She’s hot property. But rid the thought that Kristina Cassandra Concepcion is living in a glass tower. KC is anything but a spectator. She muses on the facets of her charmed life.

Where she gets her energy
“I get so much energy from people. That’s the kind of person I am, though sometimes it works against me because people expect to feed off me. I like being around people who have all these ideas in their heads, who aren’t too calculated about things.”

The Downside of Showbiz
“I see the rivalry now between artists and managers. It’s hard when people play dirty. There are other actresses my age whose management teams make fun of me. But I guess that’s showbiz; the management teams come up with these tactics of destruction.”

Work-Life Balance
“More than half of the pie is work. I’ve waited so long to be doing this (acting) that’s why I just jumped into it and made it my life. I know that if I didn’t do any of this stuff I’d end up blaming somebody else or will be frustrated when I’m old and gray thinking I wasted my youth.”

Acting
“A lot of people love this work whether they’re in it or not. Whether they get breaks or not, there’s someone who loves this more than I do. I love it so much. It works well when you’re young because a lot of it is dependent on how you look, your energy, how you can cope and keep up with the time frames and the lack of sleep. I have crazy, crazy schedules but now us the best time to take on that kind of thing.”

Heartbreak
“In a way I’m a sucker for the pain. I actually like the feeling because then you feel alive. When I fall in love, I really give a lot and I go crazy when I fall all over.”

Relationships
“If there’s anything that got to give, it would probably be my love life. Right now, I’m listening to mushy songs, fantasizing. It takes two to tango in a relationship…And I’m not about to go and make a baby soon. It’s amazing how some people put two and two together in their own way and it just does not relate to you.”

Working with the UN
“I always remind myself that movies and music are entertainment, but my work with the UN is reality. But I also know I wouldn’t have been in that position had I not been exposed in entertainment. So I know that they kind of work together in that way.”

Ending Child Hunger
“It’s the most basic need. It’s the most logical thing to fight for. To end hunger, you have to inform yourself, do research, know what the situation is, just how bad it is in the Philippines; or how much better or worse it is compared to Africa or Myanmar.”

The Challenge Facing Youth
“In general, people are losing hope and people feel that they can do more outside the country and are learning less about the workings of the Philippines. I only learned to appreciate this when I left because then I wanted to know more of what was going on here.

Being A Person of Influence]
“I don’t feel comfortable thinking of myself like that. I never see myself as someone who spearheads. I feel like I’m part of a big, big team and I feel like I’m just one of them and that works well for me.”

What She Learned From the French
“I don’t like getting into people’s business. I think I learned this from Parisians. They’re very discreet and very subtle about things. I’ll always be Filipino. I’ve just been lucky enough to see different countries and meet different people and that helped me to stop judging people so much and boxing people I certain categories.”

Her Lucky Break
“Up to this day, I still wonder; what did I do to deserve all these things I am doing now? (Doing my UN work) is just my way of giving back. I still see it that way-that with every good thing that comes in my life; I am humbled. Everything I do is personal to me so that’s why it’s hard for me to see it as a way to make money or a way to gain fame.”

A.K.A CASSANDRA
“I’ve been writing songs since I was young. I grew up around musicians and artists, dancers. Music is a more personal medium because you actually create it. In a movie you play a role; you play someone else’s life. It’s an eclectic album and it’s meant to be that way.”

Being Thrilled to Hear Herself
“ I was on my set shooting for my movie and it was really late-3am somewhere on Timog in QC. This 4x4 drives by with the windows rolled down and a song from my album, “It Must Have Been Love,” was playing really loud. I was really excited about that! And in the middle of the scene I’m like, “That’s my album! That’s me!” Of course, the director had to yell ‘Cut!’ ”

Fashion
“I like clothes that may not be high fashion but there’s still a punch and colors that give you energy. If I’m going to wear something loud, I like to keep the cut simple and not have too many things going on at one time. There are days when you want to blend in and days when you don’t. On the days that you don’t, you have to be careful because you don’t want to come on too strong.”
“The One”
“I don’t know if I believe in ‘The One.’ The guy has to make me fall in love more than I fell in love the first time. That’s why I’m in trouble right? I don’t mean to be too idealistic. I’m just rockin’ and rollin’ right now. I haven’t met the guy either and I’m just so focused on work. It would be so unfair to the guy that we’re not spending time together. I don’t even know when I want to settle down.”

Her Team Up With Richard Gutierrez
“I realize that the ‘love team’ is really a big part of Philippine pop culture. It’s unavoidable. At this point, we’re good friends and we are honest about whatever we feel. That we’re both young and we’re busy, I think that’s the great bit because then you’re productive.”

Being on the Spotlight
“It’s kind of like The Truman Show. When I saw that movie I was moved because I felt like a big chunk of my life isn’t like the rest. I started thinking of how people related to me in the context of ‘You came from two of our favorite movie stars’ and how I grew up with these people. I realized how much of my parents’ life was entertainment. But for me it was a really sensitive topic.”

Actresses She Admires
“I look up to people who age gracefully because of their work for others like Audrey Hepburn and Angelina Jolie who come from different stages in their lives but end up being so committed to something. I can only wish to do half of what they’ve done.”