Prior to making her big screen directorial debut last year with the romantic drama, 'Chances Are, You and I,' director Catherine O. Camarillo already had two decades of experience working behind the camera, both as director and assistant director to industry veterans like Chito Roño, Laurice Guillen and Joyce Bernal. In her new film, Meg & Ryan. the talented director shared what to expect in her latest work and why they were inspired to use the name of a famous Hollywood actress in the title.
“This is another masterpiece that I want to share with all of you. This is written by Gina Marissa Tagasa. So si Manay Gina is a fan of Meg Ryan. You known naman that Meg Ryan is the queen of rom-coms in the '90s. SO when we were doing the collaborations and the content, hindi talaga Meg & Ryan yung title ng film. But as we went along, ang ganda ng characterization and nag-marka sa amin yung character ni Meg and Ryan so si Manay, ang instinct niya is to use Meg & Ryan as a title. So I gave it a green light. Sige, maganda naman. Kakaiba. Wala masyadong sinsabi. Kumbaga, ang Meg & Ryan, it speaks of the character in the story. So that’s the evolution of it,” she explained.
The talented director also admitted handpicking her lead stars JC Santos and Rhian Ramos who had never been paired onscreen prior to doing Meg & Ryan.
“It started with in-a-eye ko na sila makatrabaho. Aside from I know their own craft, na magagaling sila, when I read the script, hinanap ko yung mga physical attributes (needed) and at the same time, yung personality. Pag director ka and binabasa mo yung script, ini-imagine mo na kung sino yung puwede sa characters mo. then again, inisip ko din na baka hindi tanggapin pag pinitch. May mga ganun eh. Meron kang gustong certain artistas tapos minsan hidni tatanggapin di ba?
"Pero may plan A, plan B ako and so and so. Pero sila yung priority na pinitch-an. Zoom meeting lang yun. Nakita ko agad sa kanilang dalawa na they can pull off the characters of Meg and Ryan. And knowing them, sobrang professional, sobrang they embraced their characters as if they know already what to do with their character. Parang hindi ako nahirapan mag-discuss pa sa kanila,” she explained.
“And one thing pa, very collaborative pa sila with their script. The reason why na-appreciate ko sila ng sobra, sa script itself, alam nila yung parameters nila. Dun pa lang, natuwa ako, kasi feeling ko, na talagang they respected yung character nila. So they added more flavor to the character and nabigyan ng justice kung ano man yung nakita sa script,” she added.
During the Meg & Ryan presscon, direk Catherine also shared how impressed she was with the two actor’s professionalism on the set.
“Actually hindi sila by the script eh. Nakukuha nila yung context ng script, pero the way they say it na fluidly and fluently in a way, that speaks their character, na-a-amaze ako kasi hindi ko sila kinailangan na sabihan ng sobra sobra. I just wanted them to feel free to do their own take on their character at hindi sila lumihis dun.
"And then with JC, wala siyang masyadong dialogue na sinabi, but all the nuances, the reaction that I needed to capture, nandun. Nagsasalita yung reaction niya. Yung ngiti niiya, yung tingin niya as Ryan to Meg, My God, for me, that was perfection. As a filmmaker, pag nakuha mo yung vision na yun, na hindi ka nadalawang isip na i-retake, for me, that’s a very, very fulfilling moment as a director. Of course, alam nating magagaling sila pareho di ba? Pero yung pagiging magaling nila, na-exceed yung expectations ko!” she admitted.
Looking back on her first project with JC and Rhian, direk Catherine revealed she was happy that they were all able to pull off a great project.
“This is the first time that I worked with them. Kaya medyo kinakabahan ako, in a way, kasi magagaling sila in their craft at ako naman ay nagsisimula pa lang na magpakilala bilang director. So I wanted to have this collaboration kasi sa galing nila, I don’t think I can just strictly push kung ano yung vision ko eh. It’s a collaboration para mapaganda pa namin. So that’s what I did to make it more interesting and more fulfilling for everybody,” she said.
READ: Long-time ABS-CBN director makes her film directorial debut in 'Chances Are, You and I'
Watch Meg & Ryan when it opens in cinemas nationwide starting August 6. Directed by Catherine O. Camarillo, DGPI and written by Gina Marissa Tagasa under Pocket Media Films. The film stars JC Santos, Rhian Ramos, Cedrick Juan, Ces Quesada, Cris Villanueva, Jef Gaitan and a promising lineup of fresh faces like J-mee Katanyag, Steven Bansil, Poca Osinaga, and Alison Black.