Ashtine Olviga on best actress win at MIFF: 'Sobrang naiyak ako'

September 18 ------ Ashtine Olviga admitted that being named Best Actress at the recently concluded Manila International Festival (MIFF) in Hollywood for her performance in “Manila’s Finest” was something she never expected.

The actress-singer had previously been nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) last year but did not win.

She learned about the MIFF win from film director Raymond Red, followed by congratulatory messages from her castmates. “Unang reaction ko parang ‘Huh?’ Kasi hindi ko po in-expect,” she told us. It took a while for the news to sink in. “Sobrang naiyak ako sa tuwa, siguro mga 30 minutes din yun.”

The recognition is a proud moment that made her look back on everything she had gone through. “Nakakataba po ng puso and it made me realize na sobrang worth it lahat ng pinagdaanan ko.”

Olviga made clear that awards were never part of her mindset while working on “Manila’s Finest.” “Kapag umaarte ako wala sa mind ko na ang goal is to win an award. Gusto ko lang ibigay ang 100 percent ko palagi na kapag napanood ko wala akong regrets sa performance ko. Para sa akin e, bonus na lang ang award na makukuha ko.”

She has yet to receive her trophy, but she already knows what she plans to do with it. “Magpa-picture ako!” Olviga had planned to attend the event herself, but visa processing kept her from making the trip. “Hindi umabot sa processing pero we really tried. Hindi lang umabot talaga.”

She dedicated the recognition to her family and supporters, while giving special thanks to God. “Unang-una po talaga si Lord kasi yung mga nagawa ko hindi ko magagawa kung hindi Niya ako binigyan ng strength to actually do it.” Now, she is preparing to move forward with the recognition behind her. “Kasi parang biglang maraming expectation ang mga tao," she explained. "Pero I will try and put that aside para hindi magulo ang isip ko. Gusto ko pa rin po na gawin pa rin yung dati kong ginagawa, to give my best performance in every role in the sense na maramdaman ng mga manonood yung pinagdaraanan ng character ko.”

Source: mb.com.ph