Barcelona win surprises Ronnie Quizon

RONNIE Quizon at the 2013 Cinemalaya Awards

When actor Ronnie Quizon received word of his triumph at the Barcelona International Film Festival, he thought it was a missent text message.

It took a while before it sank in: He had won the El Rey Award for Excellence in Acting in a Lead Role at the Spanish fest, for Mikhail Red’s “Rekorder.”

“I can’t describe how I feel; I’m still trying to absorb it,” he told the Inquirer, which broke the news to him Thursday night.

Humbled

He compared it, tentatively, to “how I felt when I watched (Manny) Pacquiao beat (Oscar) De la Hoya.” And though it would come across as “a bit of a cliché,” he added, “I am humbled by it but, at the same time, it fills me with a sense of patriotic pride.”

Quizon couldn’t tell how the award, his first, would impact his acting career. “I am just happy that my work is being appreciated. I wasn’t thinking of awards when we were making this film.”

Previous triumph

He is elated that the film, an entry in last year’s Cinemalaya, has been reaping accolades abroad.

“Rekorder” won Special Jury Prize and Best Music at the 31st Annonay (Southern France) International First Film Festival held in February.

On a personal note, Quizon added, “Dad must be smiling in heaven. My award is for him, my family, the ‘Rekorder’ team, my friends and colleagues, all Filipinos.”

IN “REKORDER,” he plays a movie pirate

Dad is the late Comedy King Dolphy.

Red told the Inquirer, “The award is all the more significant because all the lead performers in the competing films vied for it. It’s not just a Best Actor award. Ronnie was up against male and female performers.”

Red explained that Quizon was a perfect fit for the character he plays in the film, a movie pirate who unwittingly witnesses and records a horrible crime.

“His portrayal was accurate,” said Red. “It was not an easy task because the entire film revolves around his complex character. Plus, Ronnie had to show a wide array of emotions with very little dialogue.”

Personal choice

Quizon was Red’s personal choice. “I’ve known Ronnie since I was a kid,” the director pointed out. “I first saw him in my dad’s film, ‘Kamada,’ in the 1990s.”

The debuting director’s father is Cannes-winning filmmaker Raymond Red.

“We wanted someone who could underact and show restraint, since the lead character is a recluse/introvert,” the young Red said.

HIS TRIUMPH is dedicated to late Dad Dolphy (left).

Quizon was “easy to work with,” Red recalled.

“He was energetic and a lot of fun on the set. From Day One, Ronnie was very committed to the project. A year after Cinemalaya, he is still actively helping us promote and share news about the film. It encourages a filmmaker to see his actors do that.”

Next stop for “Rekorder” are screenings in Taiwan, Korea and China.

“We are excited that it has been to different film events since its international premiere at the Tokyo fest last October,” Red said. “It was our goal from the start to share it with audiences around the world, to show it on as many screens as possible. We will announce more screenings and updates on our Facebook page.”

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