Direk Mae: Her films reflect growing maturity

Like mostly young actors whom she is directing, Mae Cruz-Alviar grows more mature with every film. It’s obvious in her latest work, Star Cinema’s Can’t Help Falling In Love starring the KathNiel tandem of Kathryn Bernardo (who turned 22 last March 21) and Daniel Padilla (turning 22 on April 26), which reportedly raked in more than P30M when it opened nationwide on Black Saturday, April 15.

Aside from a wedding scene, Kathryn and Daniel claimed that their characters are far more mature than those in their previous films.

“I’ve been doing romantic comedies for years and truthfully, it is quite a challenge to make it different from my previous films,” agrees Mae. “I feel though that this one isn’t as all-out cheesy kilig like Catch Me I’m in Love (starring Sarah Geronimo and Gerald Anderson) or as laugh-out-loud comedy as Bride for Rent (Kim Chiu and Xian Lim) or as dramatic as Everyday I Love You (Liza Soberano and Enrique Gil).”

The movie’s theme is more mature than that of Crazy Beautiful You, another KathNiel starrer.

“Yes,” adds Mae, “in terms of the balance of comedy, romance and drama. I guess so, except that my actors have also grown since our last project together. I feel that in general, I am growing more mature and it reflects in my films. I can’t seem to find myself getting cringe-worthy cheesy as before and I find my characters becoming more mature as well.” 

Mae describes as “pure joy” working with Kathryn and Daniel.

“I really am so fortunate to work with actors who are collaborators, who are thinking actors, who will give their all to the project, who put their full trust in me and the team. This is not my first time with them and I see how they’ve grown more mature, how they take the craft seriously and how much respect they give to the filmmaking process.” 

Fortunately for KathNiel fans, Mae did spice up the movie with kilig moments done according to the age of the actors (and their characters) who are now, so to speak, “legally” mature.

Explains Mae, “It’s not really about having more kilig moments but more about having different, more age appropriate kilig moments. As the saying goes, it’s not quantity but quality we’re after. Given that their last film (Barcelona) was more mature, we really worked on making sure they weren’t acting juvenile anymore. We had to find the right timpla (amount) of kilig that’s right for their age.”

What comes with age is correcting certain distracting mannerisms. Mae did just that.

“For Kath, she has very distinct hand gestures which I remind her to control. For DJ, he has a certain way of holding Kath’s face that we had to adjust. At the early part of the film, there were moments I would have to remind them that they shouldn’t be affectionate since it wasn’t called for in the story yet.” 

What kind of other films does Mae want to direct? 

“When I began directing, aside from doing love stories, I wanted to try different kinds of genres like action and horror. When I was training as a director in Pangako Sa Yo (the ABS-CBN teleserye), I did most of the tracking shots in the show, with a lot of action involved. Because of that, I was interested in doing a movie with a lot of car chases. I also got to try doing horror because of the show Nginig and I enjoyed it very much (except for some nightmares because of certain episodes!). I’ve always been a fan of suspense/mystery stories and was also interested in doing that. Unfortunately, we didn’t have a lot of projects like that then. Ultimately I wanted (and still want!) to do a historical/period love story. That’s a dream project for me. I’d love to do historical films because it has always been my dream. Next, I’d love to try doing a horror film.”

Who are the filmmakers does she look up to and what does she like about their style? 

“Oh wow...there’s a LOT. I look up to a lot of filmmakers especially locally. I was fortunate to have worked with a lot of them (even briefly) and have learned from them. The veteran directors Mel Chionglo, Maryo J. Delos Reyes, Marilou Diaz Abaya, Peque Gallaga, Lore Reyes, Jerry Sineneng and Jeffrey Jeturian have been most generous with their wisdom and knowledge and never made me feel like a neophyte. They were very warm, accommodating and even gave very constructive criticism of my work.

“I admire the films of Chito Roño, how he is such a master of horror films. I also love the visuals, the grit and the intensity of Erik Matti’s movies. I look up to Cathy Garcia Molina for her passion and dedication. I know how she works and she gives 110 percent to a project, pure heart and soul. I also look up to my mentor, Rory Quintos for her discipline, how she balances work and life, and her wisdom.

“Lastly, I look up to Olivia Lamasan, my mentor. I admire her creativity in writing, her passion, her command, her generosity with her knowledge and how she motivates and pushes one to reach his/her full potential.” 

Mae took up Masscom major in Film and Visual Communication at UP after finishing grade and high school at Colegio de San Agustin.

“I got into this profession because I’ve always been a fan of movies and TV shows,” says Mae. “Another reason is that I wanted to have a profession that not too many women are into. In high school, we had a Broadcasting class that exposed us to the media world. This inspired me to pursue a career in media. During my fourth year in high school, my best friend, Mikee (Cojuangco-Jaworski), invited me to the shoot of her first-ever Swatch Lady commercial. When I got to the set and met direk Rowell Santiago, I knew I wanted my life to be on the set as well. I remember having a moment of clarity that time seeing the lights, the camera, the crew and the production staff abuzz.” 

After finishing college, Mae applied at Star Cinema and after a few months, got in as a production assistant for the movie Magic Temple. She moved on to doing script continuity for several projects under Jerry Sineneng and Rory Quintos who continued training Mae as her assistant director for several films and TV shows.

“I moved on to train as director in the show Pangako Sa Yo,” adds Mae. “In 2002, I first directed for the show Maalaala Mo Kaya. That’s pretty much my journey as a director.” 

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Kris to star in Crazy Rich Asians?

These past few days, Kris Aquino has been hinting at a “Hollywood project” for which she auditioned in Manila with, yes, a passing grade. Last night, she flew to Los Angeles presumably to sign the contract and, maybe soon, start shooting for the movie reportedly based on the popular Young Adult novel Crazy Rich Asians. To be directed by Jon M. Chu, the film will also star, among others, Michelle Yeoh.

Here’s what we learned about the movie:

Crazy Rich Asians is a 2013 novel by Kevin Kwan. The novel became a best seller and was followed by the sequel China Rich Girlfriend in 2015 and Rich People Problems coming in 2017.

Kwan stated that his intention in writing the novel was to “introduce a contemporary Asia to a North American audience.” He claimed the novel was loosely based on his own childhood in Singapore. A Crazy Rich Asians film adaptation will be helmed by director Jon M. Chu.

The plot follows multiple intersecting stories.

Nick Young, the heir apparent of an extremely wealthy old-money Singapore family living in New York City and working as a professor goes home for the first time in years to attend his best friend’s wedding. He decides to bring his girlfriend with him, Rachel Chu, who has no idea about the enormity of his wealth, and who is unprepared for immersion in an overwhelming world of wealth that doesn’t welcome her.

Astrid Leong, Nick’s cousin, the subject of Singapore society coverage, also known as “The Goddess”, seems to have it all: good breeding, astonishing beauty, massive wealth, great fashion sense, complete with a couture collection that rivals the Sheika of Qatar’s, and an attractive ex-army husband. Astrid discovers disturbing signs of a possible secret mistress as she comes to understand her husband’s insecurity about his own success compared to her vast wealth.

Eddie Cheng, Nick and Astrid’s cousin, wants to impress everyone with his family and his lifestyle, but things don’t go his way. His wife and children disagree with and suffer from Eddie’s obsession with his appearance, his wealthy yet cheap parents, and his brother who dates a gold-digging soap opera star claiming to come from a good family.

The novel received positive reviews internationally from sources including The New York Times, The Boston Globe and the Independent. Janet Maslin of the New York Times wrote of the novel, “Mr. Kwan knows how to deliver guilty pleasures. He keeps the repartee nicely outrageous, the excess wretched and the details wickedly delectable.”

In 2015 Kwan confirmed that a movie version of Crazy Rich Asians was in development under a co-production with Ivanhoe Pictures and Color Force, the latter with producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson who also produced The Hunger Games films. The screenplay is written by Pete Chiarelli and later Adele Lim. In May 2016, director Jon M. Chu was attached to helm the film. On October 2016, Warner Brothers acquired Crazy Rich Asians, fast-tracking it into production.

The film will star Constance Wu as the lead Rachel Chu, and international star Michelle Yeoh will star as Eleanor Young, while newcomer Henry Golding is set to play the male lead Nick Young. Rounding out the supporting cast will be Gemma Chan as Nick’s cousin Astrid Leong and Sonoya Mizuno as Araminta Lee. Production is set to begin in April 2017 in Singapore and Malaysia.

Kris is said to be an avid follower of the Crazy novels and that must have helped her bag a role in the movie.

So will Kris play the mother of one of the characters?

Whatever, according to showbiz observers, the movie fits Kris to a T.

She claims to be “crazy,” doesn’t she? And, of course, everybody knows that she’s very rich. Then, all she has to do is be herself, be natural.

“No need for much acting,” they said.

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