A first for Lotlot

MANILA, Philippines – When Lotlot de Leon flew to India a couple of weeks ago to attend the All Lights India International Film Festival in Hyderabad, all she wished for was for directors Allan Michael Ibanez and Dexter Hemedez’s 1st Sem to win the Best Feature Film award under the Debut Directors category. Wish granted. 1st Sem, which she topbilled, bagged the award.

What she didn’t expect was clinching a special acting citation for her “exceptional performance” in the indie film. Lotlot said it is her first international acting recognition and 1st Sem is her first lead role in a comedy genre.

“While we’re on stage (with co-star Darwin Yu and direk Allan and Dexter receiving the Best Feature award), biglang nag-announce ‘yung jury na may special acting citation sa akin. Napanganga ako; gusto kong mag-walling na umiiyak sa tuwa,” shared Lotlot after the screening of 1st Sem at the Cinema 1 of SM Megamall. “But it was really a sweet surprise and I’m really thankful that the members of the jury liked the film because after the red carpet screening, there was a question and answer portion and they were very interested about the film at talaga namang maganda ‘yung pelikula namin kaya talaga namang nakakataba ng puso.”

The festival jury was composed of Hassan Nazer, whose film Utopia, was Afghanistan’s Best Foreign Film entry to this year’s Oscars; Pan Nalin, the director of the globally-distributed Samsara; and Rajesh Touchriver, who was nominated in the Best Debut Director at Cannes. 1st Sem producer Carlson Chan related that it was the first time for the filmfest jury to give a special award to an actor. The jurors were impressed with Lotlot’s exceptional portrayal that they couldn’t allow her acting performance to go unnoticed.

For those who were not able to catch 1st Sem during the second CineFilipino Filmfest held last March, the film is a family comedy centered on a mother-child relationship and touches on different themes such as love for family, friendship, love, separation anxiety and the value of education. The opening scene alone mirrors the reality inside the household of a typical Filipino family. It tackles issues that happen to families everywhere. Moving away from home to study is too tough to handle for some kids. Maru (Darwin) can’t stand being away from his loved ones so he decides to go back to his hometown just a few hours after his family and relatives sent him to a dormitory in Manila where he is supposed to attend college.

Lotlot, who plays mom Precy to three children, doesn’t feel like acting at all. “I think the reason why I agreed to do 1st Sem was because it’s very close to home. If I go a little bit personal, I can compare it to my siblings — Matet, Kiko, Ken and Ian. Mahirap magpalaki ng kapatid more so that I have children to take care of so I share a lot of similarities with my character, the only difference is I don’t nag. I really don’t say what I feel although you can see me sad or lonely but I’m not really vocal. Sometimes, I just let things go so I think this film was also an outlet for me. The things Precy said were the things that I probably wanted to say to them before.”

But when it comes to her children, Lotlot makes it a point to sit down and talk to them in a straightforward manner “because it is better for them to hear or learn everything from me than to other people. That’s why I make sure that our communication line is open so they can tell me whatever it is on their mind. Unlike my son Maru in the film, he can’t tell his mom what he wants.”

1st Sem also vividly reflects how parents would sacrifice so much just to see their children succeed. Lotlot never fails to ask the Lord for guidance that would lead her children to the right path.

Asked what piece of advice she can give to first-time parents, Lotlot maintained the importance of communication. “Find time to sit down with your children and ask what they feel because as parents we think we know it all but the kids also have brilliant ideas so it would be nice to have a talk so that you know what they think is right for them. Sometimes kasi mas mapapabuti pa yung buhay nila kung masusunod din sila.”

Lotlot shared that her daughter Maxine is mature beyond her age of 16. “She’s very intelligent and she likes to take care of all of us. I told her to take up law because she can be a good lawyer; she’s good at defending her point. But I never impose on my children. I’ll be happy whatever they want to take up as long as they finish their schooling. If they can bring honors then good, if not, then they can always find their own path or whatever it is that would make them happy.”

(1st Sem, which also stars Allan Paule, Sachie Yu, Marc Paloma, Miguel Bagtas, Sebastian Vargas and Simon Ibarra, is set to participate in the Nazioarteko Zinetxiki Festival in Spain on Nov. 14 to 27. It is also an official selection in the Kids First! Film and Video Festival in New Mexico, USA. On the local front, 1st Sem will have its theatrical run in February 2017. The film screening was made possible by PLDT Smart Foundation, MediaQuest, Unitel and Dannon Clothing.)