SDCA Comm majors make it two in a row in video contests

Wazzup Pilipinas!

 

A group of third year Communication students from St. Dominic College of Asia (SDCA) made it to the shortlist of the 5th Rotary Public Service Announcement (PSA) Festival, a 30-second video making competition co-hosted by the Rotary Club of Circuit Makati (RCCM) with 24 other Rotary organizations.

The PSA “WI-HA” by Jhody Sacramento, Kristzen Joy Mendoza, Lourdes Mae De Gala, and CK Dela Cruz, collectively known as JKLC Production, is among the 35 semifinalists chosen out of 355 submissions received by RCCM from 27 different high schools and colleges all over the Philippines.

Last month, the same group barged into the finals of the Three Shots Film (3SF) festival organized by Media Underground or MUD Studios with their short film “Laruan.”  

For the fifth straight year, RCCM is holding the Rotary PSA Festival for amateur and student filmmakers. Five semifinalists were chosen for each of the seven Areas of Focus of Rotary International, namely Basic Education and Literacy, Disease Prevention and Treatment, Economic and Community Development, Maternal and Child Health, Peace and Conflict Prevention and Resolution, Supporting Environment, and Water and Sanitation. “WI-HA” falls under the last category.

Cameraperson and editor Mendoza, who currently serves as the president of the Association of Dominican Communicators, a student organization made up of SDCA Communication majors, stressed that drinking unclean water can cause serious health problems. “With this PSA, we want to remind everyone that we must be careful and aware of everything that we drink. Also, we should take action for people who don't have permanent homes and don't have enough sources of clean water,” she shared.

“We would also like to emphasize that when talking about water, we should not only concern ourselves with what we are drinking but also with our surroundings. Children along the streets are likely the first ones to be the victims as it is normal for their innocent age to play outdoors,” director De Gala added.

SDCA student Lara Mae Tamio previously placed third in RCCM’s annual video competition for her entry “Pasa Pasa” during the awards night held two years ago at Spotlight Theater, Circuit Makati.

Aside from Tamio, SDCA’s Anne Camacho, Bien De Guzman, Jasmin Claire De Guzman, and Jereen Tagle of Rinoa Productions also made it to the shortlist in 2019 with their two entries, “Basura Mo Kayamanan Ko” and “Tubig Para sa Kalusugan Natin.”

“As for our group, we've seen that water is one of the easily accessible resources here on our planet, but this comes with a price. Especially for those people who live in the streets or a community that is festering with contaminated water sources that they struggle to keep their essential well-being in check,” scriptwriter Dela Cruz explained.

After making it to the 3SF cut last November, Mendoza’s co-editor, cameraperson, and assistant director Sacramento revealed that they were not planning to shoot an entry for another contest. “It started with a stray kid we saw in front of our school’s drinking water fountain. Upon experiencing this situation, the deadline for submission of entries in Rotary PSA happened to be extended. This gave us the reason to push through with this concept,” she concluded.

“WI-HA” can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/aXu8CMsUbqM

Animation prof inspired by quarantine blues in motions graphics art

Wazzup Pilipinas!

A motion graphics artist aims to show “the unseen experiences we faced during the online learning setup” in an immersive illustration showcased as part of an online digital art exhibition.

Yo Homecillo’s “Mga ‘Di Nakikita ng Mata” is fueled by his observations while in quarantine. “We met people through our screens, Zoom meetings, chats, and emails yet failed to empathize with them. With this piece, I was hoping to spark a little empathy in the hearts of the audience,” he explained.

“The more they immerse themselves and explore the virtual world I created, the more they will empathize with the characters and their experiences. I hope that this empathy will translate to the people they meet, talk to, and interact with online,” the artist added.

Homecillo, who teaches motion graphics, virtual reality, and thesis, among others, as a full-time faculty at the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde Animation Department, revealed that working on the project allowed him to release what he felt inside.

“The transition to online learning amidst the pandemic was challenging for everyone. It came as a surprise and gave us the teachers a short amount of time to absorb and learn how to teach in the online mode. Students were expected to possess a conducive online learning environment even though having a decent internet connection was already a challenge. Everyone was exhausted, frustrated, and hurt.”

“Because of this, the idea of empathizing with others was overlooked. I always checked the social media feeds of my students, peers, and co-teachers and tried to understand what they felt,” Homecillo shared.

“During the early months of the pandemic, I saw posts that were full of hate, teachers hating on their students and students hating on their teachers. Everyone forgot to empathize with one another. We failed to realize that we were in the same storm but not in the same boat,” he observed.

When the DLS-CSB Center for Campus Art and the New Media Cluster collaborated again for “To Differ, Digitally 2: Love and Dissent in the Time of Pandemic” (https://www.benildecampusart.com/exhibit/to-differ-digitally), another digital art exhibit, it became a medium with which he can share it with people.

The motion graphics artist worked on the project using Oculus Quill VR rendered through 3D software and uploaded on an online 3D Viewer. “I used Sketchfab online 3D viewer so that the audience can freely explore the different angles of the artwork. Since my message revolves around empathy, I’ve decided that the audience be the ones to start empathizing with the characters. By using a 3D viewer, they can choose how to immerse themselves in the artwork, with the characters, and seeing the bigger picture. Sometimes to understand a person, you need to look at their background,” he expounded.

Homecillo, who uses motion graphics to tell stories from life, wishes “with a hopeful heart” to open the minds of the people with his art. He believes that art and animation are great tools for disseminating information, telling stories, and sharing experiences with people.

“It made everything lighter and more bearable. I was able to look back on my experiences and remind myself to empathize with the people around me. I learned a lot from this experience, and I hope that the audience, as they immerse themselves in the illustration, learn a lot from it as well,” he stressed.

Homecillo graduated with a degree in Multimedia Arts at Benilde and finished his MA in Fine Arts and Design at Philippine Women's University. 

Pasko 2021 stamps inilunsad sa pagtatanghal ng Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Inilunsad ng Philippine Postal Corporation (Post Office) ang “Pasko 2021” postage stamps kasabay ng maningning na gabi ng pagtatanghal, handog ng pamosong Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra sa makasaysayang gusali ng Manila Central Post Office kamakailan.

Tampok ang temang “Paskong Pilipino”, inilalarawan sa selyo ang mensahe ng parol na nagbibigay liwanag at komukonekta sa sama-samang selebrasyon ng pamilya, magkakaibigan, magkalapit o magkalayo daman-dama pa rin ng bawat isa ang Pasko.

Makikita sa selyo ang mga makukulay na parol hudyat na eto ng simula ng masaya at sama-samang pagdiriwang ng Paskong Pinoy.

Ayon kay Postmaster General Norman Fulgencio, “ang mga karanasan sa nagdaang sakuna o trahedya ang ngsilbing lakas at gabay upang lumago, tumibay at mapanatili ang ating pananampalataya sa Diyos”.

 

Hinarana ng Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra ang mga Manileno sa libreng konsiyertong inihandog ng Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP).

 

Ipinakita dito ang pagtugtog ng iba’t ibang kantang pamasko at mga awiting pinasikat ng mga lokal at internasyunal na mang-aawit sa kumpas ng baton ni Maestro Herminigildo Ranera. Pinamalas din ang galing ng pinakabatang sopranong si  Alexa Kaufman at ang The Nightingales. Ang  aktres  na si Issa Litton ang naging host ng  espesyal na konsiyertong pinamagatang “PPO@PPO” .

 

Nagpasalamat si Postmaster General Fulgencio sa Office of the President sa pangunguna ni Pangulong Rodrigo Roa Duterte at kay Direk Arsenio “Nick” Lizaso, Pangulo ng Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) at chairperson ng National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) sa kanyang adhikain na maitampok ang konsiyerto sa makasaysayang gusali ng post office upang patuloy na maitampok ang mga programang pangkultura at sining. Ang Post Office, NCCA at CCP ay pare- parehas na nasa ilalim ng Office of the President.

 

Ang gusali ng post office ay idineklarang mahalagang yamang pangkalinangan ng Pambansang Museo ng Pilipinas. Ayon kay Postmaster General Fulgencio, “ang  makasaysayang gusali na ito ang  magsisilbing backdrop upang mas lalong mapahalagahan ang talento ng mga Pilipino na siyang tunay na kayamanan ng bansa”.

 

Idinesenyo ni in-house graphic designer Ryman Dominic Albuladora, ang mga “Christmas Stamps”, Souvenir Sheets at First day cover envelope ay mabibili sa  Manila Central Post Office Postshop sa Liwasang Bonifacio.