Let me start by saying that I have taken acting courses as part of my film studies at the New School in the East Coast. I have learned that all the acting heavyweights adapted the Stanislavsky Method of Acting. In his book, Stanislavsky wrote about how actors have to take their inner selves and use them as their device for character internalization. This method applies to the acting style that Nora Aunor followed throughout her film career.

This was evident in her very first serious role, Mario O’Hara’s Tatlong Taong Walang Diyos. A perfect example would be the scene wherein Rosario (Aunor) is standing near a cliff, wanting to kill her newborn child. The camera zoomed into a closeup of her, making us the viewer feel the confusion, anger, and despair through her eyes. Her face registered all those emotions effectively that what we are watching on the screen is Rosario and not Nora Aunor. In Minsan May Isang Ina, the underrated Maryo J. de los Reyes masterpiece, Ruth (Nora) after learning of her old boyfriend’s (Herbert Corpuz) happy family life gets home, goes straight to her bedroom unable to contain herself, breaks down, and finally cries. You can definitely feel Ruth’s anguish by utilizing a simple facial expression. [See video.]

Film acting in the Philippines required actors to shed buckets of tears until they’re blue in the face. When an actor can shed a tear on cue everyone is mesmerized and is suddenly proclaimed as the country’s greatest performer. Filipinos are, and have always been, fascinated with hysterics, thinking that it is the best form of dramatic acting—an indulgence that I also found myself enjoying, but not until I exposed myself to films from around the world and learned to appreciate the finer points of filmmaking.

In every film Aunor made from the mid-’70s to the late ’90s, we never saw her face filled with tears when she cried in every dramatic scene from her movies. This is what’s called internal character buildup. Nora, a thinking actress, understands that to be more effective, she simply has to immerse herself into the character’s psyche, which she does to near perfection. With a good director guiding her, the result is incandescent cinema. Aunor is a brilliant actress for she truly understands the aesthetics of film by continuing to give us unparalleled performances through her extraordinary acting skills.

Like any other Nora Aunor follower, I do believe that there are still some more great performances left in her. After all, Nora Aunor is the Greatest Filipino Performer of All Time.

From the Original Nora Aunor Yahoogroup

"Minsan May Isang Ina Breakdown Scene"
You tube video uploaded by NCVFilms