After 20 years as writer-director, Benedict Mique starts film company

It’s full-steam ahead for filmmaker Benedict Mique and his own production outfit Lonewolf Films Inc. after two years of the pandemic.

Mique, ABS-CBN’s Mars Ravelo’s Darna co-director, has most recently megged Jerald Napoles and Kim Molina’s romantic-comedy Girlfriend Na Pwede Na, which is also the “opening salvo” of his 2023 lineup of projects. Produced by Viva Films, this story about a heartbroken woman who finds love in an unlikely “boyfriend-for-hire” is now showing in 150 cinemas nationwide.

Mique started out in the industry as production assistant for ABS-CBN’s movie arm Star Cinema. He further explored the creative field as a TV writer for MMK and Tabing Ilog. He has since had the privilege of working with major networks in various capacities (from writer, head writer, creative consultant to director) for over two decades. Based on his IMDB profile, Mique has been involved in some of the biggest seryes, including as contributing writer on GMA 7’s Marimar, head writer on ABS-CBN’s On The Wings of Love, head writer of Nora Aunor’s TV comeback, TV5’s Sa Ngalan ng Ina, among many others.

While his writing credits are primarily for TV, he has also written for movies — Robin Padilla and Regine Velasquez’s Till I Met You, the risque film Liberated, — before directing his own stories and concepts. His directorial feature debut was the 2018 Cinemalaya entry ML, a social commentary about the Martial Law, starring the late movie icon Eddie Garcia.

Mique’s film fascination was sparked by the late Fernando Poe, Jr.’s action flicks, which he would watch as a child with his grandfather.

He dreamt of becoming a writer after a professor gave him a “perfect score” on a script he submitted in college. Armed with a Communication Arts degree from Letran, he would apply for practicum work at ABS-CBN via the Judy Ann Santos series Esperanza.

He would then get into Star Cinema as a production assistant in direk Jerry Lopez-Sineneng’s movie Labs Kita, Okay Ka Lang starring ‘90s loveteam Jolina Magdangal and Marvin Agustin. Part of his job was to wake up main cast members so he was first to rise and last to rest on set.

Mique would be further mentored by the likes of National Artist for Film Ricky Lee, directors Olivia Lamasan and Rory Quintos, even Dreamscape Entertainment boss Deo Endrinal, from whom he learned about marketing shows.

Lee was an instrumental figure in Mique’s early writing years. The multi-awarded screenwriter taught him “directing sensibilities” because he “interacted with all the directors, all the masters who already passed on.”

His training under Lee was “not formal” but “barkada-style.” “He was my head writer (at MMK). We would watch films as a group and after viewing, there would be a discussion. So, you were on the job at the same time (learning).”

With veteran actors Ricky Davao and Gina Alajar, the lead stars of his Net25 film, a seniors rom-com.

Mique said Lee was hard on him. “(There were times) I almost cried thinking there was nothing good in what I wrote. But mas maganda yung mas mahigpit siya sa inyo because if he’s going to be too nice, he won’t get the best out of the (person).”

He further reflected: “It was so fun learning from all these people because right now, I noticed nauuna yung ambition ng mga filmmakers. How can we produce masters kung lahat ambition lang yung nagtutulak (if your only driving force is ambition)?”

He believes filmmakers, especially aspiring ones, must be motivated more by hunger for craft and knowledge.

“I’ve been seeing a lot of young filmmakers, writers, but not yet ripe because they didn’t go through that process of learning. Before, if you have to be a filmmaker, you do (script continuity), after which, you become (assistant director), writer. There are ways and things you have to undergo that will train you little by little,” he said.

Mique is also in mentoring mode after over two decades in the industry. Last year, he gave laptop computers and offered to train budding creatives. He was only paying it forward, inspired by the act of kindness from his mentor, Lee. He lent him P21,000 for a computer and his other needs at a time when he had nothing but yellow pad to write his scripts on.

“Mentorship is so important. Me, I’m still looking for (a mentor)... because there’s still that hunger for learning,” he admitted.

Meanwhile, Mique’s 2023 is off to a good start with Girlfriend Na Pwede Na — his film starring his “muse” Kim Molina (who also topbilled his 2019 hit MOMOL Nights) — now in cinemas.

“Before the pandemic, we had 11 projects in the pipeline under Lonewolf. Five for iWant, but we were only able to do one, Fluid. It became No. 1 on the streaming platform and was acquired by Netflix,” he recalled.

Lonewolf was also supposed to do projects with Dreamscape, Solar, TBA Studios and Star Cinema for theatrical releases and series. At that time, he thought, the company was already set for the next two years with all the projects, which weren’t small-scale but big ones, including a rom-com to be shot in three countries.

After delays and setbacks, Lonewolf is going full blast with new projects and resuming those postponed by the pandemic. Due to his experience, Mique could confidently say that Lonewolf Films can give clients their money’s worth if they tap his production outfit. “We’ve been pitching projects to practically everyone. At times, it gets tiring, but you have to (do it) because it’s your business. But with us, it’s not only a business, it’s a passion,” he said.

Upcoming projects include a love story tentatively titled Boy in the Rain starring Kira Balinger and LA Santos. Lonewolf is also doing the LGBT-themed Tito of Manila for iWant. Also confirmed is a “senior citizens rom-com” starring Ricky Davao and Gina Alajar, with Soliman Cruz and Ruby Ruiz following their international stints (Cruz as lead in Romanian film To The North and Ruiz in Nicole Kidman-led series Expats).

Mique is used to executing “crazy ideas” he’d often find from random encounters, like his elderly-themed film for Net25. He said, “Nakita ko lang na challenging gumawa ng senior citizen na love story na romcom. Will audiences still be thrilled if they see two seniors acting cute with each other?”

He has a passion project that he hopes Film Development Council of the Philippines head Tirso Cruz III will play the lead. The film is an “ode to the entertainment platform” and “an evolution story” about a comics writer who transitioned to being a TV writer, etc.

Apart from “crazy” and “entertaining,” he wants his projects to have something to say — like ML about Martial Law and even MOMOL Nights about casual hookups — no matter the genre.

With his ‘muse’ Kim Molina, star of Girlfriend Na Pwede Na, his new film produced by with Viva.

Although it’s a challenging time to be a filmmaker, Mique believes there’s still a lot of room for creative works. “Theatrically, it’s hard for everyone right now. But there’s a never-ending want for content. Creative people will always have a space in this industry,” he said.

“Even without theatrical, (you have) streaming and it’s flourishing right now. We’re very happy because it’s providing a lot of jobs for us in the industry.”