He may be a man of few words, according to his children, but he is a man of action. Efren Ongpin Reyes Sr. is an action star from the 50s. On screen, he’s known as a folk hero in Bandido, Sigaw ng Digmaan, Kumander Sundang, 10^th Battalion, Kapitan Bagwis, Kapitan Berong, Ander Di Saya, Carlos Trece, Dessperado, Ang Maton, Mailis Pa Sa Lintik and Pedro Penduko. He was deemed Best Actor in the Asian Film Festival (1954) and in FAMAS (1960).  On top of that, he is responsible for introducing a Filipino take on western cowboys in Philippine cinema, through the movie, Bandido. Despite magnitude of success in his acting career, Efren branched out to other roles as director, writer, and producer. As a producer and as a director, he worked on Larawan ng Buhay and Haring Espada. He soon gained recognition in the field as he was nominated for his work on Albano Brothers (1962), Sigaw ng Digmaan (1963), Pilipinas Kong Mahal (1965) and Dugo ang Kulay ng Pag-ibig (1966). He, along with his father, worked on the screenplay of Lola Basyang, that was based off the stories of his grandfather, Zarzuelisa Severino Reyes.