Jeffrey Hidalgo—from singing to directing

Jeffrey Hidalgo

If you are wondering why Jeffrey Hidalgo is not as active in the music business as he used to, that is because the former Smokey Mountain member has shifted his focus to directing for television and film.

“But I didn’t completely turn my back on singing; I still accept shows from time to time, if there are offers. But right now, my main work is directing. This is the path I want to be on,” he told the Inquirer in an interview for the fourth anniversary of GMA News TV’s Saturday drama anthology “Wagas,” whose current pool of episode directors includes Jeffrey.

“I ventured into acting way back, but quickly realized that I was more interested in what goes on behind the camera,” added Jeffrey, who took up a short course in filmmaking at the New York Film Academy’s satellite school in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. “I always looked forward to reading the scripts than actually acting it out.”

Jeffrey got his start doing music videos and reality shows for local and cable channels. His debut film was the 2015 drama thriller “Silong,” which starred Piolo Pascual and Rhian Ramos. “Looking back, maybe I could have been more proactive in pursuing this dream. I could have started earlier,” he said.

But no regrets. According to him, what is important is that he is now practicing the craft and is getting more opportunities to showcase his talent. “‘Silong’ became my calling card of sorts … The people behind ‘Wagas’ took notice of my work, and then invited me to direct an episode—my first of seven, so far,” he related.

Genre-wise,  the singer-actor-turned-director’s sensibilities lean toward dark romance and drama, or horror, which he gets to explore in “Wagas.”

“What really lured me into doing this show is the creative freedom it gives us; we are encouraged to experiment and be innovative,” said Jeffrey, whose most recent episode was “Basta Driver, Sweet Lover.” “It is more like a film for the small screen.”

The stories, which are based on real-life experiences, are also not your typical melodramatic fare, according to Jeffrey.

In tomorrow’s episode, helmed by fellow “Wagas” director Michael Christian Cardoz, Jean Garcia plays a mother to three children with microcephaly—a medical condition of the brain that causes babies to have considerably small heads. Meanwhile, Adolfo Alix Jr.’s Feb. 25 episode will be about activist-journalist Satur Ocampo and freedom fighter Bobbie Malay, whose relationship blossomed during the martial law days.