With former screen partner and favorite concert director Rowell Santiago, Megastar Sharon Cuneta reinvents herself once again as a talk show host. Like a dauntless naval captain, TV director Rowell Santiago barks out orders, machine-gun style. "Camera 1!" His voice booms in the high-tech booth. "Camera 4!" As the captain of this ship, it is direk Rowell's duty to make sure that Sharon, the Megastar's eponymous, one-year-old talk show, is sailing smoothly. He watches all four monitors in the director's booth like an avid TV baby--detecting this or that little detail, zooming in on this or that tiny nuance. Nothing escapes the unflinching eye of the camera. And in the same manner, almost nothing escapes the unrelenting eye of direk Rowell. He asks one of the cameramen to focus on Sharon's hand, now cradling the hand of guest Angelu de Leon, who is on the verge of tears. It's in the details, they say. In the electronic medium, the story is not in the glib sound bites, but in the subtle gestures. Quite literally, direk Rowell has seen Sharon grow up--on screen and off. Well, that's because he grew up with her. He has seen her through her different transformations: from teen star to Grandslam drama actress, from concert artist to TV show host. Sharon and Rowell's working relationship has also evolved through the years. From her Cross My Heart ka-loveteam, Rowell has become Sharon's favorite concert, TV commercial and now TV show director. Rowell has always admired Sharon's much-lauded professionalism, but he has noticed that, since coming back from Boston, Sharon has become "more serious, more mature, when it comes to work." In fact, it was Sharon who came up with the talk show's concept during her stay in Boston, very much inspired by all those fun and fab episodes of the Rosie O'Donell Show. "I think it was because she greatly missed the business while she was in Boston," Rowell avers. "During that one year, she realized just how much she values her work." When they did the Boston documentary A Place Called Home, direk Rowell and Shawie were also able to do a dry run for the talk show when they did the Jaya-Jocelyn Enriquez segments. The 10-day shoot for the TV docu, in direk Rowell's words, "was very, very hectic. We had to be in her Boston home before she woke up and we could only leave after she'd retire for the night." Also, he almost missed his plane ride home (not to mention his deadline) because of the then-contentious PAL strike. Rowell reveals that "we all lost so much weight" because of the demanding and draining shoot. Moreover, direk Rowell's work did not end when the shoot wrapped up. "We edited it for three whole weeks. I had to repeatedly watch each gap, until I felt it was the final cut. Only then would I move on to the next gap. It was really a labor of love." Such persistence paid off. "After seeing the completed documentary, I felt very much proud of our work," Rowell beams. And in their current TV project, Rowell is just as proud of the "fruits of their labor"--Sharon, aired every Sunday, from 6 to 7 p.m., at ABS-CBN 2, has become a (consistent) weekly toprater. "It's because of her openness," Rowell traces the show's success. "That's the secret of her charisma. She is very malambing (sweet). Very generous with her affection. That is why people love her so." Of course, Sharon's transformation from musical variety to talk show host didn't come without its birthing pains. Still, in her latest reinvention, Sharon was able to rely on Rowell's expert guidance. "I know how big an adjustment it was for her," Rowell assesses his star's weaknesses--and strengths. "A talk show is an entirely different format from a musical-variety show. But she understands. And is, in fact, very open to criticisms because she is the first to acknowledge that she is inexperienced in this field." Over a year ago, Sharon and Rowell felt as if they were feeling their way through unfamiliar terrain. "At first, she had the tendency to associate everything to her own experiences," Rowell avows. "There was always a sub-story. But now she has mastered the craft so well. Now, she just listens and asks the right follow-up questions." But that same weakness is also one of her main strengths as a gabfest host. "She is very sensitive," direk Rowell points out. "She feels for her guests. In fact, sometimes Sharon even cries way ahead of her guests." It is precisely Sharon's empathy, he believes, that makes even tough-and-gruff guests melt their icy defenses and open up--as if there were no TV cameras in front of them. "That's because she is very light, very open, very warm, very touchy-feely," Rowell enumerates Sharon's virtues as host. "She makes her guests feel at ease, that's why they put their trust in her. Basically what we want to showcase is Sharon's personality And that's what people see (and look forward to) every week." That is their goal, to present a "talk show with a heart," a gabfest where guests can relax, enjoy themselves, knowing that they would never be put in regrettably embarrassing situations. "It helps, of course, that Sharon is one of the most well-respected stars in the industry," Rowell reiterates. Throughout their one-year run, Rowell and company have succeeded in fulfilling Sharon's dream interviews. "Like the ones with (Superstar) Nora Aunor," Rowell relates, "and (Star for All Seasons) Vilma Santos. The leaders, the stalwarts of the local movie industry." A future dream interview for direk Rowell is a one-on-one with former President Corazon Aquino. "As much as possible, we try to invite all the celebrities she wants to interview," Rowell remarks. "But we also try to give her difficult subjects, to further challenge and hone her interviewing skills." On that note, Sharon can very well rise to the challenge. "That is her main strength, in my opinion," Rowell stresses. "Her intelligence." A good part of the show's success, Rowell opines, depends on Sharon's handling of the topics, her line of questioning. "She is like the driver," Rowell, the captain of the ship, affirms. More than a ship, Rowell sees the Sharon show as a roller-coaster ride--packed with unexpected twists and turns, with vertiginous highs and breathtaking plunges. "There is laughter, tears, music, memorable moments," direk Rowell asserts. A year later, the dynamic director has seen Sharon bloom as a talk show host. "Now, she has become quite skilled in interviewing people," Rowell comments. "In showing her fellow celebrities' seldom-seen side." Like the Maricel Soriano one-on-one. "That was hilarious. But Sharon also made televiewers understand why Maricel had to assume the role of the Taray Queen, why she became strong-willed (for her family)." The Martin Nievera interview (one of his first TV appearances since the breakup of his marriage to Pops Fernandez) was also noteworthy because "men tend to clam up." Not Madman Martin, as interrogated by Shawie, of course. Ditto the Pops Fernandez episode. "That same day a newspaper article came out where Pops came across as hard and harsh, but Sharon was able to show the soft, human side, not only of Pops but of all her guests." But one of the most unforgettable was Shawie's heartfelt and heartwarming session with Zsa Zsa Padilla. "I think it was because Sharon did something that surprised and made Zsazsa let go of her emotions," Rowell recalls. "I think it was in that gesture Sharon made, reminding Zsazsa of how tall her daughter Kaye has become since Sharon last saw her." Thus, the tears flowed freely. As they say, it's all in the little details, the tiny gestures.