How not to talk to a movie star

Having slept for only one hour, I expected to sleep like a baby on the plane from Cagayan de Oro to Manila. But it was not meant to be. I saw a familiar face walking towards the row where I was seated. He placed his luggage on the compartment over my head and asked to be excused as he squeezed himself into his seat. I have seen his face in numerous advertisements, and in the entertainment pages of broad sheets. Derek Ramsey was my seatmate on the plane!

Thoughts came flashing through my mind. How do I strike a conversation with Derek Ramsey? Minutes passed and I could not think of anything that I thought would be of interest to him. Was he concerned that the income tax rates are so high? Can I ask his comments on the elections? Did he know Secretary Jesse Robredo? What does he think are the problems of education? What are his views on poverty? Since I had not seen any of his movies, I could not start a conversation by complimenting him on his acting. Should I ask about Angelica Panganiban? I was afraid that he may take the question as passe, irrelevant or too personal.

And so the hour flew without me saying anything. I knew that the staff members who were on the same plane would pillory me for foregoing the opportunity of taking a selfie or just taking a photograph of a movie idol. I should have asked him to like the Facebook page of Synergeia which could significantly increase the number of hits on our page. Or perhaps I could have invited him to speak in our national conference. The views of an actor on development, governance, or education should be interesting.

But nothing of these possibilities happened. It was a repeat of a similar experience when I was seated beside Robin Padilla and his wife Mariel Rodriguez on a plane going to Dubai. Almost every Filipino on the plane asked to pose beside the couple. But I stayed quiet on my seat for almost 8 hours pretending to be unmindful of their presence. I did not even say "Hello."

I cannot explain what makes me dumfounded before celebrities. I had the courage to speak in front of Presidents and legislators. But, what is it in celebrities that I could not relate to?

I once read that we experience a greater feeling of self-awareness in front of celebrities. We overthink of what to say resulting to a greater feeling of anxiety. Our goal of creating a good impression serves as a roadblock to our spontaneity. We are also uncertain if they would consider a conversation an intrusion into their private space.

Unconsciously, we may also be thinking that celebrities have less interest and knowledge on what is familiar to us. Our tendency thus is to conform with what we think is their world which is different from ours. I plead guilty for stereotyping celebrities – that their main concerns are movies, parties, and luxurious living. But for all I know, Derek Ramsey would be as familiar with issues on public finance. Didn't I read that he won his tax evasion case against BIR? I should have given him a hearty "congratulations!"

And so I missed the chance of telling my friends that I was with a celebrity even just through a photograph. But I must begin to understand that persons regardless of their celebrity status are humans who have concerns similar to ours. They are bothered by the traffic, alarmed with the impending El Niño, unhappy with taxes, and are concerned with unemployment and poverty. Like us, they are afraid that people warm up to them because they have a favor to ask. They are as wary of suckers and are as welcoming to strangers who are genuinely interested to know them better.

I look with hopeful anticipation to my next airplane ride. Who knows, Robert Downey could be my next seatmate. To prep me up, I promise to see more movies and watch the entertainment channel more often. But what the heck, he would be more knowledgeable on American politics and Hillary Clinton.

mguevara@synergeia.org.ph