Roderick Paulate on recent Best Actor plum, return to awards ceremonies

Roderick Paulate on the sidelines of the 40th Luna Awards. Image: Hannah Mallorca/INQUIRER.net

Roderick Paulate admitted that he hasn’t been attending awards ceremonies for “personal reasons” and initially wanted to grace the 40th Luna Awards last August 3 to show support for the Film Academy of the Philippines (FAP).

But the awards-giving body had other plans for Paulate as he brought home a Best Actor plum for his performance in the film “In His Mother’s Eyes” which stars Best Supporting Actor winner LA Santos and screen veteran Maricel Soriano.

“Nagulat sila noong dumating ako kasi matagal na akong hindi umaattend ng awards shows for personal reasons. Nag-start lang ako this year. Dati ang mga artista, kahit hindi naman nominated, especially noong panahon namin, pumupunta ka sa mga awards night. I can still remember that we support,” he told INQUIRER.net on the sidelines of the awards ceremony.

(My colleagues were surprised when I attended the event. It’s been so long since I attended the awards shows, for personal reasons. I started attending this year. Back then, actors — especially during our time — would attend awards nights even if they were not nominated. I can still remember that we support each other.)

The actor noticed that this form of culture “waned” since then. Despite this, he wanted to attend the 40th edition of the Luna Awards to remember how it felt and reminisce about the past.

“Parang nawala ‘yun for a while, ang nangyari is kapag nominated ka, d’un ka pupunta. Or kahit nominated ka, ako madalas, hindi ka pumupunta. Pero ngayon, gusto kong subukan at gusto kong i-feel ang awards night,” he said.

(It seems like those days were gone. What happens now is if you’re nominated, that’s when you’ll attend. Or even when you’re nominated — like me — you don’t attend. But now, I just want to try it again and feel what awards nights are like.)

On his Best Actor win

When asked what he feels about his Best Actor plum, Paulate considered the FAP’s recognition as a blessing while noting how voting among fellow film industry workers is “easier.”

“Alam kong maraming award-giving bodies pero ‘yung kapwa mong manggagawang pelikulang Pilipino [ang organizer nito]. Miski dati, ganito rin naman. Gusto namin magsama-sama ang mga artista at kami ang bumoto. I think it’s easier,” he said.

(I know there are a lot of awards-giving bodies but this is organized by your fellow film workers. Even before, things used to be this way. We would gather then we would vote for our bets. I think it’s easier.)

Paulate also shared that attending the Luna Awards was a “nostalgic” experience for him, which made his acting plum more memorable. “Ang sarap kasi hindi ko expect. Nag-uusap nga kami ni Vilma [Santos], habang nagbibigay ng nominations, sabi namin, nandito kami kasi gusto naming suportahan ang Film Academy of the Philippines.”

“But more than the award, gusto naming suportahan ito,” he continued. “Very nostalgic ito tapos panalo ako. Very malapit kasi nanggaling ito sa colleagues ko at manggagawa ng mga pelikula. Maaaring hindi ko kilala ang iba pero malaki ang respeto ko sa kanila.”

(It feels so nice because I didn’t expect this win. Vilma Santos and I were talking about it, while the nominees were announced. We wanted to be here because we wanted to support the Film Academy of the Philippines. But more than the award, we want to support this. It’s a very nostalgic experience and I won. It is close to my heart because it came from my colleagues and film workers. I don’t know everyone, but I still have a lot of respect for them.)

When asked about his upcoming films or series, Paulate spoke about his appearance in the Muhlachs-led sitcom “Da Pers Family” while hinting that he’s reviewing “a lot of scripts” for potential projects.

Paulate edged out fellow nominees Cedrick Juan, Dingdong Dantes, Carlo Aquino, and Christoper de Leon to win the Best Actor award.