Star complex

(Second of two parts)

In another paper, respected entertainment columnist Mario Bautista wrote about a TV interview the other month of Survivor Philippines alumna Patani and how she lamented disappearing so soon from the showbiz scene. Mario remarked that with all the reality shows we have on TV, only the truly talented will survive the competition.

In the case of Patani, I feel it was mostly attitude problem from her end that brought her career to an exit. I noticed — and this I witnessed myself — how she so quickly developed star complex as soon as she was given an option to be a TV regular.

In my Tuesday column, I pointed out the reasons why it is not necessarily bad for celebrities to develop star complex. I have to stress, however, that you don’t allow that to grow overnight. You need to be ripe enough to have one. Yes, it can come naturally with stardom, but I believe you should learn to control it.

Who may develop star complex and when should you have one?

Having looks and talent do not always guarantee you to make it in show business. It’s the public that will decide based on your appeal.

There is also such a thing called slow burn and the classic case of this is Marian Rivera, who waited a long time before she became a sensation via Marimar.

Maybe it would sound funny to compare Patani to Marian, but let me use them as examples for when to finally consider having star complex.

In the case of Patani, as soon as she got out of that island and saw a possible career in entertainment, she lost no time feeling like a star. It came to a point when she simply ignored the presence of those senior to her in GMA. In her mind, I am a star — you kowtow to me.

Marian was the exact opposite. She was already doing projects early in the millennium, but she remained humble and patient while waiting for her big break. I knew her back then and she was a very simple girl, who dressed rather conservatively.

If ever Marian is accused now of having star complex, let her have it — she already earned the right to have one. And she waited.

If we go strictly by calendar, maybe it is safe to start imbibing star complex after about five to seven years in the business. By then, you had studied the realities of the profession and its complexities.

By this time, you’ve gone through the initiation rites — being written about negatively by the press, getting backstabbed and learning to rise from every setback. More importantly, you’ve accepted the fact that you no longer have privacy.

If you’ve been through all that and you still feel like pursuing a showbiz career, then embrace the profession completely along with its complicated system.

Having star complex will serve as your armor to protect you from all the hurts that are part of being a celebrity.

Also, at this point of your career, you’ve learned how to deal correctly with media and the people you work with: From the producer and director all the way to the girl scooping your rice and viand during breaks. Yes, you’ve learned how to respect them and even show compassion to the girl from catering who is also just as tired as the rest of the cast and crew.

At this point, you had perfected courtesy and politeness and learned professionalism.

And by then, you already know how to walk through a crowd pretending that you are speaking to somebody on the phone — that you are busy and in a rush — so that people you run into do not automatically lay down all their problems at your feet for instant solution.

While it is always good to help, you can also get hoodwinked into forking out quite a sum for a scam. Young stars today have solved this problem by putting up their own foundation where they help in a more organized and systematic manner.  

Putting up a foundation carrying your name may come off oozing with megalomania. Maybe.

That’s part of having star complex, which is a necessary evil to possess so that you don’t always get the raw end of the deal.

The general rule is — if it is already imperative for you to develop star complex, make sure that you know how to contain it. Also bear in mind that there is also an end to it — that being a star is not forever.

Oh, showbiz with its firmament of stars can be so complex.