MANILA -- When indie film producer-director Shandii Bacolod passed on last June at the age of only 37 in Bangkok, Thailand, he left behind film projects and talents whom he was also managing.

One of the artists under Bacolod’s wing was Italian-Canadian actor Nico Locco, whose acting career Bacolod helped start in the Philippines and later opened opportunities for him in the film industry.

“Shandii was a highly respected person in the industry,” Locco told ABS-CBN News. “He touched a lot of lives. Throughout his career as a producer and eventually as a director, it was just sad that he didn’t explore his career as a director.

“He really wanted to do that. He really wanted to pursue being a director. He had an amazing life. One of the best filmmakers that I’ve ever met. I met some amazing filmmakers in the past, but Shandii’s roots were really different.”

Locco will always be thankful to Bacolod, who taught him how to navigate showbiz in the Philippines. “He taught me to value myself,” he admitted. “Learn when to say yes and when to say no. Understand if it’s a good opportunity or not.

“Every entertainment industry is really different. You need to know how to navigate yourself properly and know the right opportunities. Shandii taught me how to value myself.

“Shandii really showed me the way. Before, I just wanted to be an artist. I was hungry. You just said, ‘Yes, yes, yes’ to everything. I just wanted to work. I wanted a grind. You forgot your value as an artist.

“I want to get my name up there. But just breathe. If it’s not meant for you, maybe there’s the next one. There will be more opportunities and projects. Shandii taught me the value of that and it really helped me in increasing my premium as an artist.

“Sometimes you accept things that are not good projects or low quality. You are being underrated with a TF [talent fee] that’s not right. Knowing how to say yes and no. It’s hard. I know other artists struggle with that.”

Although Locco did only one project with Bacolod, the boys’ love (BL) series, “Love at the End of the World,” the actor is nonetheless thankful for the opportunity to work with the producer-director.

“Just the way he directed that series, I learned more about myself as a person and as an actor,” Locco said. “He said I can do everything I wanted to do as an actor. ‘You have the tools, Nico,’ he told me.

“He said, ‘I’m not going to treat you like my talent in this project. You’re not my talent. You’re just another actor and I’m going to be hard on you if you’re not performing’.”

Locco, whose real name is Nicholas Timothy Fowler, didn’t plan to start an acting career in the Philippines. Things merely fell into place after he met actress Nadine Lustre in Indonesia in 2016 and opportunities to work in Manila started coming in for him.

“Seven years ago, I went to the Viva office and met some of the people, but at that time, I was just starting my career,” he shared. “Fast forward to six years later, I’ve gone to so many ups and downs, ins and outs in my career.”

There was no plan for Locco to work here. “I was working as an actor in Los Angeles for three years. I had a project with an Indonesian-American production, so I went to Jakarta to shoot for three months.”

The big-budget film was “Red Christmas,” shot in Indonesia in 2016. “I had many off days, so I did some hosting on the side,” Locco said. “There was an event that featured artists all over Asia and the one who represented the Philippines was Nadine Lustre. We met and became friends.”

Two months later, Lustre invited him to come to the Philippines to shoot a music video, “Stay Up,” her hit single. That was in 2017 when the song became viral on YouTube.

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“It was kind of a foot in the door for me,” Locco admitted. “I didn’t have plans to stay here in the Philippines. That was just a project for a week. But other projects came. One after the other. So I just kept on extending.”

One month turned into six months and then was extended to one year. Before Locco knew it, he already had a film project, Carlo Alvarez’s “Sabado,” in the Philippines. The film earned for Locco the best actor trophy in the Gawad Sining Awards in 2019.

Initially, he turned down the role since it was too Filipino. “I didn’t even speak Tagalog at that time,” Locco recalled. “Maybe 10 percent only. But I told them to give me time to study the language. I realized I need to learn how to speak Tagalog.”

He spent two months studying the language with a Batangueño personal teacher. “That’s why my accent was a little bit Batangueño,” he disclosed. “People were enamored by that. I ended up winning best actor for that film.

“When I won best actor for ‘Sabado,’ that was kind of a light bulb turning on, representing the Philippines was a good place for me to stay. Maybe, going back to L.A. wasn’t the right option for me.

“That was what kind of encouraged me to pursue my career here in the Philippines. I realized I really need to learn how to speak Tagalog for me to understand and to further myself as an actor in this industry.

“I can’t always speak English. I need to understand Tagalog, too, to start getting bigger roles and understand the flow and direction on the set.”

Also in 2019, Locco had another project, Alvin Yapan’s period drama, “Culion,” where he played an American soldier and worked with Iza Calzado, Meryll Soriano and Jasmine Curtis-Smith.

The film, that was an entry to the Metro Manila Film Festival that year, was produced by Bacolod. “That was a big break for me and it really just propelled my career,” Locco offered.

“I was always wowed by Shandii’s work and his talent as a producer and eventually as a director for ‘Love at the End of the World.’ He became my manager, as well. I have lots to thank Shandii for. We are all deeply saddened with what happened to him.”

Recently, Locco officially signed up a management contract with Viva Artists Agency (VAA). “I think the time is right,” he said. “I’m happy that Viva officially signed me up now. I’m more ready as an artist.

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“I have a lot more things to offer as an actor and as a host. I’m super excited now. I’m ready for many more years to come with Viva and a bright future with them.”

Locco’s upcoming projects with Viva include a film with director Joey Reyes and an international reality show to be filmed in the Philippines. “The ball is rolling,” he beamed.

He is more than ready to claim the title “Vivamax King,” even showing his sexy body. “Before, I was not ready to show my body,” Locco insisted. “That wasn’t really my branding.

“Today, after doing ‘Love at the End of the World,’ where I wasn’t wearing anything for 70 percent of the film, I can jump right into that bold star category and I’m ready to embrace it now that I’m here with Viva.”

He does not set any restrictions when it comes to doing roles. “I am ready for anything,” he asserted. “I’m ready for anything to take on any certain challenge. I just hope that I want to work hard and give everything I have as an actor.”

Locco expresses his desire to work with Anne Curtis, Yassi Pressman and even up-and-coming sexy star Christine Bermas. He also loves to share the screen with the likes of Marco Gumabao and Marco Gallo.

“It’s no easy journey in showbiz,” Locco admitted. “I always tell the younger artists they have to think twice before joining showbiz. There are lots of ups and downs, a lot of people saying false things about you all the time.

“It’s really out of your control. At the end of the day, you can’t control what people say about you. I realized that year after year. But I love this business. I loved it since I was a kid.”

Since he was 18, Locco had been attending acting workshops because his dad, who was a director in Hollywood, was putting him into acting workshops every week. “So I was exposed in the business at a young age,” he said.

“My dad was probably the number one reason I started an acting career. When you’re ten years old, you were just having fun and you just want to be with your friends. You still didn’t know what you wanted to be in your life.”

However, acting became Locco’s passion. “I wanted to be an actor because of Tom Cruise, I confirmed that dream. Watching Tom onscreen was really refreshing. That’s why I chose to be an actor since I was a kid. I was doing workshops.”

Locco also idolizes Jared Leto, who played a drug addicted transgender and won an Oscar as best supporting actor for Jean Marc Vallee’s “Dallas Buyers’ Club” (2013). “He has a lot of great films,” Locco said of Leto. “He played really good characters.”

The 26-year-old actor never forgets the lessons he learned early on in his career. “One thing my dad and my peers were saying, ‘Train, train, train.’ Even if you don’t have projects, just keep fine-tuning your skills.

“The thing with acting, it’s not one of those things you wake up to from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day. It was really an up and down journey. I’m much more refined and fine-tuned now that I signed up with Viva.

“I owe a lot to my supporters and to Shandii. His spirit lives on in me. I could really feel him around me. Whenever I was going to be late, I would hear his voice, ‘Don’t be late.’ That’s one of my drawbacks. I am always late.

“But this is my journey. I hope to still continue forward. It’s never easy, like it’s so much struggle. Outside of show business, I love being here in the Philippines. It makes me happy.”