Direk Wenn Deramas : no regrets about "Dyosa"

By Rachelle Siazon
Source: beta.abs-cbn.com

Direk Wenn Deramas admitted that the delayed debut of Dyosa was largely due to the meticulous attention needed for the show’s special effects, something which he believes is very crucial to any fantaserye.

"Originally, July 7 [ang premiere ng Dyosa), yun naman talaga ang target. Pero ang nangyari kasi, sa dami ng effects ng Dyosa, hindi kinaya talaga." He further explained, "Namili kami kung pangit [ang maipalabas] o maghintay kami ng at least isang buwan para mapaganda ng husto [yung effects]. So siyempre pinili naming magpalabas ng maganda kaysa naman magpalabas pangit."

The director was supposed to handle I Love Betty La Fea when a sudden change of plans prompted him to take over Dyosa. When asked if he regretted not being able to spearhead the Colombian franchise, Direk Wenn honestly replied, "Of course gustong-gusto ko yung Betty kasi talagang umupo ako dun sa brainstorming, nakialam ako sa kwento, kasama ako sa presentations... kaya lang alam din ng management na kung ano yung hawak ko ngayon, dun ko binibigay yung puso ko. So nung binigay nila sa akin yung Dyosa, alam na nila na hindi ko ito bibitawan para sa mas naunang proyekto sana."

Making Dyosa is certainly no easy feat. Building the set for a wedding scene, for instance, took their production design team about a month before it was completed. Anne Curtis and the rest of the cast also had to go through the tedious process of donning prosthetics which takes hours to apply. "Yung mga walang prosthetics bugbog naman sa effects. Say yung mga unano (played by Jojit Lorenzo and Rubi-Rubi), ang isang eksena ng unano limang beses kinukunan. Three to four times naman yung triplets (Nikki Bacolod). So mahirap. Eh masokista kaming lahat so nag-eenjoy kami," he quipped.

Direk Wenn has no regrets of working on Dyosa instead of Betty. In fact, he feels blessed because he has such understanding stars who have no qualms about their roles, no matter how hard they are. "Kailangan ‘pag ganito yung programa dapat mababait lahat yung artista. Kung hindi si Anne Curtis yun na pagkatapos ng eksena, hubad, palit ng buhok at makeup, [tapos diretso] salang, siguro hindi magiging successful ang isang programa. At dun ako happy dahil lahat sila mababait."

As to Dyosa being compared to another series featuring a mermaid, Direk Wenn confidently responded, "Yung competition ayoko mawala. Kasi yun yung challenge sa amin pare-pareho, para pagbutihan namin yung ginagawa namin at ang makikinabang ay yung mga manunuod."

Dyosa will start airing on Monday, August 11, right after The Singing Bee on Primetime Bida.

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