At 47, Ian Veneracion, wala pang rayuma; hindi nagpapa-double sa mga action stunts n’ya
Excited si Ian Veneracion na makaharap ang entertainment press kamakailan, lalo na ’yong mga kapanabayan niya noong 90s na ang tawag niya ay mga “lumang tao” daw na gaya niya. ’Yong mga naka-saksi sa pagiging action prince niya noong sa Seiko Films at Octo-Arts Films.
Action mini-series kasi ang ipo-promote n’ya kaya siya excited. After so many years nga naman, eto’t nagbabalik-action genre siya na bida pa rin.
“I think the younger generation wala silang idea na I was doing action [films] talaga,” panimulang tsika niya. “They know me as the romantic lover boy. You know? Kaya ’yong iba nagugulat pag nakita ’yong trailer…nag-action ka? Parang hindi ko masabi, ‘Thats my home court. Hahaha!”
Ang tinutukoy niyang trailer ay para sa mini-series niyang One Good Day na ipapalabas sa Prime Video streaming app come November 17.
“I think I did mga 25 lead action movies,” patuloy na pagbabalik-tanaw ni Ian. “Ang unang-unang naaalala ko Alyas Baby Face. I was 15 [years old]. Tapos, Zaldong Tisoy, Boy Praning, Bukas Tatakpan Ka ng D’yaryo… at saka ’yong mga title noon kakaiba. Hahaha!
“Tapos nag-Octo-Arts ako. I also did one with Movie Stars [Production], ’yong anak ni Totoy Gwapo …Regal, may nagawa pa akong isa sa Regal. So, I’m very comfortable—surprisingly up to now—with fight scenes and martial arts. I started early with martial arts, e.”
Dream daw ba niyang mag-ala Liam Neeson na hataw pa rin sa action at 70?
“Hopefully. Haha! Parang Steven Seagal din diba?”
He’s only 47. Not too old but not young anymore. But for his kids, he’s old. Thus, despite their protestation, he still does fight scenes na parang in his twenties lang siya. Meaning, kaya pa. Very active naman kasi ang lifestyle ni Ian. Even off-cam, action star siya. His Instagram would give you a glimpse ng mga adventures niya—from motorcycling to mountain climbing, para-gliding to flying actual planes.
“Oo naman, kaya pa naman… because I’m still very active with my sports…basketball… ’yong mga anak ko nga, ‘Hey dad, you might be forgetting that you’re not 28 anymore.’ Pero wala, laging hindi magsi-sink in sa utak ko ’yong edad ko kasi pag may pader, aakyatin mo ’yong pader. Alam mo ’yon?”
Hindi naman daw sa in-denial s’ya of his age kundi talaga raw wala pa siyang nararamdamang any ailments sa katawan.
“Sa basketball, ang kulit ko pa rin. I still play the same way when I was in my 20’s. So, ayon, okey naman. Hahaha!”
By okay he means, hindi pa siya nagpapa-double sa mga action stunts niya.
“Wala! Nagpasagasa pa nga ako sa kotse. Kung anu-ano ang pinag-gagawa naming. Ayon nga. Kaya pa naman.”
Action-drama daw ang One Good Day, where he plays a gangster na mentored by leader (Joel Torre) na syang nakakita ng skills niya bilang taong-kalye. He groomed him and he turned out even better than him dahil mas napa-unlad ang mga illegal businesses nito. Their organization grew so big that they groom politicians, position them in government for their protection.
But one day, he wants out.
“He wanted out to have one really peaceful day, one good day pero in order for that to happen, he has to go through all the violence. His past is catching up. Kaya ang title niya, One Good Day because that’s all he wants, one good day.”
But is he gonna get it? Cause as we all know, no one gets out of the mafia. Not alive at least.
“It’s action-drama pero it’s a showcase for ’yong Filipino martial arts,” pagbibida ni Ian about their mini-series. “Ginagamit lagi s’ya sa Hollywood like sa Bourne Identity, Extraction…’yong mga ganyan. Kaya lang, surprisingly tayo dito pag nag-action, Western. Alam mo ’yon? Kaya gusto naman namin i-showcase ’yong ano natin na kasi ang daming magaling na stuntmen. So, ’yon ang gusto namin ipakita naman.”
Ayon naman sa director ng mini-series na si Direk Lester Pimentel Ong, iniwas nila sa usual Pinoy action genre ang look and feel ng kanilang produkto. Glamor daw dito si Ian at wala silang set up sa mga slums for texture and grit.
“There’s nothing wrong with that,” Direk Lester quickly points out. That’s one side of the Pinoy action genre. Pero gusto naming ipakita na marami pang p’wedeng location at setting ang isang action project.
“Kaya nga we specifically chose Iloilo,” dagdag ni Ian. “Kasi they have everything there, may mountains, may dagat, may rural setting tapos a few minute’s drive, may city… kasi meron silang parang BGC doon. Ang daming p’wedeng ikutan.”
“So, affluent ang aming ambiance. Si Ian dito, naka-porma. Parang John Wick,” dagdag din ni Direk.
Direk Lester, by the way, is also co-owner of Studio Three Sixty na siyang nag-produce ng One Good Day. He’s a former martial artist na naging stunt choreographer/director and he’s known to direct the action sequences of such TV and movie productions as Panday, Lastikman, Imortal, La Luna Sangre, Indio, and Bagani.
Dream nila sa Studio Three Sixty na ma-penetrate manlang ang Southeast Asian viewers through One Good Day and other things will follow after that.
And while on that topic, napag-usapan kung kaya na nga ba ng Pinoy films and mini-series to go global. Pareho sila Ian at The Direk Lester ng pananaw na talent-wise (both on-cam and off-cam workers), kayang-kaya. Sa pondo lang talaga nagkakatalo.
“Si Kuya Joel Torre, iharap mo kay Al Pacino, kayang-kaya niya yan,” hirit ni Ian. “Ang dami nating magagaling. Maski mga stuntmen natin, mga trained ni Direk, ang huhusay. Even si Direk, nag-i-stuntman sa Singapore…I mean, you know.”
May maganda namang paliwanag si Direk, sa POV niya as producer.
“Realistically, we cannot go all out sa budget talaga kasi maliit ang market natin. Pilipinas palang. Kaya nga ang goal is ma-penetrate natin ang market ng say, Indonesia, ng Malayasia…”
Concept-wise and talent wise, hindi naman daw tayo pahuhuli. And we also have our strengths when you think about it.
“E, sila…like ang Korean drama, isang eksena lang nila, two days yata sinu-shoot…tayo sa isang araw, ilang sequences ang kailangang tapusin. Pero nagagawa.”
At dahil related pa rin sa topic, natanong si Ian about his reaction sa naging controversial proposal ni Senator Jinggoy Estrada na pa-ban nalang ang pagpasok ng mga foreign TV and film materials sa Pilipinas para matuon naman ang pansin ng mga Pinoy sa gawang-Pinoy.
Agad naman ding nilinaw ng senador that’s he’s coming from a place of concern for the plight of the Filipino entertainment workers. Medyo sumablay lang sa delivery ng mensahe.
But just the same, nahingan na rin ng reaction si Ian ukol dito and he says he’s not in favor sakali mang ma-push ito.
“No. I don’t believe that’s the ano [solution]. ’Yon nga, we have to step up,” aniya. “Competition is good because it makes you work harder. Ang kailangan nating gawin is to step up hindi para [mag-ban].
“Kumbaga sa basketball, pag natalo tayo ng kalaban kailangan natin mag-practice, magpagaling… hindi natin ipapa-disqualify ’yong kalaban kasi hindi natin sila matalo. Haha!”
Anyway, ang One Good Day, is coming to prime Videos PH this coming November 17 and every Thursdays thereof.
Incidentally, it’s Ian’s 40th anniversary offering. Yup, 40 years na siya sa showbiz kahit di halata.
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