Piolo Pascual due to work on four film projects prior to COVID-19 pandemic

Count Piolo Pascual among the millions of Filipinos whose livelihoods have been disrupted by the public health emergency stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.

On Thursday, June 11, the actor and film producer revealed that he was due to work on four projects this year, until the pandemic shut down film and television productions nationwide and around the world.

Piolo Pascual looks to reinvent self as 4 films stalled due to pandemic | ABS-CBN Entertainment

Speaking during a Facebook live stream of Sun Life Philippines, a life insurance company he endorses, Piolo said, “I was so booked. I had so many pending work.”

We are LIVE now in today’s #SunTalks with Piolo Pascual! Also joining us is Sun Life PH Sales Training & Development…

Aside from those film projects, Piolo shared that he was also set to film an episode of an “ABS-CBN special” in New York. He was also supposed to go on a concert tour, but that, too, has been postponed.

“It was unprecedented. Nobody was prepared for it,” said Piolo of the global health crisis, admitting that he has been “really so anxious” to return to work following the community quarantine imposed to stem the spread of COVID-19.

Nevertheless, Piolo had made sure to stay “productive” as an actor amid the months-long lockdown.

Aside from his participation in virtual fundraising programs and online shows, Piolo shared that he had made himself busy by “reading books, [learning, and evaluating] what I did before and how I can be better as an actor.”

Development of his film projects have since continued, said Piolo, by coordinating closely with his directors and writers.

“I’m just excited, because when we get back to work, it’s like starting again. It’s like being a new actor again, and I’m looking forward to that,” he said.

Piolo Pascual says Spring Films is cutting down projects

According to Piolo, while the lockdown has disrupted his livelihood—as it has for thousands of other workers in the film industry—it has afforded him time to reflect on his career.

“I just keep on growing as a person, as an artist. Iyon ‘yung reflection. Ano pa ba ang puwede kong gawin? How can I reinvent myself? How can I evolve?” he said.

“You have to quiet down. I would spend so much time alone just meditating, praying, sometimes just thinking nothing, just looking out at the horizon. We all need that,” he added.