Early this month, Oscar-winning actress Melissa Leo famed for her role in “21 Grams,” “Frozen River,” “The Fighter,” “The Most Hated Woman in America,” among others, was in town for a week to mentor young talents from Star Magic, Sparkle, Star Worx, and the Aktor PH Guild in “Acting for the Screen and Set 2026” hosted by the Film Development Council of the Philippines, in partnership with the Fest Film Lab.

“I never meant to go to Hollywood,” says the 65-year-old actress. “I just act, and I think the future is in world cinema and co-production, that is why I work with Filipe Pereira (Fest Film Lab) to go around the world.”

This was Melissa’s first trip to the country. “The thing that everyone at home and everywhere around the world says about you people, you are the kindest, most open-hearted, loving people, and I find it’s true,” muses the Primetime Emmy awardee.

She had a heartfelt impression of Filipinos. “I know there is so much more to see here,” she added. Training 22 teen actors in one room was a unique encounter for her. “A real close experience with those wonderful young actors, all the people in the room, was just so special for me,” she reminisced.

Based in the US, she stays in a rural area, two hours away from New York City. “In the hills, a little country road with my animals, but I have a small apartment in New York City, in the Upper East Side.”

During the workshop, she told the young stars, “Sometimes, we are born in just the right place. And sometimes, we have to go someplace else to find their home.”

The 2011 Golden Globe awardee for “The Fighter” volunteers, “And I think I was born in the right place in New York because I always come back.”

Does she have a favorite actor? “I hardly say favorite, but Denzel (Washington) is a beautiful human being,” she reveals. “I love working with him.” They were both cast in “The Equalizer” and “Equalizer 2.” “Others are famous and quite difficult to work with,” the Manhattan-born actress laughs.

Melissa chooses a project based on a good story and the director. “It’s not the money,” she tells us. “First, it’s the story, the script, and if I can make a relation with the director, understand why they are doing this, maybe help them make a little better than it is, then this, I really like.”

“I did a Paramount film, and when I get home, it will be released. It is called ‘Passenger,’” recalls Melissa. Directed by André Øvredal, the film is about a young couple who witnessed a highway accident and began to grasp that the passenger won't stop until it kills them both.

Melissa spoke with the Norwegian director whose early film, “Trollhunter,” impressed her. “I really don’t care what this movie is all about,” she says. “I think I will go have fun with him, and so I did. Super fun time working with André!”

With “Frozen River,” most actors would not have even thought of doing the movie. Director Courtney Hunt made a short film before making it into a full-length feature. “It was one of the best films I would ever be in,” she reiterates. “It’s not the paycheck.” The film won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival.

This summer, Melissa is set to start production with genre auteur Sean Byrne in “The Mannequin,” produced by Sixth Dimension, a genre label by Studiocanal. The film is described as “an original, violent and blistering high-stakes thriller.”

She met veteran actor Tirso Cruz III while he was on a quick visit to the workshop. “I could tell he is quite well-known, and I felt ashamed I didn’t know who he was, because that’s how we are in the US, we only know ourselves,” she confesses. “I could feel from him, not that he is an important man, or his accomplishment, but I could see he is an actor.”

Melissa asked me for his background and a link to his works, and when I told her he was a former matinee idol, she says: “Now, I really want to see him (his works).”

There was one fruit available in Cubao Market that left a mark on her taste buds. “I love the mangosteen!” she smiles. “I never had a mangosteen before.”

Managed by The Gersh Agency, she had acting jobs in India, Pakistan, and Hong Kong.

Is she willing to shoot in the Philippines? “Yes, please tell all the filmmakers here, I would like to come back,” she exclaims.