Bela Padilla gives an easy nod to MMFF entry ‘Rekonek’
MANILA, Philippines — Actress-screenwriter Bela Padilla admitted she has known about good friend Kim Chiu’s plan to file a case against her sister Lakam even before Kim recently filed the qualified theft case in court. Bela even flew to Cebu to sympathize with Kim before everything actually happened.
“I sent her a message on the day the news actually came out,” Bela said. “I believe it’s harder when more people know about what happened. Obviously, everyone has something to say. That’s one of the consequences of the Internet.”
“I don’t want Kim to feel that the world has something to say (about) what she did. She doesn’t deserve that. We don’t know all the actual details. I just didn’t want Kim to feel the world was unfair to her,” she added.
Thankfully, Kim has a very big support system. “She’s a very generous person,” Bela quipped. “It’s not just me who lends support to her. Angelica (Panganiban) also supports her. We’re there for Kim. Her brothers were here in town. Twinkle, her sister, was also with her when she filed the case.”
“Even direk Lauren (Dyogi) also flew to Cebu when I also went there,” she continued. “We are just all waiting for Kim to say she really needs help. We’re ready. She’s okay now. She continues to work. The public’s support (for) her (teleserye) ‘The Alibi’ is so strong. I love her mindset. She has a problem, but she also focuses on her work.”
Bela is now busy promoting her new Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) entry, “Rekonek,” an ensemble family story, megged by Jade Castro.
“My character’s name is Tricia, and I play an OFW (Overseas Filipino Worker) who tries to go back home to the Philippines, but she experiences the Internet glitch,” granted Bela.
“When I accepted the role through a Zoom call with direk Jade, direk Erik and everybody who (was) there including my team with Star Magic, they were probably surprised after I said yes right away. It was an instant yes. An easy nod. Hindi ako nagpakipot after I was told I would be going to Bangkok to shoot the film. I didn’t even ask when the shooting would start. I gave my nod right away.”
“I think the reason I said yes so quickly, I was actually avoiding to Thailand for a long while now. My dad passed away two years ago and the last time I visited him in Thailand was in 2019. My dad lived in Thailand for 30 years. So, it was my first time to return to Thailand, if ever. And work was a great reason, so I do not need to go back to all the places that we used to visit,” she shared.
“I was able to revisit Thailand because I felt I was not able to grieve properly then. So, I just brushed it off, but I got excited when I was told we were shooting in Bangkok. I didn’t hear the rest of the pitch (laughed).”
“Our first shooting day was at the airport in Bangkok,” she recalled. “That was where my dad always saw me off to return to Manila after I visited. So, it was very cathartic for me. Shooting the film was like a therapy session for me. I felt like it was also a nice time for me to reconnect with Thailand. I’ve really been avoiding going back to Bangkok for so long. This movie was such a blessing to me.”
Bela’s Tricia character readily appealed after she was offered the project. “For a change, this is not a love story,” she said. “Walang iyakan. I work with Andrea Brillantes for the first time, so this is very different. And when I read the full script, I was already at the airport and we were going to Bangkok.”
“I was in business class — thank God for my producers for giving me a business class ticket — I was seated with a madame and I was crying. She asked if I was okay and I said no. I didn’t notice I was already crying. Even if the film is funny, may puso ang story. That’s what I was told in our Zoom meeting.”
Bela added, “This is not a funny film. We’ll all relate to this. I think it’s how we all reconnect with this film. In life, it’s not just one specific moment that makes you feel something. It’s a culmination of everything. That’s the beauty of our film. It’s not one actor who will shine more than another. It’s how everything blends in the end.”
“There’s one kirot scene that I did in this film and direk Jade beautifully shot it, although I won’t give it away. This is such a big cast. Pressure will not be on me. Movies are my favorite thing to do. I came from a good film, ‘100 Awit Para Kay Stella’ and a film with Carlo Aquino will come out in January. So, I have two films back-to-back, with two character stories where the weight is all on me,” she continued.
“Then finally I was able to work in ‘Rekonek,’ with such a light story, a beautiful cast where the pressure is equally demanding. It’s such a no-brainer for me to say yes to this. Tricia’s character is so lovable. She’s a typical Filipino who works abroad. One of the draws is Tricia is an OFW, but not a typical one where she is so kawawa.”
“Hindi siya ina-api or umiiyak. She’s a strong, independent, modern OFW. I like the representation of an OFW here. When you see me and Andrea’s character, you’ll see a fresh representation of an OFW here. It was physically challenging to do a two-day shoot in Thailand, but it was an easy nod for me. It was very fun to shoot,” she shared.
“Overall, I was happy with the 97 percent shot in Thailand. Because of time constraints, we simplified some of the scenes. We had to shorten some dialogs. We just have to see how all of that came out.”
Recently, the Internet had a glitch in Europe and everyone had a problem with what they were doing. “Those kinds of situations are very scary to think about,” said Bela. “I feel like I would benefit from a break (from) social media if that happens. I feel like we’re on the Internet too much and we’re so dependent on it.”
“When I was a new artist, you would not arrive on the set if you didn’t know how to ready maps. But now, there’s Google maps, there’s Waze.”
Reality MM was thankful that Bela accepted the project right away. “Knowing that ‘Rekonek’ is an ensemble piece, the stories will surely resonate in our lives, considering the characters have different relationships,” said producer Dondon Monteverde. “This is our second film with Bela after ‘Ultimate Oppa,’ which we shot in South Korea (2022).”
“We were simply hoping Bela would accept this after we made the pitch. We wanted another project with Bela. But coming back to ‘Rekonek,’ Erik (Matti) and I were really happy to be doing this film. We really feel that in today’s world, relationships are disconnected without the Internet. Even (on) social media, in layering, relationships get more serious. But everybody will still survive even without the Internet,” added he.
“Young people seem to be without oxygen without the Internet. So, that’s the important lesson that we want to bring out. Imagine all those characters going through Christmas without the Internet. That’s the gist of the story. We still want to work with Bela in a full-length piece, one day soon.”
“Rekonek” has eight stories that will weave in every character that will be introduced. “When I told Bela about her part in the movie, she was quick in making her decision to accept the project,” said direk Erik. “She didn’t say, ‘I’ll think about it.’ ‘Let’s see.’ Then you would later get the news that Bela is not available at the time we intend to shoot. That’s how the offer goes with other artists. But dealing with Bela, the offer was fast.”
The last time Bela did an MMFF entry was in 2019, when she became part of director Nuel Naval’s top-grossing entry, “Miracle in Cell No. 7.”
“I am happy with every MMFF entry that I do because I don’t really celebrate Christmas in real life,” she disclosed. “I see how Filipinos celebrate Christmas. It’s always very festive. I want to see people very happy or even to do cinema visits or even just watch movies on Christmas Day. That’s one of our family traditions during Christmas.”
“Even if we don’t celebrate Christmas, we love watching MMFF entries, especially the one I am in. I’m excited to see our film and the rest of the movies. Of course, we support (always) local,” she added.
The last project that Bela did on the big screen was the sequel to “100 Awit Para Kay Stella.”
“I’m not going to lie, the pressure of that film was insane, with the sequel that also did really well. But now, I’m glad that I’m working with an ensemble cast in ‘Rekonek.’ With the producer of this film (Gerald Anderson), his problem will be big if people don’t watch this film. So, Gerald will have a big problem, not me.”
“When I was told this film would have a big cast, I said, ‘Finally, I can relax.’ You know, it’s Christmas. Everyone is happy. Everyone has money to spend. I hope I will also get a bonus from somewhere out there (laughed),” she continued.
“I really don’t feel the pressure now. I’m just happy to be around the MMFF festivities. I really want to have something to do come December. If none, I would probably opt to (just) travel. But now, I will be here in Manila working.”
Bela lived in London for four years, where she studied. “I was an OF (overseas Filipino) lang,” she smilingly said. “Reconnection happened with my family recently, when I flew them to Greece, where they watched the premiere of ‘100 Awit Para Kay Stella.’ That was so nice for me to finally show them what I do here in the Philippines.”
“Since my nephews and nieces, although they know that I’m an artist here, they didn’t have an idea what kind of artist. They didn’t have any context of what I really do. It was so easy to say I’m an artist. For them to finally see a film that I’m proud of, it was something heartwarming for me. I was happy to reconnect with them,” she shared.
Bela’s biggest takeaway on doing “Rekonek” was swift. “Sometimes life isn’t about singular experiences,” she maintained. “It’s the culmination of everything that makes life beautiful.”
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