Let this be known, last part

Last week, I featured a letter sender's fleeting yet unpleasant experience in showbiz. A USP stu-dent shared how a Cebuano director failed to inform him of his talent fee after offering him a role in a local soap opera. This was produced by a giant network that had made him sign a voucher of P200, more than what he actually received as compensation.

Why I consider this as an obvious case of exploitation and an insult to Cebuano artists is based on certain facts I manage to gather from both the letter sender and the director himself.

Exploitation

The network had evaded its responsibility in informing the actors of their remuneration by oddly passing this crucial task to the director who was neither an employee of the network nor a regular talent. An explanation would have to be either the network was too trusting or they themselves were ashamed to ask any artist to accept such absurd amounts as talent fees. They simply passed the buck to the director (who vowed not to accept any project from them subsequent to this mortifying experience) who was preposterously expected to scout for his own actors, convince them to work for such diminutive rates and direct the soap opera!

Why did the director allow this? The network knew how some artists would simply swallow such repulsive conditions just to be given an opportunity to express their love for the arts and the desire to be recognized. It is a sad fact that with the many artists that Cebu cradles, we do not have a sufficient number of producers who create such avenues for us. The network is aware of this and used this to their advantage! Rates of Cebuano artists are a far cry from what is accustomed in Manila's showbiz industry. Yes, yes…they use national network coverage and high cost of living to justify this, but rates that reflect below 10% (an unreasonable fraction) as compared to Manila's numbers are for me downright insulting and discriminating to us Cebuanos! It simply contradicts to our reputation as an artistic people well-renowned to be the toughest critics with the highest artistic standards in the country. How many times have we heard that Cebu has become a gauging point for thriving artists, particularly musicians, who aim to eventually excel in the national entertainment scene? The now very successful band from Davao, Freestyle, gained a name in Cebu first before making it big in Manila. The career growth of homegrown talents Southborder, Stage Crew, Junior Kilat and most recently, Cueshe, among many others also proves this theory. But instead of asserting ourselves and living up to our reputation, what we do at our very own turf is exactly the opposite, which only encourages not only discrimination but also deceit among fellow Cebuano artists and producers.

The first step must come from us. To my fellow Cebuano artists, assert yourselves! Don't allow such treatment. How I wish we could all work as one and elevate the standards of the local entertainment industry. Some may view this as idealistic with the presence of amateurs and other artists who would recklessly dive down to demeaning pays (Pamugasay lage!) or worse, those who plunge into the industry with eyes half-closed (working without pay) unaware of how this affects the rest of us. To them I plead. We, Cebuanos, deserve to be respected, duly recognized and appropriately compensated for our beautiful and special qualities as artists and as a people.

Not just Lip Service

With regards to the network raised in this issue, be consistent. You have gained patronage from a considerable number of Cebuanos for recognizing and embracing many of our marvelous performers and giving them wonderful showbiz opportunities in the national entertainment scene. Prove to us that you, indeed, deserve to be number one!

To the networks and producers from Manila, give us due respect, proper recognition and sincerity (especially when you refer to us with terms of relativity) as consistently as we welcome you to our grounds with genuine Cebuano hospitability.

A parent once asked me for some showbiz advice for her talented teenage daughter. I told her, just what I've said to the others, "Yes, being in the entertainment industry is truly exciting and has its wonderful gifts, however, one must jump into it with eyes wide-open. Be more cautious because there is some truth to this statement, Showbiz 'could be' the second most demoralizing industry next to politics…" where some of our country's leaders find themselves succumbing to corruption and deceit due to the yearning for power, prestige and wealth. In show business, the promise of fame, pride, recognition and money threatens to consume anyone who enters it.

I would like to thank my letter sender for trusting me with his story. I sincerely hope that many of us have gained enlightenment and inspiration through this sharing. I encourage other artists to come out in the open and use my column to be heard. Let's continue to learn from each other as we work together through the struggles of elevating the standards of our local entertainment industry.

E-mail your stories, reactions and suggestions to [email protected]. Next week, I will be featuring a story on the discrimination against Cebuano beauty queens.