Now Showing at Cannes
by Jennifer G. Castro
“Ness, free ka ba sa May 15 to 25? Nakapasok ang film natin sa Cannes [Film Festival]. Balak ko sana kita isama. (Ness, are you free on May 15 to 25? Our film got in the Cannes Film Festival. I plan on bringing you along).”
Most people only dream about starring in a movie, attending award shows and mingling with famous actors and actresses, but for Janessa “Ness” Roque (II AB Lit Fil), these dreams became reality. Last May, she traveled to France to attend the prestigious Cannes Film Festival.
Chosen to be part of the 40th Directors’ Fortnight, a section that showcases new and little-known directors from all around the world, Now Showing is a four-hour-and-forty-minute film directed by Raya Martin. In the film, Ness plays Rita, a young girl who grows up to sell pirated DVD movies.
Becoming Rita
Originally from Pampanga, Ness went to Philippine High School for the Arts where she majored in theatre. Though she had been in minor films before, Now Showing was her first movie as the leading actress.
Landing the role started when she played a six year old in the Virgin Labfest, an annual festival of plays. “The role they were searching for in Now Showing was eight or ten years old. It was all through connection. There was one director [in the festival] who referred me to Raya Martin,” she says in a mix of Filipino and English.
Filming with Raya Martin
After agreeing to play Rita, Ness was soon busy with both schoolwork and the movie. Weekdays were divided between classes and shooting, which sometimes ended at 4:00 am. She emphasizes, however, that the crew was lenient with her, occasionally turning a blind eye when she slept on the set.
Although the days were hectic, Ness admitted the stress was worth it since she got to work with Raya Martin. Describing him as a very experimental director, she pointed out that he never called action or cut. “Sobrang weird kasi hindi mo talaga alam anong gagawin (It was really weird because you wouldn’t know what to do),” she says.
Recalling what surprised her most about Martin’s directing techniques, she talks about the time when she fell asleep. After she apologized to Martin, he assured her that it was fine. Curious as to what they did, she later learned that they actually filmed her while she was sleeping.
In Cannes
After shooting her part, Ness didn’t hear from Martin until he called her up to tell her they were going to Cannes. She didn’t even know they submitted the film to the festival.
Getting the necessary paperwork done, Ness was soon faced with her reality: she was on her way to participate in the Cannes Film Festival. What made the experience all the more overwhelming was that this was her first time traveling abroad.
“It really sunk in when I saw Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie [in the] screening [of] Changeling. We also saw Sharon Stone, Clint Eastwood, [and] Sean Penn. That was like the moment when I thought, ‘Oh my God, never in my life have I thought that I would be able to go here,” she says in Filipino.
Aside from going to parties and attending formal dinners, she of course, went to the premiere of Now Showing. Here, she says that she was called up to the stage and introduced to the audience. After watching the film for the first time, she also attended a press conference and gave interviews.
Following a whirlwind of social functions, Ness spent most of her time sightseeing and buying souvenirs. It was near the end of her trip when she was approached by a fan. “I was walking when somebody asked, ‘Excuse me, are you the actress in Now Showing?’ She was the first international person to recognize me out of nowhere,” she says in Filipino. “Yun ang moment na feeling ko pwede na akong mamatay (That was the moment when I felt I could die).”
Receiving Raya Martin’s call that day not only led Ness to her first trip out of the country, but it also gave her an incredible opportunity to do what most people only dream of. “More than anything else, [my] reaction [is] disbelief kahit naman hanggang ngayon (even until now),” she says. “Sobrang hindi ako makapaniwala. (I really can’t believe it.)”
RANDOM COMMENT: her dress was too short haha
BUT I heard she’s a really good actress.
thank you for this article. i am now free from uncool-ness! 8D
hahaha,,,omg tlga ning…can you believe nah nand2 ka sa website na2….hahaha cute nman mga pic moh eh,,>lov it <….bsta keep up d good work..follow your dreams…dyan ka masaya i knew ittttttt…….we are so proud of you…….
ps…. d mo nkwen2 skn nah maikli pla ang dress moh dun…… hehehe bsta love kta..mwhaaaaaa
nice work…keep making the country proud!