Actress Ina Raymundo, who has played a variety of roles throughout her career, said she will no longer accept “zombie” roles.
During the Block Z movie’s bloggers’ conference on January 29, Ina admitted that it will be her “first and last” time to play a zombie in a film.
The 44-year-old actress plays a patient, who turns into one of the shambling fictional undead characters, in Mikhail Red’s zombie flick “Block Z.”
“Na-realize ko noong last day of shooting ko, ayoko na maging zombie. First and last na yon. You know, I’m so happy na nagawa ko iyon. Pero that’s it na siguro for me,” Ina said.
“It’s really hard. Feeling ko bibigay iyong leeg ko. But it was such an experience. And again, thank you Direk (Mikhail) for the nth time na naging kasama ako sa pelikula mong ‘Block Z’,” she added.
According to Ina, she had undergone almost six hours of prosthetic makeup work to create her zombie look.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWYHDJZrdFw
“Prosthetic (makeup) umabot ng six hours ata. Tapos mahirap maging zombie yung 5 seconds mo parang 50 seconds. After nun hingal na hingal ka. Ang iyong contacts (lens). Mahirap maging zombie,” Ina said.
“Iyong maging zombie, you have to be uninhibited. Dapat wala sa isip mo iyong para ‘akong silly’ or anything. Kailangan all-out talaga para nakakatakot ka. So happy ako, nagawa ko,” she added.
Ina also revealed that she took inspiration from various zombie movies and TV shows for the role.
“May peg ako na zombie sa lahat ng zombies na napanood ko. Pero pinagsama-sama ko. So ‘yun iyong lumabas,” she said.
“Pero doon sa mga stunts may rehearsals kami nun kaya mas alam na namin iyong mga galaw. Kasi kung doon lang namin nalaman iyon, aabutin kami ng siyam-siyam. Kaya meron na kaming choreography,” she added.
When asked about her favorite Filipino horror films, Ina said the Peque Gallaga’s “Manananggal” segment in the first movie series of “Shake, Rattle, & Roll” and Mikhail’s Eerie” are unforgettable for her.
“Talagang tumatak ito sa isip ko,” she said.
Aside from Ina, “Block Z” also stars Joshua Garcia, Julia Barretto, Dimples Romana, Ian Veneracion, Maris Racal, McCoy de Leon, and Yves Flores.
The movie, which was made on a P33-million budget, is now showing in theaters nationwide.
