She is taping episodes for Inday Wanda, her new show on TV5.

“It’s only three hours short for me to literally say I’m wide awake for 24 hours,” says Eugene who also hosts two GMA 7 shows and will be starring soon in a comedy series on the same channel.

But she is not complaining. Her workload may be stressful yet Eugene has managed to fit all her showbiz commitments in her to-do list without getting dizzy and snooty.

“I admit I’m not used to be so busy with work,” she shares. “Once a week is enough pero dahil sabay-sabay silang gusto ko, tinanggap ko at excited ako kaya dapat ayusin ko ang schedule ko. What I’m praying for to God is strength. Huwag sana akong maubusan ng lakas.”

Besides, not many actors are busy as bees like she is and can do shows on rival stations TV5 and GMA 7 without any hitch or getting any “order in the court.” Recently, TV networks implemented a strict rule of prohibiting celebrities under contract to work in their mother network’s competition.

Being more identified as a Kapuso, many can’t help but ask, “Isn’t Eugene worried that she might get into hot water working for both networks?”

“FYI, my contract with GMA is per project. Limitations include it (the show being offered to other network) should be of different genre and timeslot,” she says. “And for that I really appreciate Miss Wilma Galvante and the management of GMA for listening to me as an artist. They understand where I’m coming from kaya pala Kapuso nakikinig sila.

“In all fairness to GMA people, they asked me that if I really like Inday Wanda, they will air it on the network. But I think December or January, I already told them that it was Unitel who offered me the project and it’s their decision which channel it will be shown.”

Inday Wanda is Pinoy animator Blog Caliguia’s creation and Unitel’s Tony Gloria bought the rights to the story before offering the role to Eugene. TV5 is a co-producer. The show will premiere on Aug. 5 but was moved to September for more enhanced visual effects. 

Eugene believes everything will turn out fine when you settle things clearly before accepting offers. She is grateful to GMA and TV5 for allowing her to grow as an artist.

“Natutuwa ako dahil naiintindihan nila na gusto ko maging malayang artista. Ang importante lang diyan ay meron kang delicadeza. Huwag kang gagawa ng palabas na sabay tapos parehong pareho. Ganun lang yun, kunsiderasyon at delicadeza.”

With tapings here and there, find out how Eugene spends her day:

5 a.m. — I wake up early if my call time is 7 a.m. Eat heavy breakfast of rice, sardines or dried fish or ground pork with potatoes and egg. I love coffee then take lots of vitamins and eat fruits. Check my Facebook for a few minutes.

5:30 or 6 a.m. — Take a bath, do my bathroom ritual and ready to go because I already prepared my things before going to sleep.

7 a.m. — I’m on the set. ‘Pag masarap ang breakfast I eat again. Greet everyone and sit down for my make-up.

8 or 9 a.m. — It’s work, work, work.

12 noon — Lunchtime. Napakakonti ko lang kumain.

1 p.m. — Resume work. We don’t have the luxury of taking a long break to go to sleep or take a bath because we are trying to finish 30 to 35 sequences a day.

I drink coffee the whole day and water.

12 midnight — I’m already tired. I request them to prioritize important scenes.

2 a.m. — My cut-off time because I don’t think I can perform well beyond that.

If shooting is cancelled, Eugene spends her day doing other activities.

“But I always make it a point to have at least four days a month for my ‘me’ time. Makapagpagupit man lamang ako.”  — Bot Glorioso