Spotlight: Jake Cuenca umaarangkada

SINO ba naman ang hindi makakapansin sa vintage na Bultaco motorcycle na nakaparada sa living room ng condo unit ng ABS CBN actor at Regal baby na si Jake Cuenca?

JAKE CUENCA UMAARANGKADA

SINO ba naman ang hindi makakapansin sa vintage na Bultaco motorcycle na nakaparada sa living room ng condo unit ng ABS CBN actor at Regal baby na si Jake Cuenca?
At kung tatanungin si Jake, ang sasabihin niya sa iyo ay dalawa ang nakaparadang motorsiklo sa kanyang pad, ang isa ay nasa kanyang kuwarto.
Ipinagmamalaki ni Jake ang mga vintage motorcycle na ito na ipinaayos niya sa tulong ng kanyang ama na si Juan Tomas.
“They’re just for display. The bike I ride is in the garage of my dad’s house,” ani Jake.
Nagsimula umano siya at ang kanyang ama na ayusin ang motorsiklo na gawa noong 1960s at 1970s—ang Frontera ay nasa living room at ang Sherpa ang nasa kuwarto—noong siya ay 10 taong gulang pa lamang.
“The motorcycle parts, from the chassis to the wheels, were shipped piece by piece in six boxes from Spain,” ani Jake. “Bultaco is the first bike to reach Mount Everest.”
Ang paggawa umano sa mga motorsiklo ay naging “bonding moments” ng aktor at ng kanyang ama.
Ang Frontera bike, na nakalagay malapit sa bintana kung saan makikita ang siyudad, ang centerpiece ng bachelor’s pad.
“Nothing beats the sense of freedom I get from riding a motorbike,” ani Jake.
Naalala niya nang dalhin niya ang motorsiklo sa condo, “my dad and I had to raise the bikes vertically, to fit in the elevator.”
Sa kuwarto ni Jake ay makikita rin ang apat na helmet kasama ng mga baseball cap. “I don’t wear the helmets displayed in my room. When I go biking, I borrow my dad’s. He also races.”
Bukod sa actual field games, ang actor ay naglalaro rin ng mga sporty videos sa kanyang Playstation at Xbox.
“I like boxing, wrestling and football video games on Xbox,” dagdag pa nito.
Mayroon ding mga laruan si Jake sa kanyang treasure box.
Nagpagawa rin si Jake ng den o “play room” kung kanyang tawagin ay kakikitaan ng mga prized collections ng Japanese vinyl toys at Mighty Muggs.
“These are rare items,” aniya na ang pinatutungkulan ay ang mga vinyl collectibles. “I have more … but I left most of the pieces in my parents’ house.”
Ang Mighty Muggs, isang Hasbro vinyl-plastic toy series, ay mga karakter mula sa Marvel at Star Wars, Spiderman hanggang Bobba Fett.
Naroon din ang action figure ng mixed martial artist na si Tito Ortiz. “It’s a gift from (“My Neighbor’s Wife”) costar Dennis Trillo. He gave it to me on our last day of shoot.”
Naroon din ang abstract painting na gawa ng aktor na si Cesar Montano.
“He gave it to me when we were doing [the ABS-CBN series] ‘Palos,’” aniya.

PLAY ROOM
“I used to stay in the living room all the time, but now I prefer to hang out in the play room,” dagdag pa ni Jake.
Naging isang home body na umano si Jake at madalas ay nahahati lamang ang kanyang oras sa trabaho at bahay.
“I only go out on gimiks (to bar-hop) once in a while,” aniya. “I’d rather stay home. Sometimes I invite my friends over.”
Ang kanyang pad ay isa rin umanong party area para sa kanya at kanyang mga kaibigan kaya siniguro niya na relaxing ang ambience nito.
“So when friends come over, they’d feel comfortable. I also wanted it to look interesting enough so I won’t get bored even if I stay here often.”
Gaya na lamang ng kanyang black-and-white sofa na may malaking arm rest. “You can write on it or you can sit on it.”
Sa bahay ay inaalis umano ni Jake ang maskara ng show biz. “Here, I don’t have to prove anything. I can be myself. There’s no need to put up a façade.”
Matapos ang kanyang all-night dubbing session para sa Regal movie na “My Neighbor’s Wife” si Jake ay handang-handa na para mag-relax.

TV VIEWING
Para sa kanyang state-of-the-art TV viewing, bumili siya ng 55-inch Samsung set para sa kanyang living room, at dalawang 42-inch Panasonic sets sa den at kuwarto.
“When I’m at home, I watch TV or movies on DVD,” dagdag pa nito. “For us actors, watching films is like our home work.”
Kasama sa kanyang mga paboritong pelikula ang “Vanilla Sky,” “The Wrestler” at “The Breakfast Club.”
Matapos ang “My Neighbor’s Wife,” balak ni Jake na ituon ang kanyang atensyon sa telebisyon. Mayroong nilulutong 20th anniversary specials ang ABS-CBN drama anthology “Maalaala Mo Kaya,” na gagawin sa susunod na buwan.
“It’ll be my first gay role,” aniya. “I wanted to challenge myself and play a part that’s totally out of the box.”
Makakasama niya roon ang acting veterans na sina Ricky Davao, Vivian Velez at Malou de Guzman.
“It’s about family and acceptance. I want to play roles that would permit me to stretch myself and create characters from scratch. That’s why I want to do more indie movies like Neal Tan’s ‘HIV (Si Heidi, si Ivi at si V).’ Gerald (Anderson), Coco (Martin) and I are talking about producing our own movies.”
Kailangan ding hasain ni Jake ang kanyang pagiging malikhain sa pagdidisenyo. “The interiors were done by the firm owned by my grandfather, Rodolfo Leveriza, who’s an architect.”
Maraming naibigay na input si Jake para lumabas ang itsura na kanyang gusto. “I wanted clean, sharp lines, for the place to look modern, minimalist and yet masculine.”
“I wanted the TV area to look like a jukebox: vibrant and lively.”
Upang mapanatili ang sporty, youthful theme, ay ginawa niyang makulay ang living room bukod pa sa Bultaco bike.
Nasa living room din ang Rizal Borg bust ni JP Cuison katabi ang kanyang glass “Fashionista” award mula sa Star Magic Ball noong nakaraang taon.
Ang kanyang kitchen counter, na mayroong modish black bar stools at sleek pin lights, ay nagsisilbi ring dining area.
Kung bakit maliit ang dining room, sinabi ng makeup artist an si Jay Herrera ito ay dahil hindi naman ito palaging nagagamit ni Jake. “His family lives nearby, so he usually eats with them.”
“Or my family sends over food to my place,” dagdag pa ng actor.
Hindi naman umano ibig sabihin ay hindi marunong magluto si Jake. “I know how to cook pasta, steaks and other dishes.”
Upang makaagaw atensyon ang isang sulok, nilagyan niya ang sticker ang kanyang silver refrigerator.
“Most of the stickers are gifts from friends. They know that I want to fill the entire refrigerator with skater, mixed martial arts and (US clothing store) Obey stickers.”

BLACK TO WHITE NA KAMA
Bukod sa gray La-Z-Boy chair na mayroong katernong basahan, marami ring dekorasyon ang kuwarto ni Jake.
“I used to have white beddings, but I did a show [‘Your Song’] where I had to put on tan body makeup.”
“I decided to turn the bedroom’s motif from white to black. It was more soothing because when I turn off the lights, it’s completely dark here. I can really sleep soundly.”
Sa closet naman masasalamin kung ano ang laman ng isip ni Jake, masasabi na siya ay organisadong tao.
Ang mga leather jackets, blazers, hats, suits, jeans at casuals ay maayos na nakalagay ng magkakahiwalay sa cabinet. Para namang display counter ang closet na para sa kanyang mga sapatos.
“I’m taking my time in choosing the paintings I’ll hang on the walls,” dagdag pa ng aktor.
Iginiit naman niya na siya at ang Star Magic Ball date (at “My Neighbor’s Wife” costar) na si Lovi Poe ay magkaibigan lamang.
“We’re having fun,” aniya. “I was able to show and share with Lovi an event that she would not otherwise experience because she’s from GMA 7.”
Natutuwa siya dahil nakatrabaho niya sa “My Neighbor’s Wife” ang mga GMA 7 artists, mula kay direk Jun Lana at costars Lovi, Dennis at Carla Abellana.
“Even though I was the only Kapamilya among the leads, the Kapuso stars didn’t make me feel like an outsider. They welcomed me and made me feel at home,” giit niya.
“I still have so many things I want to do, so many dreams I want to fulfill. That’s the message of our movie. You can’t rush into marriage if you’re not ready. Starting your own family is a big responsibility. If you’re not prepared, your partner and children would only suffer in the end.”
Ngayon ay ini-enjoy muna niya ang pagi-ging single.
Nang tanungin tungkol sa kanyang love life, kulang na lang ay isigaw niya na: “I am perfectly, happily single.”—Text at photos mula sa
Inquirer