Several TV and film productions suffered during the recent reimplementation of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Metro Manila.
One of which is GMA Network’s The World Between Us, which resorted to a season break.
On their two-part media conference on August 21 and 23, the cast, including Alden Richards, Jasmine Curtis-Smith, Tom Rodriguez, Sid Lucero, Kelley Day, Jaclyn Jose, Dina Bonnevie, and its director Dominic Zapanta shared their reactions to TWBU’s season break.
Richards considers the season break as an opportunity for the creatives of the series to further improve on TWBU’s storytelling.
“Hindi po kami frustrated, we’re very excited kasi nabigyan po kami ng time to be more productive with our characterizations, with our jobs bilang mga actor, director, sa productions, sa creatives, sa management, mas magiging maganda po ‘yung maibibigay po naming performance dahil sa opportunity na binigay po sa amin.”
Director Zapanta agreed with Richards, welcoming the season break of the series.
“We also understood that kung ipilit namin ito do we maybe sacrificing a little too much. In terms of not only our health but also probably the integrity of the show. It’s also a welcome break for all of us.”
On the other hand, Curtis-Smith expressed her concerns for the crew and staff affected by the sudden change in their taping schedule.
“Definitely, parang momentum din ‘yun di ba ng lahat ng tao who’s been able to prepare na rin. ‘Yung mindset nila, hanggang kailan. And, ‘yun nga hindi na siya ‘yung parang dating taping na uwian. So ‘yung pagbo-blocking ng lahat, apektado din ‘yung ibang trabaho ng ibang cast members or ibang crew members.
“If you’re asking us and our mindset as actors, syempre ano ‘yun parang nagpreno ka ng matindi. Tapos ‘yung seatbelt gumanon sayo. Ganon ‘yung feeling niya.”
Rodriguez admitted that he felt sad about the season break, echoing Curtis-Smith’s concern for the production team.
“Andoon din ‘yung konting nalungkot din. But at the same time, I thought it made sense. Kasi kahit noong umeere ‘yung show habang ginagawa namin, confident kami na kaya naming matapos. Magawa lahat eh kasi sobrang efficient noong production team.”
Day pointed out the reactions from the fans of the series, noting how the fans supported the TV show.
“Syempre we feel a bit sad to stop for multiple reasons for the viewers kasi syempre they’ve been on the journey with us as the characters develop and sa amin din kasi we really enjoyed our taping and our work.”
Lucero recounted how the season break affected his plans for his daughter’s birthday celebration.
“Super frustrating because we’re not just professionals. We also have personal lives. And some of the things that we had to decide on our personal lives to help our professional lives.
“I already accepted the fact that I won’t get to see my daughter on her birthday. And given that situation, even though I went home, I wasn’t able to see her anyway because they had plans, and I wasn’t part of that, and I can’t just put myself in that. There are a lot of sacrifices involved in making the locked-in feasible.”
As for Jose and Bonnevie, they listed things they would miss most about the locked-in taping of the series.
“To see our family again. Nami-miss ko kayong lahat. Lahat ng casting, crew, staff, make-up artist, lahat ng may kinalaman sa bubble. Kasi nasa isang bubble lang talaga kami,” said Jose.
“Yung mga nag-iisip kami ng ways kung paano pa papapagandahin ‘yung show. I look forward to that. At tsaka syempre, ‘yung mga kulitan namin, mga tuksuhan namin,” Bonnie added.
The World Between Us starts its season break on August 27 and returns on November 15, 2021. Showrunners halted filming because of the recent lockdowns that impeded the teleserye’s production.
Before its season break, the series held the top spot as the country’s number one teleserye.
For those who missed The World Between Us, they can stream catch-up episodes on the iQIYI streaming app.
