Vin Abrenica not following in brother Aljur’s footsteps

Vin Abrenica

I’m doing my best to make my own mark. I will not be following in his footsteps forever,” said Vin Abrenica on always being compared to his more popular elder brother Aljur.

Vin first joined show biz in 2012 via the talent search program “Artista Academy” on TV5. He recently moved to ABS-CBN.

“I don’t mind being referred to as Aljur’s brother. Yes, I did use his popularity as a stepping stone, but now that I am here I will show people that I’m unique,” Vin told the Inquirer on Thursday.

According to Vin, he and his brother are very much alike in terms of their passion for acting. “If we’re tasked to do something for a particular role, we’re willing to sacrifice a lot to achieve it. We’re also similar when it comes to staying fit. We’re very disciplined,” Vin said.

However, they differ in the sense that, “I’m more talkative. When we’re with the family, I’m the more pa-bibo one.”

The 25-year-old actor said his transfer to ABS-CBN has been beneficial to his career. “People call me Vin now. I was just ‘Abrenica’ or ‘Kapatid’ before, but I now have a name,” he quipped. “The best thing about the transfer was being able to perform in ‘Asap.’”

His latest project is the Gil Portes period romantic drama “Moonlight Over Baler,” where he plays opposite his former flame Sophie Albert.

“As an actor, it really shouldn’t matter who your leading lady is, but of course, it helps if you’re good friends with her,” he explained.

Asked whether there is a possibility of a reconciliation between him and Sophie, Vin said: “Right now, we’re the best of friends. I’m not closing my doors on that possibility, but the reason we’ve decided to go on our separate ways was so we can focus on our work as actors.”

Set in the 1980s, “Moonlight Over Baler” revolves around Fidela (Elizabeth Oropesa), a retired school teacher. She develops a special bond with a young Japanese photojournalist Kenji (Vin Abrenica), who happens to have an uncanny resemblance to her lost love named Nestor (also played by Vin). Sophie plays the young Fidela in the movie.

Vin, who has also worked with Portes in the movie “Hermano Puli,” said it was tough for a new actor like him to play a dual character. “I was attending the acting workshop with Direk Rahyan Carlos at that time so we were able to discuss how I should attack both characters,” he explained.

His dad, who worked in Japan for many years before getting married to his mom, had also helped him “talk like a Japanese person who is just learning how to speak in Filipino.”

Sophie Albert (left) and Vin Abrenica in “Moonlight Over Baler”

Vin said playing Nestor was more of a challenge, but it helped that his late grandfather was also a soldier of the USAFE (United States Air Force in Europe). “I asked my dad a lot of questions about him—how he was like when he was still alive, and how he would have reacted to some basic scenarios,” Vin said.

“Moonlight Over Baler,” written by Eric Ramos, also features Daria Ramirez, Menggie Cobarrubias, Kate Alejandrino and Ellen Adarna.