Paulo Avelino’s acting heroes

CEBU, Philippines  - Kapamilya heartthrob Paulo Avelino may be groomed as one of his network’s top leading men, but his choices of favorite actors are far from the matinee idol mold.

“I like Robert de Niro, Al Pacino and Anthony Hopkins. Locally, I look up to Kuya Ipe [Philip Salvador]. I’ve seen a lot of his films, and I think he’s a very good and versatile actor,” said the 24-year-old during a recent interview with the Cebu press at the Marriott Hotel.

If you follow Paulo’s Twitter account posts, you’d get the idea that he’s a fan of character actors and a varied mix of film genres. Apart from it being his form of entertainment, Paulo said checking out many flicks is part of his preparation and learning process as an actor.

“I just do my research by watching a lot of films. I also rehearse and rehearse, and I listen to my director,” said Paulo on how he manages to pull off his assigned characters with ease.

After his widely-followed stint as Julia Montes’ mentally-retarded husband in the soap “Walang Hanggan,” Paulo’s next dream role is another psycho character “without limits.” He said he wants to push himself as an artist, and this will only happen if he tackles projects that are out-of-the-box.

Paulo, who first burst into public consciousness via GMA-7’s reality talent search ‘Starstruck’, is now reaping the benefits of his decision to jump fence back in 2011.

“I was within my comfort zone. So it’s different when you go to another place, you don’t know anyone, you’re in a different environment, so you tend to concentrate only on what you do best, which is acting.”

“They [ABS-CBN] gave me something offbeat and really different that I don’t normally portray on a TV soap, which was my character Nathan in ‘Walang Hanggan,’” he added. “Now, who would think they would give me a show with Sam Milby and Angeline Quinto, right? They’re just throwing me out in the open. I’m very happy that they’re giving me a chance to show what I can do.”

Paulo has been back on television with a new series, but this one’s a complete 360-degree from his dark and intense scenes in “Walang Hanggan.”

He plays Lance in “Kahit Konting Pagtingin,’ a happy go-lucky guy who will be entangled with a love triangle opposite his brother Adam (Sam Milby) with the young and funny lass named Aurora (Angeline Quinto).

“For Lance, I want to make him very raw. I want to make him something new, something closer to who I am,” said Paulo.

Paulo is also filming two movies at the moment. One is the Regal Films’ sexy-drama “The Bride and The Lover” with Jennylyn Mercado and Lovi Poe. He is also returning to the indie circuit, through the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival 2013 entry titled “Debosyon” directed by Alvin Yapan. Yapan is the same director for previous Cinemalaya entry “Ang Sayaw Ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa,” a dance-poetry film that earned for Paulo his first Best Actor award given by Gawad Urian.

“I’m exclusive to Regal, but hopefully I can do a film with Star Cinema in the near future,” Paulo said.