ANDREA Garcia, the perky granddaughter of Marissa Delgado who’s now with Viva, appears in one mini-series after another. She was first seen in “Iskandalo” directed by Roman Perez Jr, then “High on Sex” directed by GB Sampedro and “Secrets of a Nympho” directed by Shugo Praico, where she played the girlfriend of a closet queen played by Jiad Arroyo.

She now topbills a new series, “Lovely Ladies Dormitory”, directed by Mervyn Brondial. How come she’s doing mostly mini-series like this?

“Hindi ko naman po ginusto ‘yun,” she says at the zoom presscon of “Lovely Ladies Dormitory”. “Nagkataon lang na puro series ang ibinibigay sa akin ng Viva. Alangan naman tanggihan ko e nagi-start pa lang po ang career ko. Nakagawa rin naman ako ng movie, ‘Alapaap’, for Direk Brillante Mendoza at maganda ang role ko roon as a wild girl who is bisexual. May boyfriend ako pero, may girlfriend din po ako.”

And what is her role in “Lovely Ladies Dormitory”? “I play Tracy, one of the five girls in the story. The others are Tiffany Grey, Julia Victoria, Yen Renee and Hershie de Leon. Sa grupo namin, ako na lang po ‘yung virgin kasi I come from a conservative family in the South. Tapos, I’ve finished na po law proper and I’m staying here in Manila to review for my coming bar exams.”

She says her role as Tracy is different from any of her previous roles. “I’ve done mostly sexy roles na wild and crazy ang character ko, but this time, in ‘Lovely Ladies Dormitory’, it’s a different kind of persona, a very sophisticated and romantic Andrea naman ang makikita rito ng viewers. The best thing I learned from my character, who’s a lawyer, is that you should learn to speak for yourself, know your rights, and seek justice when you’ve been violated.”

How is it working with Alma Moreno as their senior co-star in the series and with Director Mervyn Brondial? “It’s my first time to work with both of them and they’re both helpful. It’s really interesting to work with Ms. Alma kasi she’s a veteran actress and you can learn a lot from her. She’s spontaneous and natural as an actress. Pagdating niya sa set, in character na agad siya. Si Direk naman, alam niyang lahat kami sa main cast, puro baguhan, so he gave us an acting workshop at inalalayan niya talaga kami all throughout.”

So how is it working with the other new girls in the cast? “We became like sisters. The workshop helped kasi we quickly jelled together. You can see yung friendship na nabuo sa amin on screen.

We gave our full trust to each other kasi lagi kaming magkakasama, so nagsasabihan na kami ng secrets namin sa isa’t isa. There’s no attempt na sapawan ang bawat isa. We help each other para one take lang ang eksena at kapag mahirap ang scene, we push and encourage each other na sige lang, kaya mo yan.”

What’s her most memorable scene in the show? “My character, si Tracy, has a breakdown scene and I have to make hugot sa totoong pain na naramdaman ko sa buhay ko. I was a big dork in high school. Binu-bully ako a lot kasi pangit daw ako, mataba kasi ako. Pero from ugly duckling gumanda naman ako in college. But mahirap, masakit alalahanin ‘yung mga pinagdaanan ko, but it’s good my co-stars were all there to make me feel better and heal the pain I felt during the shoot.”

She says those who have experienced dorm life would be able to relate to the experiences of the five girls in the show. “Totoo ‘yung mga sitwasyong ipinapakita rito. Kagaya noong nakawan ng panty, totoo ‘yun. I’ve lived in a dorm at hindi ko na mabilang ang nawalang panty sa akin. This will resonate with those who have experienced dorm life.”

What can she say to netizens who bash them for disrobing before the camera? “Ako, dedma lang. I know myself enough and I don’t really care what other people would say about my choice of career. Showing skin doesn’t mean that I’m a bad person. Basta I feel empowered to do what’s needed for my career. Pag may narinig ako, pasok sa isang tenga, labas sa kabila.”

Don’t miss “Lovely Ladies Dormitory” when it starts streaming on Vivamax on December 18!