"Totoo ang aswang" - Elizabeth Oropesa

December 11 2014

By CHERRY SUN

PHOTO BY ELISA AQUINO, GMANetwork.com

Elizabeth Oropesa was at the top of Direk Erik Matti’s mind when he was conceptualizing the character of Veron, the Queen of Kubot.

“It was very flattering and that’s the reason why I accepted it. Syempre ibang level ‘yun pag sinulat ‘yung istorya dahil ikaw talaga ‘yung nasa isip nila,” she expressed.

And for the veteran actress, her portrayal of an aswang was an easy task. It was because she “was born with a gift” and “see things that people do not see.”

“Actually hindi naman likhang-isip, kaya lang may cinematic license of course, dinagdagan. Pero ‘yung aswang, marami namang aswang, maraming klase ng aswang. I love the fact that it (the movie) is something new and different,” she revealed.

Then she narrated her close encounter with a Tiktik, “One time, may sakit ang mother ko. ‘Tiktiktiktiktik’, narinig ko ‘yun. Lumabas ako, nagsindi ako ng kandila. Paglabas ko nakita ko siya sa may bubong. Hinamon ko, ‘Wag mo pakialaman nanay ko. Umalis ka rito. Kaya kitang patayin’.”

“Not only have I seen aswangs, I have talked to them. Just one of the few kuwentos. So, totoo ang aswang,” she stressed.

Nonetheless, she said most do not mean harm.

“‘Yan kadalasan parang normal na tao, hirap lang pagdating sa pagkain kasi nasa dugo nila ‘yung cravings. It doesn’t mean that they kill. They cannot live with anybody na hindi aswang din,” she explained.

Elizabeth also commends Direk Erik for venturing into the stories of these creatures.

“Ang daming action, ang daming lumilipad, ang daming animation. May istorya, magagaling pa ‘yung mga artista. Magaling ‘yung direktor. You want to be entertained? Ito ang panoorin ninyo,” she said.