Xian Lim reveals preparations on playing complex roles

Xian Lim is very excited to present his latest role in the film Playtime.

The movie, directed by Mark Reyes, revolves around three women from different worlds who find themselves in a situation involving a man they all mistakenly trusted. 

Vlogger-influencer Allyson (Sanya Lopez) entertains a seemingly harmless fan but soon finds out how dangerous he actually is. Bride-to-be Roni (Coleen Garcia) wants one last adventure before she settles down. She decides to hook up with a stranger in a bar. Meanwhile, Patricia (Faye Lorenzo) only wants to get away from her abusive ex. 

Three lives intertwine as Allyson, Roni, and Patricia get entangled with the same man: Lucas (Lim).

“Una sa lahat, I feel very grateful and blessed na mabigyan ng pagkakataon to portray something out of the box kasi hindi naman lahat nabibigyan ng pagkakataon. When I received the offer, I remember we were shooting Love. Die. Repeat. Parang kasagsagan na ng taping, sabi ko agad ‘please count me in.’ They told me ito mga makakasama ko tapos written and directed by Mark Reyes so sabi ko sige ikuwento nyo na lang sa akin mamaya (First of all, I feel very grateful and blessed to be given the opportunity to portray something out of the box because not everyone is given the chance. When I received the offer, I remember we were shooting Love. Die. Repeat. As the taping was in full swing, I immediately said please count me in. They told me that this was written and directed by Direk Mark, so I said go ahead and tell me the story later),” Lim said.

He also credits the whole cast in making each scene believable.

“A couple of days ago, magkakasama din kami at naitanong din sa amin ‘yan kasi a huge part of this film is ‘yung tulungan and suporta naming lima. Mahirap kasi to be put in a situation na ito ang nangyayari na papatayin kayo especially sa direction ni Direk Mark we were just holding on to him sa mga gagawin namin dito (All of us in this movie must trust and help each other, considering the demands of the scenes. We were just holding on to direk Mark Reyes on what we needed to do),” he added.

Lim then thanks Reyes for pushing him further. 

“We must jump into the character. Nakukuha naman namin lahat, kailangan pa namin tumodo or kung ano pa kulang. Everything ay napapantayan naman ng director namin. From that moment, alam na namin na we can let go kasi kung stiff kami, kung may di kami sinasabi sa isa’t isa makikita niyo rin ‘yun eh (We must jump into character, we need to stand up if something else is missing. Everything is guided by our director. From that moment, we knew that we can let go because if we are stiff, if we do not tell each other something, you will see that, too),” he revealed. 

And for the many colorful roles he portrayed project after project, Lim thanks his home network and management for trusting him. 

“It feels really great at paulit ulit ako magpapasalamat sa GMA at sa Viva because ever since nagsimula ako gumawa ng projects sa kanila they’ve been giving me characters na out of the box, from nabuntis na lalaki to a killer who wants to haunt these women to films that I’ve never done before (I’m thankful to GMA and my Viva family for always trusting me to do out of the box roles, from a pregnant man, a killer who wants to haunt women and to films that I’ve never done before),” he said.

Lim is best known for his roles in My Binondo Girl (2011), The Reunion (2012), Ina, Kapatid, Anak (2013), Bakit Hindi Ka Crush Ng Crush Mo (2013), Bride for Rent (2014), The Story of Us (2016) and Everything About Her (2016).

Catch Playtime in cinemas nationwide beginning 12 June.