On December 9, Director Carlo Francisco Manatad shared why he chose Daniel Padilla as the lead actor for Kun Maupay Man It Panahon.
During an interview with Rappler for the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) 2021 entry, Manatad said it felt “correct” to cast Padilla in his movie, especially with his Waray background.
“I did handpick Daniel, ever since one of the main reasons was he’s one of the few actors in the Philippines who speaks Waray. That was a big plus. But at the same time, I don’t know. It felt correct to really just cast him.”
He then shared how he pitched the movie to Padilla, noting that he didn’t expect the Kapamilya actor to accept the role.
“It was a time when Daniel had a break from work. We got to contact him, he gave us, nagbigay siya ng ano na parang mag-meet with us. But when we met up with him, I really did not expect anything.
“He came in late a few minutes and then may dala siyang malaking tseke. Kakapanalo niya lang sa ASAP ng something–parang himig handog or something.
“Tapos parang in my head, ‘Okay let’s just get over na with this.’ I will pitch as best as I can, of course, ‘yun naman ‘yung point, but I will not expect that somebody like him would go onboard on this project. And then he was listening. He looked very interested, he didn’t say yes during that time.”
He even gave Padilla a deadline because he thought the actor would turn down the project.
“I was not expecting so I said, bigyan na natin ng deadline. Okay in three days pag wala– bakit mo bibigyan ng deadline ang isang Daniel Padilla, pero sabi ko di bigyan lang natin ng deadline kasi sure naman akong hindi. Eh umoo, nag-panic na ako.”
Manatad also shared how Padilla valued the importance of the project during their filming in Tacloban.
“So parang si Daniel, there was a time I gave him the microphone. Kinuha niya, and then he started talking to people na gets niya kung ano ‘yung sitwasyon but at the same time bakit you’re not taking this seriously. Yes, this is fiction, but we are doing this, but like this is your story. Please respect the people who died, who survived. Lahat tumahimik, pati ako tumahimik.”
Kun Maupay Man It Panahon (Whether the Weather is Fine) is a Filipino film under the direction of Carlo Francisco Manatad and starring Charo Santos-Concio, Daniel Padilla, and Rans Rifol. It won the Cinema e Gioventù Prize at Locarno Film Festival in August.
The film follows a young man searching for his mother and beloved in the aftermath of Supertyphoon Yolanda (Haiyan).
Kun Maupay Man It Panahon is one of the eight entries for the Metro Manila Film Festival 2021. Unlike 2020, MMFF returns to cinemas, with the eight films premiering from December 25 to January 7.
