the pursuit of Happiness

Good things abound in Janine Gutierrez's life right now. She doesn't need to take a break to be mindful of them all

- DIANNE MENDOZA

It's hard to pin down Janine Gutierrez as an actress. Maybe because she entered showbiz at 21, already a grown-up with full agency in her life, compared to many of her contemporaries who started much earlier as child or teen actors. She avoided the typical career path carved for many young Filipino actors, tied to love teams and fandoms. Looking at her filmography, you'd assume she's a character actor in mostly independent made-for-festival movies. On the small screen, she has played both supporting and main characters, and her breakthrough role in Dirty Linen has pushed her to teleserye royalty status. In the local industry, it can be a bad thing when you're hard to categorize in a box. But it's also what makes the 35-year-old one of the most exciting talents of her generation: she has the gravitas of a shapeshifting thespian and the grace of a star who can navigate the various facets of mainstream fame.

In person, Janine radiates so much light and warmth that you instantly root for her. From spending days abroad attending international film festivals to shooting her TV series and appearing in magazine covers, she admits she has not had that much break the past couple of months. Yet, sitting across from her after she has wrapped up a 9-hour photoshoot, you would think she has just finished writing in a gratitude journal and is ready to start her day. She starts many of her sentences with "I'm so happy" and "I'm so grateful."