JESCOM’s Christmas Special

“Yes to Christmas!” Watch it ALL SATURDAYS of DECEMBER, 830AM on ABS-CBN beginning DECEMBER 2!

The last few weeks of October up to the first few weeks of November became quite busy for me. The last time I was in a shooting was February-March of this year, for the Ehem documentary and for AVPs of Ignite Media with Jay Halili.

Sonolux, where Jescom’s office and studios are located, became a home for me and the other members of the production management team for about a month. Balara, as the main location of the Christmas Special became our second home. For the 8 shooting days, I was out of my house at around 4am and came home the next day, or 2 days after, roughly around 2-3am. In between shooting dates were shooting/logistical preparations, and after were postproduction/editing works. Lucky for me, I only helped out in editing the first episode (of 4) as I was scheduled to go home here in Davao last November 12.

JOHN, KIRAY, MIKYLLA, and YUKI – I am not a big fan of Going Bulilit.
Actually, I don’t like the show because I feel that the children are being manipulated. When it was still new, I tried to watch it and was very dismayed that its format and content are very much for adults. Talk about corrupting the minds of our minors! But the show is in partnership with ABSCBN Foundation and thus it was more or less important to have ABS child stars in it.

Before the character/talent briefing, talent coordinator Dex and I talked about the final actors in the show. I don’t know why but I actually knew who Kiray was. And Yuki, I knew from “Tanging Ina” as that deaf child of Ai-Ai. I wasn’t familiar who JOHN and MIKAY were. I had to look into their pictures to know who they were. After seeing their pictures, I recognized that John was that kid I loved in the Magic Flakes commercial and Mikay was that “Bibo (hotdog)” kid who uttered the line, “marunong din po ako mag English at Bisaya!.” (although in reality, the kid can’t speak Bisaya).

The kids were great, they were our babies. They had their “kulit and pasaway” moments of course, but most of the time they were just our angels on set. They were our source of laughter and strength, especially during the weary hours of the shoot.

John is a serious actor and a very sweet kid. As much as I don’t want to play favorites, I couldn’t help but love this young boy. He’s a sweetie not only to the staff, but to his parents as well. He comes to the set on time and is most of the time well prepared to deliver his lines. He easily absorbs director’s instructions and can cry in a snap. And he’s just a handsome young boy! Pogi!

Mikay, the youngest among them at 8, is a great kid as well. She’s a bit slow in memorizing her lines, but we can understand. This young girl can act. I love it that at a young age, she is quite independent on the set. She also listens to instructions quite well and is very polite and obedient.

Yuki is the smartest. He’s already 11, far from the Tenten character he played in Tanging Ina. This kid loves to play scrabble and has endless jokes and trivia to share. I hate to be judgmental but I’d like to attribute his intellect to the fact that among the 4, Yuki is the only one in regular school. The other 3 are doing home study. Among the four, Yuki is not a going bulilit kid. But do not allow Yuki to start playing video games (PSP or Nintendo DS or Gameboy) because you’ll have a hard time getting him back on the set.

Kiray – hay Kiray. She’s an old soul trapped in a 12 year old kid. Maybe because she’s been an actress since she was 3 that Kiray talks like a 30 year old individual. She can be really kulit and is quite spoiled. She easily gets out of the mood when she doesn’t get what she wants. Her frankness is cute but there are times it can border on being “bastos.” There were a few times on the set that the teacher in me couldn’t help but approach her and correct her attitude. But Kiray is still a kid; she gives a sincere apology and accepts her mistakes quite constructively.

I miss the kids! And sometimes, just so I can see them, I find myself switching to the ABS Channel on Sunday at around 6PM. But I still don’t like Going Bulilit, so after a few minutes – after I see my kids, I switch it to a different channel or turn off the TV.

(Still no pictures from Paolo, hopefully he does send us the pics soon so I can also post them)