Alfred Vargas is the boldest actor-film producer in the country today. He actually has been "it" for the past few years.
Pieta, the film for which he won Best Actor in the recently concluded FAMAS awards – in a tie with "the" Piolo Pascual – would have not been created had Vargas not mainly bankroll the film himself under his company, Alternative Vision.
The movie about a son (portrayed by Vargas) coming back to his demented and blind mother (Nora Aunor) after being jailed in his youth for allegedly killing his father was rejected by the selection committee of last year’s Metro Manila Film Festival. It began to be shown on special screening arrangements in some theaters in Metro Manila soon after it was turned down.
The film scripted by Jerry Gracio seemed to have had a hard time getting regular booking in the cinemas for a nationwide release despite its having as lead female stars three of the country’s finest actresses: Aunor, Gina Alajar and Jaclyn Jose. Thus, it had to resort to block screening so the public can start watching it. Vargas as the film’s producer and male lead actor, as well as its director, Adolf Alix, knew in their hearts the film was worth seeing.
The block screenings last year was how Pieta qualified to be included in the judging for FAMAS Àwards 2024 which honored movies shown in theaters in 2023.
Pieta is not the first commercially “unpalatable” film Vargas boldly bankrolled under his maverick movie outfit. The company also produced the well-reviewed films with unusual storylines, such as Separados (2014), Kaputol (2021) and Tagpuan (2022) and top-billed by highly-esteemed actors (including Vargas himself, of course).
The first film Vargas invested his money on as co-producer was Aureus Solito’s Busong in 2011. It’s a movie about a mythical girl in Palawan who has mysterious wounds on her feet and other parts of her body, so she can’t move around and has to be carried by her brother if they had to go anywhere.
Vargas was not in the cast. Solito, a native of Palawan, eventually used his Palaweño name “Kanakan Balintagos” in all his succeeding films about that island province in Luzon.
Vargas, a Tanghalang Ateneo actor in college when the theater company was headed by writer-literature scholar Dr. Ricky Abad (RIP), put up his film company in 2011 to produce the Cinemalaya entry Supremo, with him portraying the title character which refers to Andres Bonifacio, the Filipino hero who is as well known in the Philippines as Jose Rizal.
The entry was directed by Richard Somes. It’s entirely different from the previous movie Ang Paglilitis Kay Andres Bonifacio directed by the late Mario O’Hara which also had Vargas playing the title role.
At Tanghalang Ateneo, he portrayed Orsino in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night and many other roles, from a taumbayan and foot soldier extra, to a convincing gay, kontrabida and finally to lead roles.
Recalled Vargas in an old interview: “I was able to learn quite a lot about the art of acting. I was so in love with the theater that I slept on the center of the empty stage of Rizal Mini Theatre during my long breaks, with my thick economics books as my pillow.
“I loved the silence of it when empty. And I loved the applause from a genuine audience every performance night. But I was immature then, trying hard to grow up. My life was full of drama, from family to financial challenges, to adolescence. Acting became my refuge. And the theater became my home. It saved me.”
Vargas graduated in Management Economics at Ateneo de Manila University in 2008 and broke his lawyer-mother’s heart by joining showbiz as an actor instead of going to law school. ABS-CBN’s Johnny “Mr. M” Manahan saw Vargas in one of his performances in Ateneo and invited him to join Star Magic which he co-founded and headed as the then-network’s talent development and management arm.
Vargas was launched as part of Star Circle 10, and he remembers even now that Piolo Pascual was launched as part of a much earlier batch of young talents, Star Circle 6.
“I was super-honored to win at the FAMAS with him. He was my idol. I will never question why I had to tie with him,” declared Vargas in a group interview with officers and members of a group known as The Entertainment Arts & Media (TEAM) which arranged to meet him at his office as a Quezon City councilor at a gated subdivision a few days after his FAMAS victory. TEAM requested him to be one of their advisers, and he accepted.
Vargas has always been a top favorite of showbiz journos. Reading back about him, we discovered that a movie reporters’ organization once awarded him “Darling of the Press,” a title they had accorded to some of showbiz industry’s galactic stars, such as Vilma Santos, Rudy Fernandez and Luis Manzano.
But how good was Vargas in Pieta?
Wrote the independent film critic, film archivist and blogger Jojo de Vera in December last year: “Alfred Vargas as Isaac is a marvel to watch. His transformation is almost impossible to tear away from. Vargas’ intensity is well matched by Nora Aunor, bringing a sense of disturbing mystery to Rebecca whose relationship with her son takes a surprise twist, as he suddenly remembers an incident from his youth.”
De Vera’s ultimate verdict on the film: “Pieta starts out dry and minimalist, with widescreen compositions that suggest it’s mode will be naturalistic, then the ironies multiply. Alix crafts a quietly powerful, character-driven tale that even amid its melodrama and violence, Pieta’s emotional complexities remain haunting.”
Vargas is very sure he will produce more movies, though most likely not one this year. “I will attend to the block screenings of Pieta this year in many parts of Luzon, mostly orchestrated by the most avid fans of Nora Aunor. Who knows, Ate Nora’ fans in the Visayas and Mindanao may also organize block screenings in their provinces. I will go to as many block screenings as my schedule will allow in gratefulness to Miss Nora Aunor, Gina Alajar and Jaclyn Jose. Pieta is among her last films. I am honored to have acted with her.
“But, yes, I will go on producing films.”
He told TEAM: “As producer, anytime I will go for movie quality. Pangalawa lang box office. Kahit malugi ako basta maganda pelikula ko, kesa kumita ka nga pero di na panonoorin uli (Box office only comes second. I’d rather lose money as long as my film is good. It’s better than earning but the film will never be watched again).
“Priority ko rin kumita, dahil gusto natin mag-produce uli. Pero pag papipiliin ako (Making a profit is also a priority because I want to keep producing films. But if I were to choose), it’s always quality para mapagmalaki sa mga anak ko at sa (so they will be worthy of pride among my children and the) next generations. Sabi nga ni (As said by) Peter Jackson, director ng Lord of the Rings, ‘film is forever!’”
Along with his being a public servant as a politician, a father to three daughters and one son, a faithful husband and a supportive brother to two older sisters and one younger brother (Quezon City fifth district congressman PM Vargas), Vargas will produce films that he feels means a lot to the Filipinos. He will produce them even if he cannot act in them for one reason or another.
“Completing a film born out of passion is a reward in itself. Being honored for it is an inspiration and a validation that we are on the right track,” he proclaimed in 2021 March when his movie, the little known Kaputol, was honored by the Film Development Council of the Philippines for winning the Best Performance for the entire cast at last year’s Innuendo International Film Festival in Milan, Italy.
Directed by Mac Alejandre from the script of Ricky Lee, Kaputol was topbilled by Vargas, Cherie Gil, Angel Aquino, Elora Español, Adrienne Vergara, Ronwaldo Martin and Soliman Cruz.
The film was also in competition in two other festivals, the Bengaluru International Film Festival in India and the Asian Film Festival in Rome. Alejandre also helmed Tagpuan, which also won recognition in some international film festivals.
Meanwhile, Vargas is part of the upcoming GMA Afternoon Prime series, Forever Young, headlined by award-winning child actor Euwenn Mikaell. Vargas is slated to be grilled by Boy Abunda in Fast Talk this coming Monday.