IT TOOK two hours and a half to transform singer-actress Sharon Cuneta into a Filipino-Chinese for Joel Lamangan?s ?Mano Po 6: A Mother?s Love,? an entry in this month?s Metro Manila Film Festival.

Makeup artist Fanny Serrano experimented on several styles for the actress, also known as the ?Megastar? in local show biz.

?We wanted an authentic look,? Sharon told Inquirer two months ago, on the first shooting day in a five-star hotel.

She went on a shopping spree at the Shanghai Tang boutique in Hong Kong last August. ?I?ve always loved the store, but knowing that I am buying costumes for a movie made it more exciting,? she said.

Sharon bought a few throws and wraps, but confessed that she had bought silk robes and pajamas there in the past.

?I adore all things Chinese,? she said. ?There was a two-year period when I was fixated on the Cultural Revolution. All my books were on Mao Tse Tung.?

Among her other favorite books are Jung Chang?s ?Wild Swans,? Amy Tan?s ?The Joy Luck Club? and Adeline Yen Mah?s ?Falling Leaves.?

?I actually planned on studying Mandarin,? she said. ?But in this movie, I get to try Fookien.?

She has an extensive collection of Chinese movies in her DVD library, from revered classics starring Gong Li to chop-socky fare top-billed by Jet Li.

?But my one true love is Bruce Lee,? Sharon said. ?I was probably the only 7-year-old student in St. Paul?s who mourned Bruce Lee?s death in 1973.?

Sharon, who once recorded a duet (?In Your Eyes?) with Cantopop superstar Andy Lau, surely tapped into her romance with Oriental culture in playing her role as a Fil-Chinese matriarch in the sixth installment of the ?Mano Po? franchise.

In a key scene shot in a Chinese temple in Quezon City, she took pains to learn the rituals from real-life monks: ?I learned to pray their way, complete with joss sticks and hand movements, on my knees,? she recounted.

When cast and crew shot a scene in Beijing last month, first thing on her mind was to visit the Forbidden City?never mind the freezing weather. ?I had to see the place I so loved in ?The Last Emperor,?? she explained.