MANILA -- When director Marilou Diaz-Abaya’s film, "Noon at Ngayon," premiered in 2003, Charo Santos admitted she missed acting after watching Laurice Guillen’s role in the movie. At that time, she had her hands full with corporate work as executive vice president of ABS-CBN.

“I felt sad when I watched that film because nainggit ako kay Laurice,” Santos said then. “I knew I missed acting and I wanted to act again.”

For sure, there were other roles that she secretly pined for through the years. There were acting offers that she probably secretly wished landed on her lap, instead.

Much as she wanted to give way to acting then, Santos had to prioritize her more demanding job at ABS-CBN, where she later assumed the position as chief executive officer and president, as well as executive producer of Star Cinema, the film arm of the network.

The most that Santos did in front of the cameras was to host the long-running weekly drama anthology, "Maalaala Mo Kaya," which airs every Saturday on ABS-CBN. "MMK" also aired episodes on replay on DZMM Teleradyo.

The drama anthology was nonetheless a feather on Santos’ cap. This year was a banner year for "MMK" as it marked its 25th anniversary and Santos couldn’t be any prouder. She went all over the Philippines and even reached out to letter-senders as far as Europe and the US.

“We thought it was best to make this 25th anniversary a very special experience, for the letter-senders to know na kinikilala namn sila at hindi namin nakakalimutan,” she told "MMK" fans in Davao City last May.

“Working on the show for 25 years and reaching out to other people, you would know there’s a bigger world out there. It develops your sense of empathy and compassion to other people. You become more understanding about the lives of other people.”

BEAUTY QUEEN-TURNED- ACTRESS

A statuesque looker who was foremost a beauty queen (Miss Calapan) in her native Mindoro, Santos gained national prominence when she was crowned Baron Travel Girl in 1976. Not too long after that, she was bitten by the acting bug.

There was an offer from the late director Lino Brocka. What she initially requested from her late father, Dr. Winifredo Santos, was a one-time go-see, led to another and as fate would have it, Santos was acting in front of the cameras.

She did roles for Mike de Leon’s critically acclaimed films like "Kakabakaba-Ka Ba?," "Kisapmata" and "Itim," for which she bagged the best actress trophy in 1977’s Asian Film Festival. She also had the chance to work with the late Lino Brocka in 1990’s "Gumapang Ka sa Lusak."

And there were other memorable films, like Maryo J. de los Reyes’ "Hindi Mo Ako Kayang Tapakan" and Guillen’s "Kapag Langit ang Humatol." Her last big screen appearance was in 1999’s "Esperanza: The Movie," megged by Jerry Lopez Sineneng.

Before she got deeply immersed into acting, Santos finished her Communication Arts degree and graduated cum laude from St. Paul’s College Manila. Much later, in 2007, she completed an Advanced Management Program at the Harvard Business School in Massachusetts.

Santos’s acting career came to a halt when she assumed her corporate role at ABS-CBN. Apparently, it wasn’t easy for her to give up acting, as she continued to watch films being made and actors who did challenging roles.

Yet, Santos has undoubtedly become a woman of power through the years. Her climb to the top was what many would call successful, if not enviable.

RETIREMENT

Last year, however, was her time to retire so that gave her the chance to consider an acting offer.

It took director Lav Diaz to pull Santos out of acting retirement and offer her the role of Horacia in "Ang Babaeng Humayo." She played a lady imprisoned for 30 years for a crime she did not commit. When she finally got out of jail, she plotted her revenge against her ex-boyfriend who framed her.

To long-time showbiz observers, Santos’ acting comeback wasn’t really surprising. It was only a matter of time to see her act in front of the cameras again. Plus, the right project offered to her.

“When we started filming 'Ang Babaeng Humayo,' I knew right away that I missed acting,” she said in a previous interview. “I was back to working. That was my passion.”

The setting of "Ang Babaeng Humayo" was in her hometown in Calapan, Oriental Mindoro, her personal choice. She suggested the locale and scrapped Masbate or Catanduanes, the original choices of her director.

"Ang Babaeng Humayo" won the much-coveted Golden Lion Award at the 73rd Venice Film Festival last weekend. The movie competed against entries from the US and Argentina.

A day after Venice, Santos flew to Canada to attend the showing of "Ang Babaeng Humayo" at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). There were no awards this time -- just a warm reception and kind words from Filipinos in Canada.

In her latest post on Facebook after she talked to her family on the phone as she shuttled between Venice and Toronto, Santos was truly grateful for the success of her film comeback.

“My husband reminded me that God works in mysterious ways. When I accepted the project, my only motivation was to work with Lav Diaz. I truly wanted to understand his cinema. He told me to just have fun. And oh! What great fun I’m having!

“To Lav and his team, my co-stars, to Ronald (Arguelles) and Cinema One, thank you for the honor of working with you. The film is a celebration of Philippine cinema. And to everyone who shares in my happiness, thank you! Maraming, maraming, maraming salamat po sa inyong lahat!”