EXCLUSIVE: Mark Neumann admits he has a big crush on Liza Soberano

Rhea Manila Santos

<div><img src='' alt='061015-mark_main.jpg' width='400' height='290' align='left' border='0'>As the product of a reality star search three years ago, Mark Neumann admitted he had to learn to be responsible during his teenage years. “At a young age <i>nagtrabaho na ako</i>. I'm supporting them when I was in England when I was 16. I already worked in a factory. Mahirap yun. I was a warehouse cleaner so lahat <i>pinagtrabahuan ko na</i> and then I would send money overseas. Nung nasa England ako I would send money to the Philippines. My father is Filipino at <i>yung nanay ko</i> is Croatian. Kasama na ng dad ko ang stepmom ko and they're based in Germany. Six<i> kami sa</i> family, <i>bunso ako sa nanay ko tapos may </i>three half-siblings <i>ako sa</i> stepmom <i>ko,”</i> he told Push.com.ph during the Starmobile launch of their new Digital TV Phones held last June 2 at Burgers and Brewskies in Estancia Mall.</div><div> </div><div>The Fil-Croatian hottie said he was thankful to be able to finish his studies before getting into showbiz. <i>“Sa</i> Germany<i> ako lumaki at sa </i>England. I came to the Philippines <i>mga </i>two and a half years ago. I joined the talent search <i>sa kabilang</i> network in 2012. Graduate<i> na ako ng</i> college <i>sa </i>England <i>ng </i>Travel Tourism <i>nung </i>16 years old<i> ako. Mabilis kasi sa </i>England eh. I grew up in the province of West Yorkshire Halesfield. My accent over there<i> minsan nawawala yung</i> letter 't' eh. Like 'Would you like some wa'er?' instead of water, like that,” he explained.</div><div><br/></div><div>Mark said he has been trying his best to speak fluent Tagalog. “Getting there. Hindi pa naman pero nag-pa-practice <i>ako. Nung una kinakausap ko lang ang mga tao. Nag-study ako pero</i> home sessions<i> lang ng Tagalog,”</i> he added.</div><div><br/></div><div>In an industry with new talents being discovered every few months, Mark admitted he feels the pressure of headlining his own show which is also a remake of a popular Koreanovela. <i>“Mahirap, challenging siya. Napakalaki yung pressure kasi siyempre ito yung unang role ko bilang bida at soap pa. So medyo malaki talaga yung pressure at kinakabahan pero kaya yan. Kaya yan,</i>” he said.</div><div><br/></div><div>The 20-year-old actor said he looks up to his co-actors in the show Raymond Bagatsing and Ian de Leon the most. He says he would like to get the chance to do different kinds of acting throughout his career. <i>“Kasi ang totoo mahirap talaga magpatawa. Yan siguro yung isa sa pinakamahirap gawin. Dapat maging natural lang. Pero mahirap din ang drama kasi for exmple yung mga scenes na binubugbog ako, habang binubugbog ako umiiyak ako and then magagalit na naman. Magagalit na umiiyak. Umiiyak ng may frustrations. Iba iba eh so I have to push myself pa talaga,</i>” he said.</div><div> </div><div>Mark shared that he does not want to be compared to popular Kapamilya heartthrobs. “Actually I don't really see it as a comparison <i>kasi </i>I look up to them. So rather,<i> ang iniisip ko kung ano pang puwede ko matutunan sa kanila like sila</i> Daniel Padilla, <i>sila </i>James Reid, Enrique Gil, <i>yung mga bigatin.</i> I'd rather I wasn't being compared to them but I'd rather look up to them more and know what I can learn from them. I've met them once <i>sa isang</i> photo shoot,” he recalled.</div><div><br/></div><div>One of the things on his wish list though is getting the chance to do a project with his biggest celebrity crush, Liza Soberano. <i>“Sa Forevermore si Liza Soberano talaga. She's really pretty. I watch her. I've seen her a few times sa shows pero sa Forevermore ko talaga siya nakita ng buo talaga,”</i> he admitted.</div><div> </div><div>Off-camera, Mark also shared his love for all kinds of sports. “I play soccer as a striker and midfielder. <i>Pero matagal na akong hindi naglaro kasi nung bata pa ako sa</i> Germany I was in a provincial team, <i>nag-li-liga liga din kami dun.</i> I want to go back into it. I also used to do free running and parkour. I want to go into martial arts and I tried wakeboarding and rock climbing,” he said.</div>

Mark Neumann says he looks up to Enrique Gil and Daniel Padilla.

EXCLUSIVE: Mark Neumann admits he has a big crush on Liza Soberano | PUSH.COM.PH