THIS man could have been Jose Rizal.

When Mike de Leon, one of the country's noted auteurs of film, announced that he was going to do a bio-pic on the life of the national hero, Julien Mendoza was among the first to audition. Everything went on smoothly, he was already set to discuss his talent fee and was preparing for the cameras to grind. But de Leon, a meticulous artist saw something wrong. Juliene's hair was a little thin, not like Rizal who had wavy, full hair. So the much-coveted role was finally given to another actor.

''I lost my chance to do my first lead in a movie because of my hair,'' laments Julien. ''But I find solace in the fact that it wasn't about talent, it wasn't about acting; its was about my hair!''

This actor is no stranger to movies. He has acted in several films before, working with Raymond Red in ''Bayani'' and de Leon in ''Aliwan Paradise,'' which were both acclaimed internationally. However, ''Rizal the Movie'' could have been another chapter in his quest to fully ''cross over'' to film.

Julien may not be a popular figure in cinema at the moment but he is starting to get noticed on television, appearing regularly in shows like ''Epol Apol'' and ''Sineskwela,'' and in many TV commercials. However, theater lovers recognize him even more as one of our best young theater actors. Critics have noted his thespic depth and his ability to breath life into every character he essays.

Julien is reluctant to acknowledge those positive comments. He is genuinely humble and praise does not go to his head.

''Perhaps,'' Juliene explains, ''the depth comes from my own experiences. Actors who have gone through a lot of pain, joy and love can more easily project these emotions onstage. They become real, you don't have to fake them.''

Stage talents, says Julien, can become good movie actors, because they consider acting not just as a source of income but as an art, and places each role in the context of the whole script. This is why Pen Medina, Ray Ventura and Noni Buencamino are much admired on the screen. They don't just act their roles, they portray them with zeal, zest and passion.

Sometimes, though, Julien feels that he does not yet possess true thespic passion. He explains that there are different levels of attachment towards acting-one may consider it his job, his love or his passion. ''At times,'' confesses Julien, ''I feel I'm just in love with acting and theater. I still don't have the passion for it.''

This is surprising considering that this actor can't count the number of productions he has acted in. He explains: ''I still have inhibitions. There are roles which I'm not yet prepared to take, and I feel I still haven't given everything to theater.

Humble as he is, Julien may be downplaying his commitment to acting. He is always like that, he keeps some distance between him and what he does, and tends to analyze things perhaps too rationally.

But after thorough thinking, he takes a role to his heart. But he does not go ''overboard.'' ''I know a lot of theater artists who do that,'' he says. ''Theater is home to eccentrics who are always depressed and are stuck with the 'artist syndrome'--becoming overly sensitive, and unable to distinguish between what is real life and what is make-believe.''

''A normal person'' is how Julien describes himself. It was just by accident that he stumbled into theater. He was taking up Industrial Design at the University of the Philippines when his friends prodded him to join a theater group after watching him perform a comedy skit for a campus organization.

''At first, it was just for fun,'' recalls Julien. He auditioned and got a small part in Behn Cervantes' production of ''Batang Hiroshima'' in 1987. After that, he moved speedily upward to doing a lead role in ''Oedipus Rex.''

''It all came too easily,'' says Julien. He was already doing lead roles but still didn't understand what theater was. Except for seminars held by two theater groups--an Australian company and the Royal Shakespeare Company--he had learned everything from actually working in productions.

After several plays, he tried applying for the ''professional'' theater. He was given a small part in Tanghalang Pilipino's ''Walang Sugat'' as a member of the chorus. It was a shock, considering that he was already doing lead roles at UP. Through that experience, he learned his first lesson in humility.

His first stint at Tanghalang Pilipino enabled this young actor to appreciate the function of the chorus. ''I realized that, in professional theater, everybody is equal: from the lead to the actor playing the smallest part, down to the stage manager and the technical staff.''

Looking back at his decision to go professional, Juliene becomes nostalgic. He confesses that the move to get out of the UP theater scene was primarily due to the turbulent crisis he had encountered. He had a break up with his girlfriend and was very depressed. Acting enabled him to express himself. It became his therapy.

What seemed to be a hobby at first ended up as a way of life. Theater, says Julien, gives you a chance to learn more about life. ''You've got to play different characters which is not you, so in the process you discover the dreams and aspirations of a lot of people.''

The audience's applause, the sense of fulfillment, the knowledge that you're giving people a little bit of happiness and you're conveying a message for people to ponder--these are some reasons that make Julien stick to theater.

And of course, there are a lot of happy moments.

He remembers one hilarious experience: He was doing ''Three Rats'' with Harlene Bautista and another actor. In the last scene, he was supposed to kill his wife's lover with a gun. But a hinge was loosened in the prop gun he was carrying. The lights went on, Juliene was already standing in front of his fellow actor, no gun in hand, thinking hard what to do. In desperation, he punched his fellow actor, they exchanged blows, wrestled, and finally lay down on the floor trying to look dead.

There was an uneasy silence. Then, people who knew the final scene in Wilfredo Guerrero's popular play laughed, while others applauded, thinking that it was a fitting climax.

They could have gotten away with it. But someone threw a bread knife on stage. He heard Harlene's whisper telling him: ''May kutsilyo na! Patayin mo na!'' In which he retorted: ''But I'm supposed to be dead!''

He tried to get up anyway and with much difficulty, managed to kill his foe with a bread knife!

This and other experiences make him want to stay in theater for a long time. ''Perhaps until many years from now, even when I'm old, when I shall have learned my most memorable lessons in life.''

Juliene shares these lessonsby way of his discussions with the directors he has worked with. He remembers Bart Guingona telling him, ''You can only get as much as you give in theater. So if you're not going to give more of yourself, you're not going to learn from it.''

Working in ''Magnificat,'' the longest-running religious musical in the history of Philippine theater, where Julien plays Jesus, has taught him the value of humility. ''My director is not star-struck, he does not pamper, he pushes you to give your very best in each performance,'' he says.

Mario O'Hara, the author of ''Palasyo ni Valentin,'' Julien's current play at UP, was once asked by the actor whom he asked of what to do to achieve greater focus in his life and art. Mario gave Julien this terse piece of advice: ''Magka-anak ka!'' Of course, he did not interpret it literally. Juliene says that the noted writer-director was probably referring to the need to treat everything that you do as your child.

And this is exactly what Julien has done. To balance his acting career, he has now a new baby, a creative design studio called Muttley, Inc. The studio does product launches, presentations and designs, and serves as a showcase of Julien's other talent in the visual arts. Juliene had just turned 30, a cancerian at the peak of his creative powers. He is thinking of doing so many things--to devote his life to creative work, to direct, to paint and to sculpt. He would like to make a painting or sculpture of each of the women who have figured prominently in his life.

And he wants to write letters to the people who wrote him when he was still a budding actor. He received fan mail when he was 18 and was not able to respond to them. Now, he wants to make up for not replying to those letters.

But his dream is to act in films. He already proven his ability as an actor, a singer and a host. He recently hosted the UP Homecoming show and he did very well indeed.