Exclusive, Derby Romero Learns Again From The Success Of Petualangan Sherina 2 Movie

JAKARTA - At the age of 33, Derby Romero feels lucky because he was reunited with his first role in the film Petualangan Sherina, Sadam. Not all actors can bring to life characters they may have played as children, such as Sherina Munaf or Derby.

Still regarding the sequel, Derby returns as Sadam (or familiarly known as Yayang). Derby opened the day's interview by explaining his character in Petualangan Sherina 2.

“The current Sadam is the same Sadam and Yayang from 23 years ago. The difference is that Sadam is now more mature, of course and he is a responsible person," said Derby Romero, starting the story that afternoon.

"He used to be a bully, now he is a person who defends people who have no voice because he now works in wildlife conservation," he continued.

Since receiving this offer, Derby Romero admitted that he had experienced a challenge, namely that he had to design what Sadam was doing in the current era. His latest film after two years also required him to practice choreography, action and singing again.

"The first challenge was how to design Sadam, because this is not a new character, this is a character that existed 23 years ago, he was a child and now suddenly he has become an adult by going through a process and we don't know," explained Derby.

"First, I designed what he had to go through until he became the current Sadam and during yesterday's preparations, I chatted a lot with Sher (Sherina Munaf), uncle Riri (Riri Riza), I already got a sneak peek from the start of his work, and then my homework was to working there and why Sadam is the Sadam he is now," he said.

The man whose real name is Martua Rumero Derby Nainggolan decided to create core memory or the events that have the most influence on a person. According to him, this is the basic layer of Sadam's adult character.

"I made it the base for Sadam's character and from there I added other things. I designed how Sadam interacts with people, interactions with Sherina. Same with motorists scene because apart from musicals, I sing, choreograph, there is action choreography. And there's a lot of choreo action, not just fighting, there's riding little boats, motorbikes, cars, there's speedboats, yes, all of that has training, there's preparation for it all. But that was one of the most interesting and I did those scenes myself," he explained.

He continued, the process of meeting Sadam may have never been imagined. 23 years have passed, not everyone can get the same opportunity as him or Sherina. However, according to him, the meeting could always be possible.

"What's different for me is that I'm very lucky and grateful, happy to be able to play Sadam again with such a big difference from when I was 10 years old. You can see the difference in time between being an actor, this is a challenge that I think is very fun," said the Bandung-born actor.

Derby himself admitted that it was time for Petualangan Sherina to have a continuation of the story. He also did not deny that their character development was really needed and awaited by fans. But, will Petualangan Sherina continue?

"I don't know the answer to that, maybe I could ask Aunt Mira," he answered briefly.

The actor with one child considers returning to Petualangan Sherina 2 to be a blessing. More than that, the production of Petualangan Sherina 2 which was able to run until it was released is also something extraordinary.

Petualangan Sherina 2, which aired on September 28, received a positive response from the audience. This week, Miles Films announced that this film has been watched by more than 2 million viewers to date. This number is likely to continue to increase considering that the film is still being shown in cinemas.

Derby revealed that he actually learned a lot through the production of Petualangan Sherina 2. He met many old friends, including Sherina, who still led him to learn something new from this film directed by Riri Riza.

"If you are with Sher, you will definitely be very happy, because Sherina and I have never lost our friendship in the past. That's why we don't need to build chemistry here, we are always together, there are moments when we are busy, but whenever we have the opportunity, we definitely go out together, meet, go," said Derby.

“It holds up like that. We're always together and suddenly we're on another project for the first time acting together, so the existing chemistry is even more exciting and that helps us get into the scene," explained Claudia Adinda's husband.

Derby Romero also feels he learned about directing through this film. It is known that he made his debut as a director through the film Mati Anak in 2019. He and several colleagues also founded a production house as a manifestation of his desire to explore behind the scenes.

Just like working as a child in 2000, Derby also learned what he experienced when directing his first film. The horror film is dominated by the presence of children and he treats each child actor differently.

“Honestly, it helps. Maybe because I started as an actor, I probably understand what actors need when they want to enter a set, so I learned a lot precisely in terms of my acting first," he said.

"Because I started as an actor, to get into this child like this and others, but honestly I learned a lot and was able to dare to become a director because I had experience from being an actor. I learned a lot from my seniors, Uncle Riri, Bang Joko, Timo, even from my partners, I learned a lot and I was lucky to have the opportunity to learn," said Derby.

Like Sherina, Derby also had time to explore the world of singing. He formed a duo group and released an album. However, when asked about his desire to return to music, he felt he could not focus on releasing songs or musical works.

He continued, when he returned to Petualangan Sherina 2, he felt he was also returning as a singer. Derby is believed to have sung three original songs for this film through songs composed by his co-star and music director, Sherina Munaf.

"For now, my focus is still on being an actor, of course I want to return to being a director again because that's my passion, which is what I'm working on because I have PH," said Derby Romero.

“I said I could learn because from watching and I could chat. Just seeing from other director friends, senior directors, more and more Indonesian films are becoming more advanced and seeing that there are more and more senior directors who are actually motivated to quickly direct again," said Derby, who admitted that he returned to Indonesia to focus on Petualangan Sherina 2.

Derby also admitted that there are several ongoing projects that he is working on, but closing the interview that day, he hopes that continuing to be productive in the acting industry in whatever form is his wish.

"The hope is that I can always be present in this industry, both in front of and behind the scenes. One day I can be as great as senior directors who have worked a lot and made proud works in Indonesia," said Derby Romero.