Exclusive, Livi Ciananta Dares To Leave Her Comfort Zone In Acting

JAKARTA - Artist Livi Ciananta successfully made her debut in the action film genre by playing the role of Bonnie in the film entitled Bonnie which was produced by the production house Tawang Khan Production, starring alongside Ariyo Wahab and Nadila Ernesta. The film Bonnie itself can be watched in all Indonesian cinemas since February 29.

In an exclusive interview with VOI, Livi tried to tell about the beginning of her career in the world of acting and the challenges of getting out of her comfort zone as an introvert to pursue a career in the entertainment world, especially acting.

Livi said that her initial desire to enter the world of acting was due to the influence of her parents who had already entered this world. She still remembers very well when her parents invited her to participate in the filming process to become a model.

"So I got involved in the entertainment world because my father and mother were already in entertainment first. So when I was little, I often saw them filming or maybe modeling and all that, so I felt this world was interesting. It's just that I didn't pursue it from the start, I only thought about going into entertainment after graduating from college. So after graduating from college, I didn't continue with what I took in college, instead, I took an acting class and I immediately tried learning by doing in advertisements," said Livi Ciananta at the VOI Office, Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, recently.

Apart from that, having an interest in enjoying films and wanting to experience being a film actor is another motivation for this 25-year-old woman. In the end, this convinced Livi to take acting classes to hone the skills she had always dreamed of.

"Well, maybe I think it feels good to see my parents first, right? Then I also like to watch films continuously. Have you ever watched a film when you've watched it and felt like the actor? So, just like that, I felt, 'I think it would be fun if I actually played a role in a film or whatever'," she added.

"So, that's what finally moved me to take action and take an acting class because I felt maybe this was one of the skills I had because personally, I felt I didn't have that much of a skill, that's why I tried to hone it with acting classes and tried to focus on the world of acting," she explained.

Even so, Livi admitted that acting was not her first choice as a field she wanted to pursue. She even thought about becoming a female police officer, or a policewoman, but the more she came here, the more she realized that her abilities were not there, as were other artistic fields such as singing or presenting.

“Yes, I really just want to be a successful person. I want to be a good human being. Because it's a bit strange when I was a kid I always wanted to be a policewoman, but looking at it now it seems like it's hard, right? So, there's nothing too specific," said Livi.

“It's impossible to be a musician, I can't play music, my voice is flat. Presenting is also impossible because I think I still have a lot to learn about public speaking and I happen to be an introvert so my energy runs out easily. For example, if I become an MC and presenter I have to meet lots of people, that's draining, so I focus directly on acting," she explained.

Luckily, having parents who are experienced in the same field as her makes it easier for Livi to achieve her dream. Although initially this woman who graduated from Padjadjaran University was asked to focus on education before finally achieving her desire to become an actor.

"So, actually, when I was a teenager, in middle school, high school, I asked if I wanted to take part in filming too, but my parents only said 'I think you should just study first', because maybe you know better in the shooting environment when you were at school, it was like, so, in the end, they said, 'you have finished your school first, after you finish school you will decide what you want to become'," she concluded.

"Yes, it turns out, at first I was studying law, I thought 'oh I want to be a notary', but it turned out halfway through 'well I can't get in, I can't afford it', it turns out the punishment was too harsh. Finally, after graduating, I was like, 'Oh, let's just do entertainment, we'll continue with what we didn't start with before'," explained Livi.

Face the Consequences and Get Out of Comfort Zone

When she first entered the world of entertainment, Livi admitted that she had considered all the consequences she would have to face when her status changed to a public figure. One of them is being known by many people, which is very contrary to her life principle, namely upholding privacy.

But as time went by, Livi finally tried to realize and adapt to her new responsibilities, namely as a public figure, and considered it a consequence that she had to carry out from the choices she made.

"Actually, if there are any bumps in the road, I don't think too much about it, because I firmly believe that my fortune will not change. But what I was considering yesterday was when I found out that entering the entertainment world we would become public figures, well that was hard for me," explained Livi.

"Because I'm the type of person who can be said to value privacy quite highly, it's a bit difficult for me to share, in the sense that I have social media and I rarely post stories. So that's what makes it the most difficult for me to adjust. But in the end, when I have chosen this path, that is the consequence or part that I have to carry out too, so that's ok," she said.

Seeing this made Livi realize that she had to study again and push herself to get out of her comfort zone as an introvert. Even though it is a challenge in itself, Livi said that she asked a lot of people around her to become a public figure.

Livi admitted previously that this was quite a difficult matter for her. Not infrequently she tries to convince and encourage herself to get through this so she can continue working in the world of acting because she realizes that imaging is an important thing in the field she is working in.

"So I actually ask a lot of people, ask people like 'how can I be active on social media?' And it can be fan service, right? Even though I feel like I don't have fans, it's just because as a public figure, to myself, I often remind myself, 'You've started in this field, you have to understand what the needs are, come on, start being active on social media'," said Livi.

"Because when I first chose the film Bonnie, I only had 3,000 Instagram followers and I wasn't active at all, it was very normal. But it turns out branding is important, right? In the end, in my focus, I was also assisted by the promotion team, helping me to improve the quality of my social media, until finally I was helped to create content, until finally I now have 50 thousand followers, which is what they really need so that they remain aware of my existence in this industry,” she explained.

Even so, the eldest daughter of 5 siblings said that she was increasingly falling in love with the profession as an actor. The reason is, that through the world of acting, Livi feels that she can get to know her own identity in a deeper way than she may have ever experienced before.

“My fall in love is clear. I really like acting because I consider acting, acting is a place for me to get to know myself more. When I played in the film Bonnie, I was good at playing martial arts films. I didn't know that I could actually defend myself. I don't know in the future when I play other characters again, what skills I can bring out of myself. So I'm happy like that learning acting," she said.

Therefore, Livi wants to always try new things in her acting profession. She had planned to play a character who had a very different personality from her original character. According to Livi, this can help her to further explore her acting skills.

"In films, I really want to play outside the action genre, I really want to play in a crazy genre. It doesn't matter what genre it is, but I want to get a character where I'm not a normal person so you could say it's like Harley Quinn, that's weird, right? Well, I really want to get a role like that. I want to get a challenging character like that," she explained.

“Because I feel like it's more challenging because I like challenging characters. That's what I just want. Because if I act like someone who might be similar to someone like me, I'm afraid I won't be able to explore. So I want characters that are far away or I have never even been met before, I just want them to be new," concluded Livi, closing the interview with VOI.