Louise delos Reyes super girl

CEBU, Philippines - Actress Louise delos Reyes may be in showbiz full time, but that doesn't mean she has no venue to apply what she burned the midnight oil for in college. After juggling academics and acting, Louise earned a Foreign Service degree last year  from the Lyceum of the Philippines University in Cavite. 

“I'm still able to use what I learned…like lessons in diplomacy. I know how to properly address others such as when I have story conferences or interviews like this," said the star of GMA-7's "Kambal Sirena," an engaging interviewee who definitely made an impression during a recent chat with the Cebu press.

Born into a family of police officers, the fragile-looking beauty once dreamt of becoming a law enforcer too. Her father is a retired cop, while her brothers, uncles, cousins and a sister-in-law are active in the service. The youngest in the brood, Louise later on changed her mind and decided she wanted to be a lawyer in order to help relatives whose profession made them prone to court cases.

Taking Foreign Service as a Pre-Law course, Louise said she "badly want to become a lawyer someday" – that's Plan A. Plan B is to work at the Department of Foreign Affairs, or become an ambassador, consul or diplomat.

Louise revealed that early on, she had systematically mapped out how her life would pan out. This one's not a girl who takes the day as it comes.

"We would be asked to write essays before: 10 to 15 years from now, who is Louise delos Reyes? I would always submit a timetable to my professor. By 20, I should have already graduated – which happened. By 23, I should already be studying Law. By 25, I should already have a fiancé. By 27, I should be married; 29, I should already have a kid," listed off the 20-year-old. "This was before."

An acting career was obviously not in her timetable. But it's the surprises life throws that makes living exciting.  While she hasn't totally veered off her self-imposed life plan, her showbiz breaks are putting the brakes on her goal of becoming a young attorney.  Louise though is not one to give up on ambition, saying she'll gladly jump back to school when she's no longer as in demand in the biz.

"I'm aware that not all actresses are able to stay long in the industry. I don't think yung init ng career ko ngayon…well, I'm not downgrading myself; I'm just open if and when time comes that someone else will take my place and all of these [showbiz opportunities] will go away. That's when I'll pursue Law," a determined Louise said.

The interest stemmed from her childhood visits to an uncle's house, which had a library of case studies. An eight-year-old then, she would devour the pages instead of playing about like other kids normally would. "I would always read these cases, not knowing that time that these were very heavy cases," she recalled.

Like many glazed-eyed aspirants, she said her passion lies in Criminal Law and is her first choice of specialization. Her favorite shows in fact, aren't the likes of "Gossip Girl," but those crime-focused programs such as "CSI." Told that Criminal Law is a dangerous field, Louise did relent that yes, she would be afraid for her family's safety, and that Corporate Law would be the more lucrative and safer choice.

She's eyeing three Law schools at the moment (UP Diliman, San Beda and Ateneo). "I've been asking around on how it is in this particular Law school and that. Statistics-wise, a lot of Bar passers have come from Ateneo. Then again, I believe it still depends on the student if he/she wants to excel."

Voracious reader

One of her course requirements was a 300-hour on-the-job training, which Louise completed in the Senate last year. The unflattering rep of the Philippine Senate in recent years notwithstanding, Louise loved every minute of her exposure to government work.

She shared, "I actually applied for Senator Miriam Santiago's office, but she was not accepting interns. I felt I would learn a lot from her, maging tsismosa lang ako. It's amazing to watch live the senators na nagbabaliktaktakan silang lahat."

Debates are another one of her many interests. The scholar was president of her college's Debating Society, after insisting with the administration to establish such a club. "That time, Lyceum of the Philippines University-Cavite was still in its second year. I told them, if high school has a debate club, what more in college?"

It's a wonder how the former "Tween Hearts" star managed to do well in school and remain active in showbiz. Louise gives the credit to her mom and handler, who painstakingly arranged a schedule that won't drive her nuts.

"Because if it was just up to me, I want to do everything!" Louise said. "If I had a break in taping, I always wanted to go to school. But we really had to choose what schedules to accept. Sometimes nakikiusap sa professor if I can't take an exam on time. I came to a point where I wasn't able to attend at all a class of a particular professor. He was based in Manila so he had limited time to teach in Cavite. In a week, he'd hold a maximum of two classes. So what happened to me, the pre-lims, mid-terms and finals — sabay-sabay ginawa, isang bagsakan siya. Buti kung may kaklase ako diba na pwedeng kopyahan. Eh ako lang mag-isa sa faculty room. Pero nakaya naman."

It helped a lot that before Louise became fully active in showbiz, she had the foresight to take subjects in advance. "I was a consistent Dean's Lister for three years. It was in my third year of college that I became active in showbiz. During my first year, I took up second year subjects that had no pre-requisite. Then I enrolled for summer classes to be more advanced. The same thing during my second year. I took up third year subjects that had no pre-requisite. In third year, I could no longer do that because all the fourth year subjects were majors. Bale ang naiwan lang in my third year were 16 units, all major subjects. Medyo maluwag na."

For Louise, earning a diploma doesn't mean the end of learning. "Constant reading helps. You may not be in school, but if you have the habit of reading, a lot of these ideas get into your head," she shared.

"In the morning, I read newspapers – whether broadsheets or  tabloids – to widen my vocabulary. I also have fiction and non-fiction books, as well as magazines, so I know what's going on in showbiz since we don't get to watch TV all the time."

Consistent rater

"I really don't know kung bakit tinatangkilik ako ng mga tao. I'm just happy with the projects given to me. I give my best in everything I do, whether it be in showbiz or school. Maybe I'm just really passionate, and it registers on TV, and as a result, it affects the viewers," Louise quipped, when talk turned to her TV programs that have been consistent raters, especially her team-ups with Alden Richards.

Her current primetime starrer "Kambal Sirena" has strong competition  from rival shows, but Louise's titular program isn't too far behind. Louise plays the dual role of Alona and Perlas, twins who are born with unusual features – one with gills behind her ears and the other with a mermaid's tail.

Asked how she internalizes her dramatic roles when she's had a fairly happy childhood, Louise replied: "I'm more on empathy. For example, in 'One True Love,' I've never been that broken-hearted like my character Elise. I just think, if I was really Elise and my parents wanted me and my boyfriend apart, what would I feel? That's where my imaginative mind comes in. Since I read a lot, I have a wild imagination when it comes to creating backstories for my characters. For 'Kambal Sirena,' in real life, I used to badly want a twin sister. I would always ask my mom, 'Wala ba talaga akong kakambal? Kasi sobrang saya ko kapag meron. Sigurado ka ba mag-isa lang ako nung pinanganak mo ako?'  That time, I still had naughty intentions on why I wanted a twin. Para siya yung papasok sa school kapag absent ako."

The challenge in playing twins is showing a clear distinction between one character from the other. "The mermaid Alona is the feisty one. She knows what she wants, and is hard-headed. They say it's the first time for a mermaid character to be that way, because they're usually submissive. Dito, pasaway talaga siya, at kapag nagagalit, sumasabog. As opposed to Perlas, who is demure, soft-spoken and has low self-esteem. I'm actually having a harder time portraying her. I'm not saying I always have high self-esteem, but I can relate more to Alona," she admitted.

Is she saying she's feisty in real life? "I think I am. Matigas ang ulo, definitely. I admit to also cutting classes before. When I do that, I make sure I understand the lesson already. I would record the lectures in class and listen to it at home. I remember things better when I hear them aloud. On the other hand, I'm also the type of person na kapag inapakan mo ako, hindi ako papayag. A person should know his/her worth, and I know my worth."

Living solo

Aside from graduating, another 2013 milestone for Louise was earning her wings. This meant moving out of the family home to live on her own.

"I feel I'm already a grown-up. I wanted to try na hindi sumandal sa parents ko all the time," she explained of her decision.

"I manage all my finances now. My first three months of independent living was a really drastic change for me. It was a hard period of adjustment. I realized when it comes to paying bills, I also had deadlines to meet. Parang school project lang din pala ito na babagsak ka kapag hindi mo na-meet ang deadline. Kung sa school, may grade deduction, dito may penalty kang pera. Since I work for myself, the value of money has become more important for me. Kunyari, magkasama kami sa mall ng mom ko, nasa akin na yung pera ko, syempre hindi ko gagamitin yun kasi kasama ko siya. Of course, I would use her money and I won't limit myself. So I told my mom, because I'm away from them, I became more responsible and wise with my income."

Louise said that she takes time to personally settle her household bills. She also does the groceries herself. "I needed my own space, and I wanted to be super girl, so I didn't hire help at first. I got tired eventually, and I thought I'll be more productive with someone else helping me out with the errands."

With the immense freedom that comes with living solo, how does Louise  fend off temptations that young women her age are bombarded with? "In the first place, I'm not  fond of partying. And I have the chance to do so, because I live in Eastwood, and right below my place is a mall. I can go out every night if I wanted to. I choose to stay at home. Anong mapapala ko if iinom ako or gagala ako if  I'm not with my real friends? I'd rather use the time to rest. Iniisip ko rin na aksaya sa pera," was her answer.

Louise – who at eight years old was in ABS-CBN's "Ang TV" under her real name Mary Grace Perido – is now being touted by some quarters as worthy of the Kapuso Primetime Princess tag, what with her string of well-received soaps.

"Nakakataba ng puso. But unless management doesn't tell it to me personally or officially announce it, I don't want to believe in those things. I still feel I have to go through many more projects to prove myself worthy of such titles," she insisted.

An accursed scorpion-tailed human, a cancer-stricken rich kid, an ugly poor girl, and now a mermaid – what does she dream of portraying next? "A superhero, maybe?" replied Louise without skipping a beat.