Joyce Ching: It’s easy to play villain vs Janine Gutierrez’s ‘Dragon Lady’

Joyce Ching

Actress Joyce Ching is no stranger to playing antagonists, but portraying a villainess in the afternoon drama “Dragon Lady” pits her against the titular character herself, played by Janine Gutierrez. And that, she says, is a culmination of sorts, after years of breathing life into a variety of fierce young females.

“What’s different now is that my character Astrid is super active—she acts upon her evil thoughts,” she tells the Inquirer. “If she’s mad at someone, she’s not just going to stay mad, she’s always ready to kill.”

Offscreen, Joyce relates that the enmity between Astrid and Janine’s character Celestina immediately vanishes, because her costar is a consummate professional.

“Janine is a dedicated person,” says Joyce, who started acting in 2005. “So it’s nice and easy to work with her.”

The former teen actress, who landed roles in GMA 7 TV shows “Endless Heart,” “Munting Heredera” and “Magpakailanman,” to name a few, is reaching out to fans via a different platform, these days. “I just started a YouTube channel,” she says.

This online connection with followers, Joyce thinks, is a significant change that developed over the years.

“When I was just starting out, social media wasn’t a big deal yet,” relates the 24-year-old actress. “It was just starting to boom and now that it’s already a huge platform, the involvement of the audience has greatly influenced a lot of areas, including the kind of content that TV networks produce or the arc of a certain teleserye.”

And, speaking of TV projects, Joyce says that she is guided accordingly on which projects to choose: “I let the network and GMA Artist Center help me with the projects I do. Right now, I’m thankful for the positive feedback we’re receiving for ‘Dragon Lady.’”

After all these years in front of the camera, she has gotten accustomed to challenges presented by her work. “I am enjoying where my career is going,” she declares. “It’s pushing me to exert more effort.”

Having spent over a decade in the entertainment industry, Joyce says that the most profound lesson she’s learned, one that is always applicable, is “We should learn to respect everybody, no exceptions.”

Through her Kapuso projects, she’s met several established actors. The most memorable coworkers to Joyce, so far, include Celia Rodriguez, Sunshine Dizon and Gabby Eigenmann.

“It’s always fun to learn something from people who have been in the industry for [many years]. The generation gap also makes the conversations interesting.”

Engaged to a nonshow biz boyfriend, Kevin Alimon, Joyce expresses excitement over the relationship: “Being engaged is a super fun chapter in my life. I’m learning a lot because of it. [Wherever your partner may be from], it’s important that you’re both secure, and you trust each other.”

As for the importance of learning, Joyce tells her young fans, “Education is very important because it’s an investment that you make. Every opportunity to learn adds to your value. You don’t just learn about school subjects in the campus. You also learn to communicate with people, a skill that everyone needs.”