Eugene Domingo: 'My father died and nobody knew it'

Eugene Domingo disclosed for the first time that her father passed away while she was shooting Tuhog last year. She chose to keep mum about it because she wanted to heal at her own pace. Even her movie co-star Enchong Dee was surprised when she opened up about it during the bloggers conference for Tuhog held at the ABS-CBN compound yesterday, July 9. “During the shooting, yes, dumaan talaga sa buhay ko yung mapait, tuyo, okay na rin kung matatapos na ako. And there was a point na in shooting the film my father died and nobody knew it. Quiet lang ako na may pinagdadaanan ako mag-isa na hindi naman na kailangan malaman pa ng iba. Except now kasi nakaka-recover na ako,” she began.

Push.com.ph caught up with Eugene after the blog con and she further shared how she coped with her grief. Incidentally, her role as Fiesta had father-daughter issues in the story, which probably added up to the pain of having lost her father in real life. “Last year pa yun nangyari, during our shooting, pero siyempre ako lang yun, prinoseso ko lang yun magisa, kasi yung mga bagay bagay na ganon kailangan tahimik mong ipinapagdasal. Pinagdadaanan kasi personal yun eh. Ngayon na alam ko na nasa mabuting kalagayan yung yumao kong ama at natutuwa siya. Most importantly, natutuwa siya. Sigurado ako sa magagandang bagay na nangyayari sa akin. So, payapa na rin.”

The fact that her dad had always been proud of her accomplishments helped her move forward. She said she feels more at peace with it now, which makes it easier for her to speak about it. “Sa kanya din ako kumuha ng lakas ng loob. Kasi iisipin mo lahat ng mga napagusapan namin, yung kanyang tiwala sa akin, sa pagiging artista ko, sa pagiging anak niya. Medyo naguluhan lang ako ng konti kasi I’m shooting this film about a daughter and a father, then that thing was happening to me at the same time. Iba yun.”

Aside from her father’s death, Eugene admitted that the movie also got her thinking about her purpose in life and her unwavering hope that she’ll fall in love again someday. “Si Fiesta ay isang character na nangyayari sa lahat ng babae na may longing, may inaasahan sa buhay pero parang ang layo. So, ang natutunan ko sa character ni Fiesta basta nakita ko na bubuksan ko na agad agad yung puso ko. Kailangan open ka nang lumigaya. Hindi naman lagi kang takot or lagi kang negative. Ganon yung nangyari sa character ni Fiesta. Pero nag-open siya ha?”

Eugene remains optimistic despite the challenges she went through. Perhaps it’s also the reason why she’s really good at her craft. Asked if she’s open to falling in love anytime, she cheerfully replied, “Naku, bukas na bukas ang puso ko. Wala na talaga siyang doorknob. Nakabukas na siya. Pwede na siyang pasukin kahit kailan. ‘Di ba nasa tamang edad naman na ako.”