TOKYO – Enchong Dee saw his dreams come true as he graced the 36th Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF), representing the Philippines for the screening of the film “The Fisher” in the prestigious World Focus section.
Enchong walked the red carpet alone at the opening event held at Tokyo Midtown Hibiya on Oct. 23.
“It’s a dream come true moment, if only you knew how happy I was at that time,” he told the Filipino-Japanese Journal.
The actor revealed that he used to sit, hoping and praying for the day he could attend international festivals attended by actors whom he admires, such as John Lloyd Cruz and Piolo Pascual.
“I really fought for that experience. I went ahead of time so that I could experience that moment,” he added.
During the Q&A session after the film’s Japan premiere at Toho Cinemas Chanter 2 on Oct. 26, Enchong extended his gratitude to the Japanese and international audience.
“I feel like you are part of my dream come true moment. I am very, very happy,” he enthused.
In “The Fisher,” written, produced, and directed by Paul Soriano, Enchong takes on the role of Hai, a lost Chinese fisherman captivated by Simone (Heaven Peralejo), the adoptive daughter of Pedro (Mon Confiado), the fisherman who rescues him from the depths.
Looking back on his experience while filming, Enchong reminisced about his love for water, saying, “As early as six years old, I was already swimming, so I always believe that water is my element. When we were shooting, I was just having fun.”
When asked by the Filipino-Japanese Journal whether he found it challenging to portray a role without a dialogue, he said: “The beauty of it is Direk Paul allowed me to play around with the character. If you notice, there was a build-up, like while I was shooting, my head slowly tilted. I was just adding it to the character. He allowed me to create the character, and in the process, I understood the story, my character, and found that the language I best expressed was a smile — a universal language. When you smile, the whole world smiles back at you.”
L-R: Enchong Dee, Mon Confiado and Paul Soriano
The film, shot during the pandemic, also features stellar performances from Eula Valdez, and Mercedes Cabral.
“I think this is one of closest teams I’ve ever worked with, and I feel like it also showed in the film,” Enchong said. - Florenda Corpuz
(Photos by Din Eugenio)
