Basketball player makes acting debut in horror film ‘Otlum’

CEBU, Philippines — When the Metro Manila Film Festival Screening Committee revealed last October the rest of the films making up this year’s Magic 8, one entry raised eyebrows and had people talking.

While audiences expected Brillante Mendoza’s critically-acclaimed “Alpha: The Right to Kill” to earn its place among the 44th MMFF picks, a barkada horror film by the title of “Otlum” took the coveted spot instead.

The announcement came as a surprise, even for director Joven Tan. This is his first work to actually make it into the MMFF after submitting entries for prior editions.

Apart from it being an homage to the classic “Shake, Rattle, and Roll” calibre of Filipino horror films, “Otlum” (multo meaning ghost, backwards) also put a little spin on the project by casting a basketball player among its lead stars.

With Ricci Rivero taking a break from playing basketball as he does his residency at the University of the Philippines following his transfer from De La Salle University, he put his time to good use by broadening his horizons.

“Hindi talaga ako fan ng Hollywood movies. Mas into Filipino movies ako. Siyempre ito yung kinalakihan ko, napapanood ko,” Ricci began about what made him decide to try acting in an interview over the weekend at SM Seaside City Cebu, where he dropped by to promote the film via a mall show. “Sabi ni Direk na i-try natin to if pumasok sa MMFF. Siyempre ako, we’re going to try.”

Among his favorites are Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla projects. The KathNiel fan shared how he appreciates the dynamic between the popular pairing. Having seen all of their films and witnessed the love team bloom from the very beginning, he observed the differences in projects when Kathryn and Daniel are together and in projects where they’re not.

“Matagal akong nag-stop sa basketball. One year akong bawal maglaro sa UAAP. Tsaka ngayon lang ako nagka-schedule to do this. I told my parents na magye-yes ako dito kasi minsan lang naman akong magka-time talaga. Sino naman ang aayaw sa movie. So I grabbed the opportunity.”

Handpicked by Tan when he saw Ricci in a mall show once, the athlete was also considered for the film due to popular demand. The Tourism major had to undergo workshops, and with that came realizations about the industry he’s always seen from the outside.

“Masaya naman. Though hindi ko siya in-expect na magiging ganito pala siya. Akala ko maga-act ka lang. Yun lang, tapos na. Pero hindi. I made friends din while practicing, while learning how to act and I think yun yung nag-boost sa akin, na ine-enjoy ko ang ginagawa ko,” said Ricci, who his director describes as a good, obedient kid.

A student-athlete, Ricci at first struggled with his schedule. Some days, he’d have an early call time, and after doing some scenes, he’d leave the set to go to class and then train. At night, he returns to set to complete more scenes.

“Parang ni-relate ko rin sa basketball. I look at Direk as my coach. Siya magga-guide sa akin, siya yung tu-tutor sa akin. My co-stars [I treated] as senior teammates. Sila ang nagsasabi ng ideas, kung paano gawin, ano ba yung way nila of doing things.”

“Sobrang dami kong natutunan,” he continued. “Naging open naman ako. Lahat naman tayo dapat maging open sa mga bagay. Life is full of learnings. Hindi tayo perfect, hindi natin alam lahat. Matututo at matututo tayo sa isa’t isa.”

The 20-year-old basketball sensation is not certain about future acting projects. With his sport at the top of his list, Ricci would like to study acting more so that when another opportunity comes, he’d get to do a better job.

“My priority is basketball. Pero sobrang gusto ko rin matuto, sobrang open to learnings. I talked to my managers na sabi ko sobrang open ko. Gusto ko pang mag-workshop. Gusto ko pa mag-try ng iba’t-ibang bagay para matuto,” the UP Fighting Maroons player said.

“Okay, may offers nga pero ang pangit naman ng outcome. Sana ma-gain ko ang experience and mga bagay na kailangan matutunan to prove myself better. As of now, hindi ko pa mare-rate ang sarili ko.”

Ricci, who hails from Isabela, lives alone near UP and has since dismissed claims from friends about haunting incidents at his place since he’s never felt them. But while working on “Otlum,” Ricci had been met with a new perspective on the supernatural, having filmed in a seemingly haunted house.

“May nafe-feel kami. As in. May naririnig kami sa lapel. Basta may weird na nangyayari,” Ricci revealed, adding how in one scene, the director asked about a certain sound he was hearing but everyone else waved off. In another incident, while Jairus Aquino was being filmed alone, they could hear someone laughing in the background when they played the footage back.

Despite the creepy experiences, Ricci had a lot of fun playing around the set: pulling pranks and trying to scare one another. With the positive energy among the cast and crew members, it didn’t seem like a scary film to do.

“Sobrang saya ng set namin. Hindi mo iisipin na magiging horror siya, sobrang saya namin. Nagtatawanan kami. Si Direk sobrang joker. Tawa kami ng tawa,” he said.

“Otlum” is about how a young man named Fred (Buboy Villar) seeks acceptance from a group of kids in campus. The barkada, made up of an amalgam of easy and spoiled personalities, clashes opinions with their treatment of Fred who is desperate to be part of the circle. Led by Jerome Ponce’s Allan, Fred will be taken under the group’s wing. That is, if he passes the initiation.

Ricci plays the disciplined Dindo, who strongly opposes the initiation. Vigilant about his friends’ actions and quick to call them out when things get inappropriate, Dindo is often the party pooper.

“Barkada kami with different personalities. Ako yung magsa-stop sa barkada kapag alam kong mali na ang ginagawa namin. Ako yung mabait sa grupo,” Ricci shared. “Typical na barkada, maraming mga trip-trip lang. What happened lang, yung pagti-trip na yun yung reason kung bakit nag-start yung problema namin.”

Ricci doesn’t identify with his character being the kill joy. Yet he understands that Dindo merely wants to let others know right from wrong.

“In a way, medyo connected ito sa bullying and its effect. It’s about revenge, acceptance and realization,” he quipped.

“Connected siya sa viral video na bullying,” Ricci replied when asked about why people should watch “Otlum” during the holidays. He is referring to the viral video of a violent bullying incident involving Ateneo de Manila University students which has garnered strong reactions from netizens and gained the attention of politicians.

“Makakatulong siya to guide people kung ano ang dapat gawin. Hindi lang siya basta horror movie. The story itself, nakakatakot siya. Hindi rin siya basta magkakaibigan. May moments na may mom and son.”

When we speak about bullying, the message is often directed to either the victim or the bully. As for the bystanders, a position many people find themselves in, Ricci has a bit of advice.

“Kung nandoon ka sa scene na yun, when you see people getting bullied or a person bullying someone, I think you have to react naman in a way. Parang oh, mali yung ginagawa mo. Makakaapekto sa bata. Hindi natin alam how they handle things, what if sobra silang down na hindi nila kayang tanggapin ang ganun na bagay. But hindi rin natin masisisi yung bully, hindi natin alam kung ano ang nangyayari sa kanya sa house. Are they getting bullied? Might as well talk to them properly. Ayusin agad. Sa away away walang mangyayari,” Ricci said.

He handles bashers the same way: by trying to understand where these people are coming from. Maybe these detractors have a point, or maybe they’re completely wrong. Either way, it calls for striking a balance between introspection and brushing things off.

“Bashers, I don’t take it as a negative thing. They don’t know how they handle things. Ano ba problema nila, ano ba pinagdadaanan nila so yung message na sinabi nila baka naman may mali talaga, may something na kailangan baguhin. Kung paano nila sinabi, hindi ko pinakikinggan. Stress lang yan. Sayang lang. Isipin nila kung ano, sabihin nila kung ano gusto nila sabihin. I’ll try to work on it, pero kung wala naman…It’s up to them kasi ako, basta alam ko na tama ginagawa ko. I think wala naman talagang perfect.”

“Otlum” competes side by side another horror film starring Anne Curtis entitled “Aurora.” Tan has said that “Otlum” differs from “Aurora” since the latter is more serious, fine-tuned horror.

As for Ricci, he tries not to think too much about how his first film experience is pitted against entries starring blockbuster superstars and veteran actors like Eddie Garcia, Gloria Romero, Tirso Cruz III, Aiko Melendez, Sunshine Dizon, Dennis Trillo, JC De Vera, Kim Chiu, Eric Quizon, Toni Gonzaga, Alex Gonzaga, Sam Milby, Anne Curtis, Jessy Mendiola, Jericho Rosales, Vic Sotto, Coco Martin, Maine Mendoza, Vice Ganda, Dingdong Dantes, and Richard Gutierrez.

For Ricci, the MMFF is a celebration of Filipino films. The “Otlum” team is happy to be part of the film festival as it is. Speculations that “Otlum” might be a dark horse in the competition remains to be seen come the following days.

“We don’t really take it as if we are against each other. For me, Filipino movies, especially MMFF, we made the movie to entertain as much as we can. Kung ano yung pipiliin na tao, kung saan sila masaya, saan sila mag-enjoy basta ma-enjoy nila ang Filipino movie. Siyempre sasabihin ko uunahin yung movie namin. Pero hindi kami magkalaban dito. Gusto naming mag-entertain.”

“Otlum,” by Horseshow Studios, also stars Michelle Vito, Vitto Marquez, Kiray Celis, Ynigo Delen, Danzel Fernandez, John Estrada, Irma Adlawan, Pen Medina, Vivoree Esclito and Ping Medina. It will open in cinemas nationwide on Christmas Day.