producer

Brains and Brawns

I watched Pinoy Pride XIV: Night of Champions on ABS-CBN and the 32nd National Quiz Bee on Studio 23.

I can’t help but notice the excessive advertising by Cobra Energy Drink on the boxing event, and the average production quality of the quiz bee.

Compare that to how HBO broadcasts boxing bouts, and how ESPN airs the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Cobra’s advertising in Pinoy Pride XIV is not subliminal anymore; it’s blatant already. Their brand logo is on the ring canvas, and pops up at the lower part of the TV screen from time to time. They even feature a “Tunay na Lakas Punch of the Round” replay after each round, and airs their TV ads every commercial break. I bet if you keep count of Cobra’s TV time, it might be longer than the 12-round boxing match main event for Donny Nietes’ WBO Junior Flyweight title itself!

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It’s unfortunate that the 32nd National Quiz Bee gets little attention. I only found out about it while I was surfing the channels. We got bright kids and bright minds here, folks! They can quite possibly be future pioneers in the fields of their choosing.

Being a one-time National Quiz Bee “alumni” myself, I have seen how these shows are produced. The quality of the show, production-wise, is still far behind, if we will compare that to game shows on TV like Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, or 1 vs 100. However, it’s cool that the kids and their respective coaches introduce themselves now before a category begins, unlike before, when the introductions are done in post-production.

The production of any TV show should sell the show itself. It’s not just to have a set of episodes each year. It’s to have viewers anticipate the set of episodes each year.

Of course, the drama in shows like the National Quiz Bee is toned down. But in my view, it could still up the ante in production value. Maybe LED scoreboards and screens, an improved stage set, and a better post-production editing might do the trick.

Praises for Ms. Pettizou Tayag and the organizers of the National Quiz Bee for continuing to feature some of the brightest kids in the country, and making us answer the trivia questions with them.

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The Grand Finals of the 32nd National Quiz Bee airs next Sunday morning, June 10, on Studio 23.

21 Dream Professions [Part 3]

As I look forward to the next eight decades or so of my life, I’ve come up with a list of 21 professions I would like to have or experience in the future.

[last of three parts] [read Part 1 here] [read Part 2 here]

15. TV commercial or movie producer – Every time we get to meet, my friend and I talk about ideas for commercials and comedy films. We miss the “Dolphy-Babalu-Redford White-Carding” era of comedy.

16. Lead vocalist of a band – My parents used to make me sing with a karaoke machine during special occasions. Over time, I got to love listening to music and singing along with it. I enjoy feeling the guitar riffs and the drum beats of rock songs, the soothing sound of pianos and violins, and the energetic blasts of trumpets and saxophones. When all of ’em get together in perfect harmony, and paired with nice lyrics, it’s “audiophile’s heaven” for me. (Too bad I don’t know how to play any musical instrument. But I’ll be one rockin’ lead vocalist, if you’ll ask me.)

17. Business analyst/Process optimizer – This is the only one related to my current profession, out of the 21 in this list. (I’m currently an SAP developer.) I want to take part in decision-making, in planning, in making processes efficient. I can do technical things, but my “clerical genes” really want to be part of the action!

18. Church pastor or leader – I’m not eliminating the possibility. I’ve just been saved recently, and this is the way I want to serve God and Jesus Christ, in return for all the blessings He has given me. When I get to have a family of my own, we will all be one in Christ, and then help in bringing more people to Jesus.

19. Urban planner – I have played Sim City games before, and I like how it allows you to run a town of your own, and solve simulated community problems. It taught me that you can’t just put schools or hospitals at any location, that zoning is essential, that police and fire stations should be put in strategic locations, and that you should also think of creating revenue for your town, not just spending.

20. MMDA chairman – I want to minimize the traffic in EDSA, and help implement zoning in Metro Manila. (But, I think I have to be city mayor first.)

And finally, my top dream profession…

21. President of the Philippines – Ever since I read my first newspaper and became aware of what’s happening in the country, I told myself, I want to correct things that aren’t working out. I had enough of “flavor of the month” issues: those that receive lots of attention one month, then gets forgotten the following month because of another issue that popped up. I strongly dislike it when newsmakers “solve problems” by airing their opponent’s “dirty laundry” which is not even related to the issue at hand, just to elicit from a “confused” audience anger towards the opponent and sympathy for the newsmaker. In short, I dislike it when unstable emotions trump solid evidence.

It pains me when I realize that more than 25 years after a revolution that should have improved our condition, nothing much has changed. The country is still living in the shadows of its past, because most of us Filipinos refuse to learn from it. We pick what we want to remember. We value popularity over skills and merit. Our foundations are shallow that we find it hard to stand on our own and hold ourselves up.

If I were President, I would uphold the rule of law. It’s better that we rely on laws and processes that are fair and rigid. We had enough of people circumventing laws to get away with all their wrongdoings. We had enough of powerless people remaining that way, convinced that they they will always lose to people who have money and power. We had enough of people using other people and their emotions to get what they want. With firm rules, there would be no one above the law.

If I were President, I would focus my energy on public service, not on politics. I would serve the people who need help, not the people who wants to help only themselves.

If I were President, I would narrow the gap between the rich and the poor. I would find a way to turn the “triangle” (wherein the wealthy few are on top, and the poor majority are at the bottom) into a “diamond” (wherein the self-sufficient middle class will compose most of the population).

If I were President, I would like to create more sustainable and stable jobs so that OFWs could go back home and work here. I would also boost the agriculture sector, because would have inadequate food supply if we disregard advancements and new studies in agriculture. We should be self-sufficient. We should get what we need from what we have.

If I were President, I would lead the Philippines back to where it was in the 1960s, when it was economically at par with South Korea and Japan. We have been there before. Surely, we can go back to that pedestal again. 🙂