Jak Roberto
Never Say Goodbye,” the second and ongoing installment of afternoon drama anthology “Stories from the Heart,” could very well be Jak Roberto’s heaviest project yet. And this time, he hopes that it’s his acting—and not his abs—that gets the viewers’ attention.
“Sana mapansin na po [‘yung acting]; ‘di na ‘yung abs! Anyway, I don’t have a lot of topless scenes here!” he said, laughing, at a recent virtual conference for the said GMA 7 show.
In “Never Say Goodbye,” which runs until Nov. 19, Jak plays Bruce, a nurse seeking greener pastures in the United States. His girlfriend, Joyce (Klea Pineda), is also a nurse, and vowed that she would follow him and work on their goals together. However, Joyce ends up finding a job she loves in the Philippines and forgoes her plan to work abroad.
The distance tests their relationship and eventually drives them apart. Years later, Bruce—now married to a Filipino green card holder named Victoria (Lauren Young)—learns that Joyce is terminally ill with breast cancer. And in Bruce’s desire to help her go through the ordeal, old feelings suddenly creep up.
Initial worries
“I was scared because I wasn’t sure if I would be able to pull it off. Although I have tried heavy dramas in the past, a lot of them were short, two-day shoot projects, like a ‘Magpakailanman’ episode—not a full series like this one,” he pointed out.
But despite his initial worries, he took on the challenge, believing that the show could be a good platform to improve his craft. “It has been my goal for a long time to prove my acting skills in drama because, most of the time, I’m given romantic comedies and gag shows,” he said.
It was an “all in or go home” type of project, he added. “If I don’t do it now, I don’t know when I will be given another chance. But I’m lucky to have been offered this one. This is one of the shows I’m most proud of,” he said.
Being guided by his director, Paul Sta. Ana, he said, was an instructive experience and a dream come true. “I have been a big fan of his because of his film ‘Oros.’ I was so excited and kilig to work with him, but I didn’t want to be obvious,” Jak said, adding that the locked-in taping setup was conducive to his preparation.
“I haven’t acted a lot in the last two years because of the pandemic, so I had to refresh myself with workshops and by watching films … to help me open my senses and create characters. Being in a bubble helped, because everything is streamlined, focused,” the 27-year-old Kapuso talent said.
Supportive
Jak’s girlfriend, award-winning actress Barbie Forteza, has been nothing but supportive of his pursuit for growth. “Wherever I appear—even if it’s just a brief role—Madam always supports me. She posts about it and she congratulates me. That’s how she is all the time when it comes to my projects,” he said.
Barbie also doesn’t mind Jak doing kissing scenes with other actresses. “Sometimes, I wonder if she doesn’t get jealous. I ask her if she’s really OK with me doing kissing scenes. I’m willing to avoid them if she’s not. But as an artist herself, she understands the nature of our work,” he said. INQ