What Luis wants

MANILA, Philippines - Happy, yes; fulfilled, no. This describes how Luis Alandy feels about his career these days. 

Lest you think Luis is contradicting himself, the GMA-7 talent insists the two adjectives are poles apart.

“I’m happy with my career,” he says. “I’d be a hypocrite if I say I didn’t feel impatient once since I’ve been in this business for 12 years now. But I realize I have no reason to feel that way. (GMA) management, directors and producers give me credit for my work.”

Fulfillment is another thing, though. Luis is so hooked on acting he thirsts for more and more meaty roles. Not for him so-so roles where he is another pretty face, a hunk or mere decoration. Or roles that repeat what he has already done.

“I avoid doing another gay role since I’ve done that in Regal’s Manay Po and Desperadas,” Luis points out.

He’s also thinking not just about the here and now, but of the future as well.

“I want to make movies that will make my future children feel proud. I consult not just my manager, but my family when offers come to me,” he says.

That’s why Luis appreciates the fact that GMA Network, under which he has a four-year contract, is giving him roles he can sink his teeth into.

“I appreciate the respect the network is giving me where roles are concerned,” he explains. The Kapuso network cast Luis as villain in the afternoon soap Ina, Kasusuklaman Ba Kita?, where Luis sparked conflict between the characters of reel-and-real-life mom and daughter Jean and Jennica Garcia. He also played a meanie in the defunct GMA soap Ngayon at Kailanman.

These may be character roles, but Luis is not complaining.

“I don’t have to be the lead character,” he relates. How he plays the role is much more important.

“Each role,” he declares, “needs a fresh attack, a different look. That’s why I’m discriminating in choosing roles.”

Besides, Luis adds, he doesn’t want people to feel they’ve been shortchanged when they watch him on screen.

He’s confident people will get their money’s worth when they see him in the indie film Buenavista (Ang Kasaysayan ng Lucena), which will have its regular theater run starting Wednesday, June 9 at SM Megamall, SM North EDSA, SM Centerpoint (Sta. Mesa), SM Manila, SM Southmall, SM Bacoor, SM Fairview and SM Lucena as part of the Philippine Independence Week celebration.

The period film set in the late 1890s, is rich in historical values and lessons about love of country. Luis, as Dr. Horacio Zaldena, who returns to the country after studying in Madrid, thinks the film will help him reach out to students who can learn a lot from it. It will broaden his exposure to include more young people — the bulk of the populace.

Luis is no stranger to films that go down memory lane. He played the son of a martial law official in the digital film Anino ng Setyembre, set after the martial law era.

These serious roles whet Luis’ appetite for others that squeeze his creative juices all the more. Luckily, GMA understands.

“My manager (Arnold Vegafria) said I am being groomed in the mold of Jericho Rosales,” crows Luis.

Considering how Jericho now commands respect after he won another Best Actor award in Baler, that’s not too bad.

Luis is getting lessons straight from the horse’s mouth. He observes how “Tito Eddie (Garcia, his Buenavista co-star) writes notes on his script and knows what scene comes before and after his own.”

Luis also takes down notes and writes them on the script, but observing someone like Eddie Garcia doing it right before his eyes, is much more inspiring.

“His mere presence is intimidating,” notes Luis, who plays Eddie’s eldest grandson in the movie.

But Luis is hardly intimidated by the presence of new and younger talents these days. He even welcomes them as reminders that he should work harder and prove his worth some more.

“Competition is part of the business — any business,” he muses. “It brings out the best in me. You see, I don’t want to be too complacent as an actor. Otherwise, I’ll lose my edge.”

So let the new talents come, front, left and center. Luis is ready for the thrill — and the challenge — of meeting them, head on.