Direk FM Reyes: E-Boy strikes a chord

MANILA, Philippines - It hardly came as a surprise when some in the audience felt a lump in their throat after watching the trailer of ABS-CBN’s newest primetime series E-Boy during its recent grand presscon held at the Dolphy Theater.

In one scene, Ariel Rivera, who plays a scientist, is faced with a heartbreaking drama: His son fighting for his dear life. Desperate to reach out to his son, he somehow finds a way to channel his brainwaves to an invention of his — a robot — just so he could talk to him.

Director FM Reyes (he helms E-Boy with Nick Olanka; they’re the directorial tandem behind Lobo and Imortal) calls the theme of the new serye, which debuts tonight after TV Patrol, as “beyond realism.” But if it easily strikes a chord, it is because the scene, its fantastical elements notwithstanding, is very real if not achingly familiar.

Reyes himself cried when he shot that scene because it struck close to home. Reyes and his wife, the actress Rita Avila, lost their child several years ago but the pain remains. Because of that, Reyes was hesitant to accept the project. His bosses at ABS-CBN said that directing it might prove therapeutic and afford him healing. Still, E-Boy is his most emotionally difficult project to date “because it brings back memories and it’s like confronting a shadow.”

Amid the expected emotionally charged scenes in E-Boy, Reyes, however, said they want audiences to feel good about it. “We hope to share lessons about celebrating life, and that every day should be about honoring time for whoever is beside you.”

E-Boy tells the story of a humanized child robot. Through his “real-life” experiences, he will discover that turning human isn’t about having flesh and blood, but more about being part of a family and loving unconditionally.

Bugoy Cariño plays the ‘humanized’ child robot in the new Kapamilya teleserye that premieres tonight

Cast in the title role is the five-year-old Bugoy Cariño. The lead role comes on the heels of his win in the last Metro Filmfest as Best Child Performer for the movie Shake, Rattle & Roll 13. Joining him are Rivera, Jomari Yllana, Agot Isidro, Valerie Concepcion, Jaime Fabregas, Chinggoy Alonzo, Pen Medina plus Blythe Gorostiza, Arjo Atazde, Carme Sanchez, Akiko Solon, Bryan Santos with child actors Maliksi Morales and Deydey Amansec.

Asked how it stands apart from previous primetime teleseryes that also featured child actors in the lead, Reyes said, “May Bukas Pa and 100 Days to Heaven delved more on the spiritual. E-Boy is more on the pragmatic side; (it’s) about science because it talks about the making of a robot. It’s right to rely on God but you should also contribute something as a human being. And I’m so happy our star is Bugoy Cariño as he’s very intelligent. He easily understands things that we want him to do. You can see that his parents raised him well because he has a good attitude towards others. Even if we’re all feeling tired, he smiles or breaks into a song and that’s why we enjoy having him on the set.”

Yllana, for his part, heaped praises on his young co-star, saying that through the years, a child star is born, and for today’s acting generation, he considers Bugoy as its child wonder.

E-Boy will be employing CGI effects, wherein Bugoy “acts inside a robot,” but Reyes said they were able to bring out a level of acting from Bugoy that is not swallowed or watered down by the effects.

Rivera also said, “Although there are special effects, and he expresses (emotions) through his eyes, when I do a scene with Bugoy, I don’t see the robot. I see Bugoy.”

The TV landscape now is seemingly teeming with child actors. E-Boy, in fact, takes over the timeslot vacated by the also child star-laden Ikaw Ay Pag-Ibig. Reyes, a UP film graduate who was among the first to work for Star Cinema and whose TV directing break came via Maalaala Mo Kaya, believes it is somehow reflective of the current tastes and state of mind of Filipino viewers. “It’s like the call of the times. Flavor ng bansa. Panahon-panahon yan. At times, when there’s too many problems, lilitaw ang mga comedies. Perhaps, our country needs more childlike wonderment right now.”