MANILA -- Creating a love team and sustaining the pair’s popularity takes a lot of time and huge effort. Doing successful projects together is important to maintain the star value of the love team through years.

Similarly, departing from the popular partnership is a huge effort, especially in exploring projects with other partners onscreen.

When Xian Lim decided to work with other leading ladies after his love team with real-and-reel partner Kim Chiu, it wasn’t initially easy for him.

“There was fear when Kim and I first talked about working with other artists,” Lim told ABS-CBN News. “We really did have to talk about it. Then we decided not to work together as often anymore..

“We both laid down our cards and I think that was healthy. We asked ourselves, ‘After this, should we keep on working with each other or should we accept projects with different partners?’

“We came to terms with that maybe we had to pause and work with others to be able to grow individually. That was the hard for me because we got to work with each other and we would miss each other.”

However, Lim admitted parting ways with Chiu when it comes to work was “healthy” for both of them.

“We are not just love team partners, we are also in a relationship,” he explained. “So we really had to talk about it.

“Working with different leading ladies, I think I do watch their work and that’s just having your respect for your co-actor. That also helps in building your rapport.

“Wala kayong pinagsamahan. You don’t know how you’ll work with each other. It’s very tricky, because both your worlds are different and finding that chemistry for the big screen that’s difficult. I do my research as much as I can.”

Last January, Lim worked at the helm of the comedy-fantasy film, “Hello, Universe.” This time around, he’s back acting in front of the cameras in the romance-drama, “Sa Muli,” where he is paired for the first time with Ryza Cenon.

• Movie review: Xian Lim, Ryza Cenon prove dramatic chops in 'Sa Muli'

Before working with Cenon, Lim said he even went to the extent of stalking his leading lady.

“I checked her IG [Instagram],” he disclosed. “I Googled her, checked her on YouTube. I looked at her TV shows. It really helped.”

“Sa Muli” is a romantic drama about reincarnation. At the helm is Fifth Solomon, who also wrote the screenplay as early as 2018, after watching a lot of documentaries about reincarnation. He consulted with historians for the eras that date back to the 1900s, then 1950s and the present time.

Although it is their first time to work together, Lim and Cenon didn’t have a hard time adjusting to each other.

Lim enjoyed working with his first-time leading lady. “Ryza always had her game face on,” Lim recalled. “I had the tendency to be makulit on the set. I want to enjoy the environment. I talk to everyone, then I would always joke around.

“Ryza is really an actress. I think that helped a lot for us to get into character and stick to the vision that Fifth had. We just enjoyed our shoot.

“We were initially worried how we would do three eras. But we trusted each other and our director to execute all the scenes.”

On their first day, Lim and Cenon had no choice but to shoot their first love scene together.

“I needed to see if the partnership would work,” Solomon said. “That was why we had to do love scenes right away.”

“Sa Muli” wrapped up filming in February 2022. It is now showing in cinemas.

“Xian and Ryza are both collaborative as actors,” Solomon commented. “They know the right attack to the role. Very light ang shoot namin kahit mahirap ang make-up at costume change, kinaya talaga namin. We just enjoyed the shoot.”