Iza Calzado on why she prefers doing movies than ‘teleseryes’
Iza Calzado, who recently returned to acting a year after giving birth, revealed that she is also “exploring” the idea of doing an action project with Richard Somes, who also directed her episode in Regal Entertainment’s horror franchise “Shake Rattle and Roll Extreme” (SRRE).
Prior to taking a break, Calzado portrayed the Pinoy superheroine Darna for its most recent TV adaptation, produced by ABS-CBN. “Now, I’m very open to doing something that’s aligned with my priorities. Yes, Somes mentioned a project to me. I don’t know when we’ll do it, but what I can share with you is that what’s in his mind is exciting,” she told Inquirer Entertainment during a recent media gathering.
Iza promised that the project will happen “at the right time,” adding, “I would love to work on something as physical as ‘Darna.’ Ang sarap no’n! I get to train, be active, in order to get ready for the part. I really love to move. Also, I get to learn a new skill and use it on set. The question is how do I go about it now that my daughter Deia is around. Definitely, doing a movie is easier to handle right now [compared to taping for a teleserye].”
The actress said she agreed to do SRRE because she was only required to work on it for six days. “I weighed my options. It was also a way for me to gauge if I was ready to do a teleserye, as well as some of the other projects offered to me,” Iza said. “I did it also because I miss being on set, but not to the point that I would be away for a long time from my daughter. Six days was a good compromise. After that, I was already able to find out whether or not I could do a teleserye—the simple answer is no.”
She explained: “When you do a movie, you know exactly when you’re going to finish it. But with a teleserye, inasmuch as it’s a blessing, you have no way of knowing when it will end. Today, when I weigh things, I no longer just look at the merits of the project, but also if it would take me away from Deia for a long time. My choices now are very intentional because time for me is a precious resource, other than money, talent and energy, of course. I’m not yet ‘teleserye-ready’ as we speak, because Deia has yet to turn 1. I’m not sure if this will change in February.”
Family
Calzado’s husband, British businessman Ben Wintle–whom she describes as a “super chill” guy—isn’t the type to meddle in her work. “I think he was happy that I did ‘Shake.’ It’s something that I wanted to do for myself. Sometimes, as moms, we also tend to forget what’s good for us. I felt that it was good for me to do this, to have a creative output, to empower myself that way. While I was enjoying, I also sometimes felt like screaming, ‘Bring me back home!’” she recalled.
When asked whether they are already considering having another child, Calzado responded: “I don’t like discussing these things because it puts pressure on us. If you can pray with and for us, if the time is right, His will be done.”
Glitch
Meanwhile, the SRRE episode titled “Glitch” is Calzado’s first project with Somes as her director. They previously worked on “Joaquin Bordado” (2008) and “Ang Panday” (2009), but with Somes as production designer. “Iza has become a friend through the years. She is one of the best dramatic actresses we have. She’s at the top of her game. I think she needs to be recognized for the work she does. Now is an interesting time for her. She is trying to reinvent herself because she’s a mom now. I noticed that her performance is different in terms of depth,” Somes said.
“Glitch” is about a single mom who tries to save her two siblings from a malevolent creature, the director said. “All of my films feature strong female characters. As an artist, there has always been this attraction to feminism and to stories that showcase this theme. It’s nice to explore this with Iza,” Somes said when asked why he agreed to work on a three-part film like the SRRE even though he is already making a mark doing full-length features.
“The challenge here is to present a strong concept, since ours is subtitled ‘Extreme.’ While this is a simple and classic horror story, you’ll see its extremeness in the execution. This is my homage to classic horror stories that ‘Shake’ has shown before,” he explained.
Prior to “Glitch,” Somes had done two other “Shake Rattle and Roll” episodes: “Lihim ng San Joaquin” in 2005, starring Mark Anthony Fernandez and Tanya Garcia; and “Tamawo” in 2011, starring Maricar Reyes and Zanjoe Marudo. “I’m missing the horror genre. For me, it’s nice to be part of another ‘Shake’ comeback. At the same time, it’s a comeback of Pinoy cinema,” he declared.
The two other episodes in SSRE are Joey de Guzman’s “Rage,” and Jerrold Tarog’s “Mukbang.” The film will be screened in cinemas nationwide starting Nov. 29. INQ
Accelerating climate action through AI