Iza comfortable during shocking scenes in ‘Bliss’

CEBU, Philippines - If actors had superpowers, they would have the ability to morph into any person: from the tip of their nails to the very last hair strand (you know, like Mystique). But sometimes, the problem would be shaking off a character’s emotions out of their system.

For premiere actress Iza Calzado, her role in the psychosexual thriller “Bliss” hits close to home. Well, at least to an extent.

Directed by Jerrold Tarog – the genius behind “Heneral Luna” – “Bliss” discusses themes of sexual abuse, coma, greed, ambition, and the demands of the entertainment industry.

Written and scored by Tarog himself, “Bliss” follows the story of Jane Ciego, an actress who grew up in the industry and decides to produce and star in her own film to gain respect. Unfortunately, Jane is involved in a horrible set accident during a particularly long shoot and is left crippled. Pressured by her husband, her director, and an overbearing stage mother to get better the soonest possible, Jane recuperates at home – all the while experiencing the bizarre and the terrifying.  Alone with a strange nurse that’s supposed to take care of her, Jane’s simple dream becomes an endless nightmare.

“In other ways I am also Jane because I am in this industry. I have 30-35 working hours sometimes. I can relate to that,” Iza, who won the Yakushi Pearl Award for Best Perfomer in Japan last March for her role as Jane, said during an interview after a “Bliss” press screening at Robinson’s Galleria Cebu.

Iza says that in every film she works on, she does her best to summon the character out of her mind and body.

“The emotion while you were filming lingers. Not so much the character,” the actress revealed, and recalls a recent experience after taping for her current teleserye, “A Love to Last,” where she plays an estranged wife and mother, trying to find a place in her children’s lives. After filming a scene that rang familiar to personal experience, Iza found herself emotional and sulky the next day.

Iza has worked on more than 40 feature films and just as many TV projects – that’s a lot of complex characters under her belt.

When she entered the entertainment industry at 19, she wasn’t as susceptible to manipulation and had enough nerve to know what she wanted. However, it still wasn’t all glitz and glamour. Most of the time, it’s 25 hour-long shoots, lots of ugly crying and dealing with people who didn’t know any better.

There are things that come with anonymity which Iza misses: riding jeepneys and ambling around town streets are a few of those. But the actress manages.

“I had tried the freedom which celebrities didn’t get to experience. Where you could do whatever you want without being judged and scrutinized,” Iza offered, saying that she’s used to the price that comes with her craft.

She can be her true unadulterated self when she travels abroad anyway. “I get to look at others, and be with people who didn’t have a first impression of me, who would get to know me based on the conversations we have. That’s what I miss, though.”

Iza finds solace in yoga, among other things, as a form of detox.

“I find it best to connect with nature,” Iza says, attune to the changes that come with age. “It’s really hard now that I’m getting older. When I was young, I had so much energy and was alright with drowning in hours of work. But now, I have more things I want to do and sometimes my system bugs down.”

Tarog didn’t work her too hard in the making of “Bliss” however. There were no 30-hour shoots, but exhaustion can be a relative thing. In the film, Iza wakes up to the same view— a lone smoke detector in the middle of the ceiling as she lies in bed, frustrated, and later on, terrified to face another day.

“Nothing was traumatic. There was one day when I was sick but other than that, wala,” Iza says of the film’s production. But she did find the smoke detector scene exhausting, so much so that when she woke up at home after a shoot, she still felt like she was doing the said scene. “I’ve never felt that in my life. Lying in bed at my own home felt like work.”

“Bliss” had premiered at the 12th Osaka Asian Film Festival in March to critical acclaim, but had been momentarily banned from commercial screenings after receiving the dreaded “X” rating from MTRCB. Fortunately, the film was given an R-18 ruling after an immediate appeal from Tarog’s team as well as public uproar on social media mostly from thespians, art enthusiasts, and anyone with common sense.

MTRCB had initially looked out for the groups of conservatives that might be offended by “Bliss,” and had referred to the sex scenes as “gratuitous.” The film did indeed contain prolonged full frontal nudity, masturbation, explicit language, and violence. The content did not seem to faze early viewers however, more so Iza.

The actress revealed that if anything, the original “X” rating had only boosted the film’s popularity, and the controversy had been more helpful than harmful. It seemed to her that people were more concerned with being unable to see the internationally commended film, especially that her portrayal had won her a prestigious award.

Iza also revealed how comfortable she was on set. There were even a few scenes that she had found enjoyable to shoot, and found her co-star, Adrienne Vergara’s masturbation scene well-made.

She commended the crew for being professional and was grateful that no one had stepped a toe out of line.

“It was a bit uncomfortable, but it’s work,” Iza said of filming her sensitive scenes. “It was work for them, and it was work for me.”

She shared however, that it was strange being fondled by a woman in a room full of men. “Adrienne was actually a little hesitant. I would make her grab me, and she would squirm and get shy and I would have to tell her to just get it over with. I felt that I was a little too comfortable to be honest, it’s scary.”

In the film, everyone wants a piece of Jane, and Iza’s character was often used and manipulated by the people around her. Iza’s role had an unfeeling husband, a diva for a director, and an overbearing stage mother who constantly hounds and criticizes her.

When asked if she had witnessed stage parents throughout her career, Iza spared no time in getting to details.

“Thank God I don’t have a stage parent,” Iza sighed and said that when her father was still alive, he was never controlling. His comments were always constructive and encouraging.

The actress said that stage parents weren’t an uncommon sight in the competitive industry that is show business.

“Yes, I’ve seen that. I’ve seen a lot of that and I’ve worked with a lot people who had to deal with that. It can drive them a bit nuts.”

Iza says nurturing a private life despite having a job in the limelight is a tough game to play, but there is always something and or someone that can drive anyone crazy. Luckily though, Iza isn’t known to be the one to capsize first. And no matter how many people she morphs into in her next roles, you can bet that Iza will get through them all.

Inspired by the idea of broken dreams and the processes of how the cycle of abuse propagates itself in an environment of greed and selfishness, “Bliss” also stars Ian Veneracion, TJ Trinidad, Michael de Mesa, Shamaine Buencamino, Audie Gemora, Stephanie Sol and Star Orjaliza.

“Bliss” is currently showing in cinemas nationwide. (FREEMAN)