LUCERO (left) and Bembol Roco
Known for dark, disturbing dramatic movies, Sid Lucero tries light-hearted fare for a change of pace in John Paul Su’s “Toto,” an entry in the New Wave section of this year’s Metro Manila Film Festival.
He was initially hesitant to accept the titular part, a hotel room boy and Filipino everyman who would do everything to acquire a US visa. “I asked myself: How do I do comedy? But I became more confident as the shoot progressed,” he recalled. “I realized that Toto is a normal person, while the other characters are the ones who have to be funny.”
Toto was the straight guy in a motley crew of kooks and crooks.
Comedy, Lucero pointed out, is serious business. “It’s very technical—it’s a discipline.” He felt strongly to push himself as an actor. “You have to try all genres,” he clarified. “I prefer comedy that’s situational, not slapstick, though.”
He rued the fact that most Filipino viewers didn’t get to watch his internationally acclaimed films. Being part of an event like the MMFF’s New Wave section is a small step toward the right direction, he noted.
Lucero added that he firmly believes that comedy is a good way to reach his intended audience, without being preachy and unnecessarily grim. “Filipinos love to laugh. We can still tell important stories and get vital issues across, but in a humorous way.”
Curiously, it was one of those critically lauded films, Lav Diaz’s “Norte, Hangganan ng Kasaysayan,” that won Lucero the lead role in “Toto,” director Su asserted.
“I caught ‘Norte’ at the San Diego Asian Film Fest,” Su looked back. “I saw Sid’s potential and range… that he can easily move from dark to light.”
SCENE from “Toto”
Lucero explained that Toto represents a lot of Filipinos. “He is gifted and can always find a way to earn a quick buck,” he remarked. “But I don’t agree with his methods. At first, I didn’t like him. I thought he was a jerk, who wouldn’t think twice about using other people to attain his dream. Then, I learned to admire his determination—a trait that I wish I had.”
One funny moment occurred between takes. In the middle of shooting a scorching bed scene with costar Liza Diño, he suffered cramps. Surely, it was not caused by tension, especially because Diño’s spouse, Aiza Seguerra, was in the vicinity.
Seguerra declined to be in the same room as Lucero, Diño, Su and the rest of the crew, however: “Aiza couldn’t bear to watch it,” Diño recalled.
Seguerra had no reason to fret, however. According to Diño, Lucero was a perfect gentleman and refused to look at her body during the take.
“I was scared,” Sid quipped in jest.
He has always been very particular when it comes to movie roles. Lucero, one of the honorees in the recent Inquirer Indie Bravo! Awards, confessed that he doesn’t aim for fame and fortune.
“My dream is to flip burgers on the beach,” he conceded. “All I want to do in life is to surf and feed people!” Acting is but one way to clinch his ultimate dream job of surfer-cook.
MMFF’s New Wave section will have screenings until Dec. 24 at Glorietta, SM Megamall and Robinsons Place Ermita.