Ian Veneracion: "Making movies is my escape"

If there's one lesson that 47-year-old actor Ian Veneracion learned late in his life that he wishes he had known earlier, it is this: you don't need many friends, you only need sensible ones.

"Maaga ko natutunan ito, pero I wish natutunan ko nang mas maaga pa. I'll tell you the title of the book, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck. It's a good book. I wish I had known that when I was one, di ba?" he told GMANetwork.com, during the media conference for his Amazon Prime Video series, One Good Day.

"Just be yourself, and just like my favorite song 'Englishman In New York' ni Sting, 'Be yourself no matter what they say because nga, it has its way of filtering out people that aren't on the same frequency or same vibe as you. And hindi mo panghihinayangan. And that you don't rely on external validation. You don't get cyberbullied. You just turn it off, you know?

"There are many advantages to that kind of mindset. You don't base your self-respect on how other people see you. Someone thinks you're good or bad doesn't matter. What matters is how you see yourself. I wish I had known that earlier."

Ian Veneracion with director Lester Pimentel Ong at the media conference of One Good Day at Seda Vertis North in Quezon City. Courtesy of Studio Three-Sixty

It's a reminder that would have come in handy during Ian's early years in the industry. Not that showbiz was a bad experience for him. Ian Veneracion, after all, has a remarkable career as an actor, one that spans 40 years (he started at 6 in the 1982 sitcom Joey and Son) and many, many TV shows and movies.

He's actually grateful for it made him realize how much he loves telling stories and listening to tales, especially those that come from people outside his circle.

"[Because of movies] I've met a lot of beautiful beings and I think that's why I'm not intimidated by anyone. I don't see people in a hierarchy, na we're on different levels of the ladder, no not all. Parang we're more on a web, kakaiba lang pero lahat of equal value, lahat may pinagdadaanang bagay, problema, lahat meron tayong strengths and weaknesses and all.

"I've learned how to treat people the same way, whether you're the owner of a hotel, or the maintenance guy of the hotel because I will learn from both. I like stories. I like hearing stories from different perspectives of people. I like telling stories also. Kaya marami akong natutunan sa showbiz."

The one-on-one interview with GMANetwork.com came at the time Ian was in the thick of promoting his new project, the Lester Pimentel Ong-directed One Good Day. In this action-packed series, the good-looking actor plays Dale Sta. Maria, a former mobster who is on his way to retirement. He is forced to go on one final mission and get back to his old ways when his loved ones get brutally murdered one day.

Ian admitted that he developed a love for acting because more than an artistic expression, acting has been a form of escape for him.

"I think [I do movies] for the same reason you'd go on vacations 'di ba? It's not that you don't like your job, but you do it just to get out of your routine and be someone else," he said.

It also gave him the chance to be in someone else's shoes, and do certain things that he wouldn't do in real life.

"You go to, for example, Boracay, kahit di ka umiinom, pupunta ka Boracay, magwa-walwal ka, just to be in a different shape. Your mind acquires a different shape. It's fun. Pero it takes a lot of confidence in knowing your default self. Kung kumpiyansa ka na kilala mo ang sarili mo, all the more you can stray away kasi alam mong makakabalik ka."

In his 40 years in the entertainment industry, Ian did get some time to "stray away" from his roots. In case you have forgotten, the actor is first and foremost an action star, who made a name for himself in the '90s before he ventured into drama, fantasy, and romance by the mid-2000s. He starred in such action flicks as Alyas Baby Face, Zaldong Tisoy, Bukas... tatakpan ka ng dyaryo, Kanto Boy 2: Anak ni Totoy Guapo, Pugoy - Hostage: Davao, Pedrito Masangkay: Walang bakas na iniwan, among many others.

That's why One Good Day was too big an opportunity for him to pass up. Not only did it offer him a chance to go back to his first forte (the action genre), but it also reaffirmed his reasons for staying in the business after all these years.

"I'm very passionate about my work and I still am. Pero parang kailan lang, I felt that I was testing the waters lang... Pero for as long as I'm enjoying it, I'll do it.

"Pero once dumating ang araw na I don't enjoy it, I'll stop. Ganyan palagi ang mentality ko ever since. I'll go into a different field kapag 'di na ako nag-enjoy."

With a laugh, he added, "Kaya lang hanggang ngayon, nag-e-enjoy pa rin ako e. So, I'm still here."

While he would not say that the premise of One Good Day is all original, he pointed out that it is an upgrade, a nice departure from what viewers would normally expect from Pinoy movies.

"It's like a combo nga of The Godfather, John Wick, James Bond, whatever. Pero it is its own thing. It's never been combined that way. And usually, 'yung nga, Filipino movies na action, gritty and raw, hindi malinis na sinasadyang madumi. Nothing wrong with that, pero mas marami na akong napanood na gano'n. Yung ganitong may violence, pero may glamour na may ano, it's something new."

As an actor who just returned to the action genre, Ian himself was impressed by how movies and TV shows are being made nowadays, all thanks to the technological advances in filmmaking.

"I am happy to be a witness to the grabeng change of how [moviemaking] evolved. The technology before and now, siyempre nakita ko 'yung proseso, is really exciting. And now we can do so many things na before na imposibleng gawin, or napakamahal gawin.

"Now we have drones, before the cameraman, for example, would have to ride a chopper. Ngayon, puwede ka mag-drone sa loob ng isang structure. Even sa editing, you can edit now on your phone. Ang galing di ba? Laging ganyan ang kinukwento ko kapag may kasama akong bago sa showbiz. Parang kinukuwento ko sa kanila yung difference ng dati at ngayon."

Ian knows that he had to up his game further for One Good Day. The series is accessible not only to Pinoy viewers but to foreign audiences, as well, since it's being carried by an international on-demand streaming service. He hopes that this project will bring in more opportunities for Pinoy artists and filmmakers, and let "our neighbors know what we can do."

As our interview with Ian began to wind down, we decided to throw in an extra "What If" question.

What if the production budget were not an issue and he could create a movie or show according to his heart's desires, what would he come up with?

Ian answered that he probably won't star in it. But you can bet that it will have an all-Filipino crew working in front of and behind the camera.

"Napaka-exciting n'yan because ang dami talaga nating good actors. Kung gano'n, hindi ako gagawa ng movie series, tapos iba-ibang malulupit na actors.

"Ang dami talaga natin magagaling na actors dito, babae, lalake. Baka nga wala ako do'n e, baka nga mag-produce lang ako kung manalo ako sa, sabihin mo na California lottery, I'd probably produce that but not be part of it and I'd probably enjoy watching it. The ones [I'd get], Amy Austria, Eula Valdes, Bembol Roco, Jimmy Fabregas, Tito Joel Torre, ang dami dami dami. Even directors and scriptwriters, ang dami.

"I believe in the Filipino talent talaga. Kaya natin. Mabigyan lang tayo ng support kaya natin makipaglaban, kahit saang parte ng mundo, kaya natin sumabay."

One Good Day also stars Rabiya Mateo, Andrea Torres, Aljur Abrenica, Justin Cuyugan, Nicole Cordoves, Pepe Herrera, Robert Seña, and Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo, among many others. New episodes of this series will drop every Thursday, starting Nov. 17, on Amazon Prime Video.