EXCLUSIVE: Bela Padilla On Her Dramatic Directorial Debut, Plus All Of Her Biggest Pre-30th Birthday Reflections
It's been one heck of a year for Bela, and not even a pandemic could stop her from leveling up her career and personal growth
Most people we know have treated the pandemic as a break—not an easy, holiday-esque break, but one where they're allowed to dictate the pace of their lives. The trend has been to take things slower than usual, where experiences can feel more deliberate and choices for what to do next more thoughtful.
For Metro Chats guest Bela Padilla, her life-under-lockdown choices have been long in the making; instead of taking things slow, she sped up the process of the most important things in her life she wished to achieve and learn before turning 30—the transition from acting to directing being one of them.
In an exclusive interview on Kumu's FYE Channel, Metro Chats guest Bela Padilla tells us all about her life's businesses in the last few months, and how it's been only the best kind of busy that she's grateful for.
Check out the gallery below:
Bela Padilla on Metro Chats
Bela Padilla on Metro Chats
Busy bee
Bela didn't want to take the time to just relax and bum around during the pandemic, even when life under lockdown had officially become everyone's new normal. She made it a point to keep herself as busy as she was pre-COVID, in order not to "shock her system" by doing nothing at all. She's not used to living in a relaxed pace and so, sought work and new projects. "I started with reconnecting with people I feel I've been unconsciously neglecting in my life... I picked up the phone and just started calling my cousins," she starts. "Also, I think I became more aware of my community. I saw what was lacking and I tried to figure out what I could do to help. And then I tried to see how I could make money or how I could survive this pandemic!" she laughs.
Debut director
Bela has written scripts in the past and isn't new to the business of vivid storytelling. What she's never tried before, however, is actually sitting in the director's chair to make her scripts come to life, and then the pandemic happened—the time was ripe to grow and explore. "I was always too shy to. I felt that I didn't deserve a spot. There are proper schools for directing and I didn't go to one," she explains. "The biggest realization during the pandemic for me is that you can't guarantee what tomorrow brings into your life and if the people I trust around me keep telling me that I am ready to direct.... I kind of just gave myself a chance," she adds. She researched, she studied, she trained herself, she took notes, and she made it happen for herself. She made her directing debut via "366" and it was the happiest set she's ever been on in her career. Her first order of business? To foster a filming environment where people are calm, efficient, and respectful.
Her directorial debut film, "366"
Bela's directorial debut film is titled "366," but wrote it without thinking she would also be starring in it, and it was meant to be shot an entire year ago. She stars alongside Zanjo Marudo and JC Santos, and it's a tragic love story about learning to move through grief after painful personal losses. "The reason why the title is '366' is because the setting of the film is a leap year," Bela reveals, and a question she constantly asked her characters is that if they could redo days, moments, and even emotions in their lives, would they? "Normal People," a 2020 British series and the general mumblecore genre in film, were Bela's biggest inspiration for her first directing job. (Fun fact: "366" was shot in Manila and Turkey, too).
Life imitating art
Thanks to her transformative directing experiences, Bela's perspective on life has changed for the better. She's learned that being an actress is a whole other world from being a director, and getting a taste of the latter has allowed her to see the bigger picture of things. "When I have little bumps in my day, I think, 'How do I fix this without panicking?' I love that this new job has given me a new perspective of life," she shares. "366" is 70% done as of today, and all she's waiting for is waiting for her Turkey team to give them the go for flying back to join them.
K-Drama inspiration
It's no secret that Bela is huge on K-Dramas, so much so that she revisited her favorite titles for research purposes for her new film. She went back to "It's Okay, That's Love," "The World of the Married," and "Designated Survivor: 60 Days." All of it reminded her of her time in Korea when she shot a film with Kim Gun-woo, her first-ever Korean collab. She has only good memories of that time, like how Kim Gun-woo is an absolute gentleman, her experiences of more traditional Korean culture, and connecting with her other co-star, Jasper Cho, over wanting to travel to London.
Britory
In case you missed it, Bela has launched her a skincare brand and she named it Britory (pronounced Bright-tory). Yes, she did get inspired by working in Korea and working with Korean crew and cast, and finally, she released Britory, a label based in Seoul, that helps Filipinas achieve Koreans' coveted glass complexions. "I myself am always on the go so I don't like very complicated routines," she explains. So far, Britory is all about its serums and creams, and the lightweight combo has let Bela get away with just blush and lipstick even when she's being filmed or photographed. Her simple skincare is something she wants to advocate even these days when practically the whole world is working from home—it's the not-so-secret trick to emerging from quarantine with flawless skin!
Books and homes
Another more personal project Bela dove into during the lockdown was fixing up her apartment's interiors and even moving to a new place altogether. She mostly wanted to recreate French apartments that are all about neutral, natural hues and all-white furnishings and big, open windows, but come 2021, she wanted a place with more color, more life, more creative corners that would stimulate the artist's mind in her. "I love my living room area. It feels like a mix of Cuba and something very Bohemian. It's very sexy, colorful," Bela smiles. Her favorite décor in her new place are her "book towers," literally piles of books that go from the floor to the ceiling. Bela's a big reader of books written by authors from all over the world, and she loves melancholic titles, and great stories are a big part of her vision as a multi-faceted artist.
Well-being
Bela uses the new Britney Spears documentary "Framing Britney Spears" as an example for how celebrities like her struggle to protect their well-being. The documentary chronicles the teen star's hardships with her rights to her earnings and body of work, and according to Bela, things would be very different if Britney became a popstar in a different time, or a little later than when she first tasted fame. Bela is grateful for being born when she was (in the 90s!) given that it allows her to have perspective on the Britney generation of artists, and celebs today who are more open and honest about their experiences. Her compromise that she learned from being exposed to both is having opinions yet still maintaining respect when delivering them. "I don't necessarily agree with cancel culture... that one moment should define a person's life, but I like the aspect of the community standing up for one person. That gives me so much hope," she shares. On a more personal note, Bela takes care of her own well-being by reminding herself that it's alright to validate your feelings, big or small, and allow yourself to feel whatever it is you need to feel about a situation before you can move forward.
Concern about the so-called "cancel culture"
Thinking about ABS-CBN's shutdown, Bela relates her realizations on mental health with how Kapamilya celebrities who defended their network were "cancelled" or heavily criticized. Bela calls it "primitive thinking" to believe that celebrities aren't allowed to have opinions—intelligent and strong opinions, at that - and should be relegated to "just" acting and performing. Bela says it's always a better idea to be informed before you express your loyalties to either side (the canceling side or the side being cancelled) to save yourself from unfairly ostracizing a person.
The big three-zero
Bela isn't freaked out about turning 30 like many young women are. Looking at her peers, she jokingly says she's busier than most of them, which gives her a sense of security and fulfillment in what she's doing as being enough for now. She's achieved all that she wants before beginning a new decade of her life—directing being the biggest win of all—and she can face 30 with that in mind.
Photos from @bela
