TJ Trinidad, hindi naniniwala sa multo

A confessed skeptic si TJ Trinidad when it comes to all things supernatural pero bilib na bilib naman ang aktor when it comes to horror-meister Yam Laranas. Text by Jason John S. Lim. Photos by Mitch S. Mauricio. Sa press conference ng Patient X, TJ Trinidad told the press na hindi siya naniniwala sa multo. In fact, sa set nga raw ng kanilang pelikula ay siya pa mismo ang kumukuha ng pictures sa kanyang paghahanap ng anything supernatural. "Pinapakita ko sa kanila [and] may nakikita sila," kuwento ng binata. "Pero ako, skeptic kasi ako e." That didn't stop him from accepting the role of Alfred Molina though. "Pulis ako dito," TJ explained. "My character is a parallel to what Richard [Gutierrez]'s character went through. Richard's character went through the death of his family as a child; ako naman, very recent. And we're from the same town, and because of this, this is what kind of brought us together. This is like our common denominator." TJ continued, "kakaiba [ang Patient X]. First of all, because of the script." Tuloy ng aktor na inayos raw mabuti ang script bago pa man nag-simula ang shoot. "Secondly, of course, [dahil] kay Direk Yam. Siya ang nag-ilaw, siya nag-direk, 'yung treatment niya is—if you watch The Echo, then you have an idea of what Patient X would look like." "And thirdly, 'yung dedication ng buong cast." TJ said all three factors make a good formula for a high-quality picture. With all of that nga naman, who wouldn't want to be part of the movie, 'di ba? Besides, TJ told us, maganda naman ang experience niya with GMA Films from The Promise. "Ever since I've worked with them, it's always a pleasant experience." Dagdag pa niya, "it actually improved now, more so because of Direk Yam's work ethic and his scheduling process." Tuloy ni TJ, "we would work for 16 hours at most, then at the end of the pack-up, we're given 8 to 10 hours [of rest]. It's a great system, [and] I wish that we could that system in every production outfit." Of course, sa kaso ni TJ, he didn't get to use the rest time dahil he also had taping for Stairway to Heaven. "For me, it kind of helped me." TJ said ginamit daw niya 'yung pagod niya to maintain the weariness of his character. "I tried to be more proactive with it, rather than feel like 'I lack sleep.' Because, I mean, when you lose a family like that, you don't sleep, you don't eat, you can't think—you know, you're very kalat. So I used it to make it more real." Pero walang amount of preparation or personal experience ang nakapag-prepare kay TJ for what he had to do sa movie. "The burning scene that you see in the trailer? I burned that person—alive. He was a live person." TJ confessed, "I was so nervous when I did that." As for why he had to burn the said person—and who the said person is—you'll have to watch Patient X when it comes out in theaters beginning October 28, both here in the Philippines and in Guam! Pahabol ni TJ, "sana po suportahan niyo kami. Kailangan namin ang tulong niyo. Kung wala kayo, hindi magiging all-out success ang pelikulang ito." Catch the cast of Patient X at Market! Market this coming Saturday, October 24. And on October 25 naman, they will be at SM Manila for a mall show—and the movie's premiere night. Pag-usapan ang movie sa pinagandang iGMA Forum! Not yet a member? Register here!