Tag: MNL48

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Graduating from MNL48

I left this piece as a draft for so long as I try to compose myself. Now, dear reader, be ready.

December 22, 2019: While I was enjoying my stay at the 2nd OtaCute Cosplay Festival in Manila earlier, I saw Tanchikon at one corner.

Well, I did follow a part of Tanchikon’s journey in becoming the magical detective idol that she is nowadays. I’m still keeping in touch with her during events as she gets back to Seishun Kakumei’s fold.

She then told me that MNL48 Faith has decided to graduate from the group. Just this afternoon, Faith has announced this during the MNL48 Christmas Mini Concert at Movie Stars Cafe in Quezon City, shares Kioku.48.

At first, I was not surprised, given the journey of an idol especially in the 48G system starts with auditions and ends in graduations.

It took me a while to sink that in. Wait a moment, just wait a bloody moment.

I got introduced to Faith as she is the daughter of Engineer James Santiago, who was then at that time helping the Department of Information and Communications Technology for the agency’s Digital TV Summit where I also assisted in two functions (long story).

There are no words to express how supportive her father is. So supportive.

The time of Bottom 7 proved critical to me. I had an inch of an idea that the Bottom 7 with Faith, Jan and Kay and Thea included was just done to raise our eyebrows.

That in mind, I decided to take it upon my hands to rally for my oshi, as described in my post in August 2018:

https://www.facebook.com/keepsakesbyjay/posts/780340735509408

Bottom 7 succeeds despite the adversity, finally, I was able to shake hands with Faith. She never forgets her fans.

Come to think of it, I have not been able to pull myself off to other MNL48 events aside from the handshakes and mall tours due to other commitments.

I wish I could continue meeting her… maybe for one last time?

January 26, 2020: That didn’t happen though – it somehow did, but I was merely outside of the cafe, along with others who failed to make it inside.

No, I won’t get in detail about my reasons, as well as the financial divide that separates me from getting the full idol experience.

I am well aware that once I put a few words here, those who love MNL48 so much will clap back at me saying, “You’re really not a fan, are you?”

I… have to be honest, MNL48 was not something I can spend more cash on. Sure, I get to see the group at mall tours, but idols independent or not are going through major changes.

If I talk about how MNL48 is managed, I’ll just add to the noise that is already getting louder and louder on Twitter – so loud, it becomes alienating.

It was a confident decision to not pursue talking about MNL48 as soon as my kamioshi graduates, but it was not a hard decision either.

We still have Gabb (especially Gabb), Alice, Thea, Kay, Brei, Abby, Yzabel, Sela (especially Sela as well), the twins Shaina & Shaira, Dian and others; but I felt that MNL48 needs a new set of fans to propagate them. I really felt that.

Wait, it should be that this piece is about MNL48 Faith, but I went on to talk about the group as a whole? tl;dr – I’m graduating as well from the MNL48 fandom following my kamioshi, and let the newer fans do their thing.

I thank Faith as well as the fans for bringing me closer to MNL48 – it was fun ’til it lasted. On that note, ’till we meet again.

Let me dedicate a space to share the links to the podcast episodes where I talked about MNL48:

VOTEMNL48 Series

Other Episodes

Capping off this post, I’ll include the feature about Faith’s graduation concert here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XI5Li0REHk

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Seikimatsu Blue movie cast and staff at Coslandia 2019

Seikimatsu Blue - cast

Seikimatsu Blue, the upcoming movie adaptation of the manga of the same name, is among the headliners of Coslandia 2019. The cast and staff of the film adaptation including MNL48’s Abby, Coleen, Brei, and Kay are present during the said event.

This feature covers two press conferences: First is at the media room last Friday, November 01, and the main press conference at the Main stage last Saturday, November 02.

Seikimatsu Blue reflects Japan in the 1990s

Seikimatsu Blue - Director Tetsuya Hashi

The Seikimatsu Blue manga authored by Shintaro Hirota first ran on Wani Books’ Comic Gum from July to October 2018 and saw a full release two months after.

Set in 1990s Japan, Seikimatsu Blue tells the story of friendship between Kosaka and Tomine. Kosaka encountered the strange monster “Daiou” after helping bullied classmate Tomine, which led to the destruction of the world in July 1999.

The story’s timeline reflects Japan before the Millenium. According to an article published in The Asia-Pacific Journal, “Bullying (ijime) and school nonattendance (futoko) have been the key ‘behavioural problems’ among students in Japan since the mid-1980s.“

Director Tetsuya Hashi said that the live-action film adaptation gives more focus on select parts of the manga, such as the issue of bullying not only between kids but also between adults.

Challenges in producing the Seikimatsu Blue live-action film adaptation

Seikimatsu Blue - MNL48 Abby

During the main press con, MNL48’s Abby said that her biggest challenge is to change her personality for the movie: “Alam n’yo naman po na palaban ang isang Abelaine, ‘di ba? Pero pagdating doon, talagang tumahimik ako, hindi niyo ako basta-basta mapag-sasalita, at sobrang na-challenge ako, hindi lang ako, pati lahat ng MNL48 members […]”

Other cast members have their fair share of challenges. Chika from GracoRex Neo and Rino from Fairytales said in the previous press con that it’s their first time doing horrible things to someone and it’s a new experience for them.

Chika and Rino acted as the bullies in the said movie, but they stressed that they will never bully people in real life. Rino adds that being cast in the film is a good experience for her personally, and she hopes to take that learning experience with her.

Back to the main press con, another challenge in producing the movie, according to MNL48’s Coleen, is the language barrier: “[…] kasi ang hirap pong mag-shoot na nag-eexplain ‘yung director, ‘yung mga cameraman na, ‘Ay, dito ka, dito ka’, ‘di mo alam kung saan ka pupunta […]”

For MNL48’s Kay, she plays multiple roles – as a cast member and a translator: “First time ko din po mag-shoot sa Japan ng ganun and ako po din naging isang translat(or) doon sa shoot, siyempre hindi po nila kayang kausapin ‘yung mga cast na sign language lang kundi tutuling din po ako sa kanila para mag-translate […]”

Exciting Parts of the Seikimatsu Blue live-action movie

MNL48’s Brei got excited in the part where Abby will be bullied: “[…] Na-excite ako kasi doon natin makikita kung gaano talaga siya kagaling kasi alam naman natin ang character niya, tapos magsu-switch siya na mabait siya, ganun […],” to which Abby retorted, “Mabait naman ako…”

Kay seconded this: “Sobrang natatawa ako, kasi … iba talaga si Ate Abby; sabi ko, ‘Ayan na, bu-bullyhin na siya’, […] naka-abang na po ako, nanonood ako, […] sabi ko kay Ate Abby, ‘hala…’ ‘tas sobrang nakaka-awa hitsura niya […] iba talaga, kaya ‘pag napanood niyo talaga, magugulat kayo.”

Seikimatsu Blue - Tomoca

Another exciting aspect of the film is the songs produced for it. “Wa-pop” singer Tomoca wrote a song for the movie, and she said that it is her first time to write songs with specific themes.

She even gave a sample of her song, which asks people to “don’t give up” and “love yourself.” Hopefully, she adds, that this fresh experience helps her write better songs in the future.

The bond that Seikimatsu Blue cast shared

Seikimatsu Blue - cast

The MNL48 cast members expressed their appreciation to the cast and crew as they share their stories on stage.

To Abby and Kay, there’s is no language barrier as they interact with the cast. Abby is much thankful for having the opportunity to be cast in a Japanese film: “Sobrang thankful kami kasi ‘yung mga cast tinuruan pa rin kami eh. Kahit na nagfi-film na, nagsu-shoot na, hindi sila nagsawa na turuan kami.”

“Sobrang nakaka-challenge kasi bilang Filipina na aacting ng first-ever, Nihongo pa yung gagamitin eh, sobrang nakakapagod– hala, naging Cavitena ako dito… (laughs)“

Kay also added that the Japanese cast did their best to reach out to the Filipinas: “[…] Nagkaka-usap po kami […] kasi madalas po kami magkakasama sa shoot. Hindi po sila nakakapag-salita (ng Nihongo) pero tina-try talaga nila, tapos sila, they really try na mag-English; sobrang… naging memorable ‘yung shoot na ‘to.”

As for Coleen, she will take the journey to heart. “[…] pero ang saya po ng shoot namin ‘tsaka noong journey namin sa Japan. Kahit na hindi kami nagkakaintindihan, sobrang saya po kasi kahit na ganun, ‘yung body language lang namin, tingin lang namin, nagkakaintindihan po kami. […] Shortly, nag-enjoy po talaga ako kasi sobrang bago po ito sa akin, yung ganitong challenge.”

We remember Abby saying these words, to sum up the experience: “Sobrang gaan ng trabaho na ito.”

Rino opens up about the cast. She was worried at first but after feeling the warm reception of the cast, they became close to her. Chika told Abby’s fans that they are best friends, so let’s be nice to her as well.

The Director and the Manga Author’s thoughts

Seikimatsu Blue - cast with author Shintaro Hirota

Director Hashi, who already did the Talulot ng Sakura music video for MNL48, told the press and the audience that directing the cast was easier than we thought.

He chose the roles for the cast which comes naturally as he interacts with them. To note, one of the conditions that he set out in order to direct the movie is that the cast will endure long hours of filming and won’t complain easily, something that they have achieved.

We also had the opportunity to know the manga author better. Hirota-sensei said that he thought twice about getting his story adapted, to which he verified if it’s the real deal as there are a lot more titles that can be adapted.

He has not yet watched the movie himself but we are sure that he is looking forward to it. After all, he gave a surprise sketch of the MNL48 ladies and REIRA from 1-GIRLS who is cast as Kosaka.

After the press conference, the cast proceeds to sign autographs for the fans. Seikimatsu Blue is set to be shown in theaters February next year. MNLoves are already looking forward to it.

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MNL48 and the Marketing Mix

MNL48 and the Marketing Mix

MNL48, AKB48’s Pinoy sister, will be announcing its top 200 participants in a few hours — and here I am, thinking of what has gone through this gruesome yet exciting journey.

Never mind me not being able to oshi (push) more applicants, or even verify my own account so I can do so — being in sales and marketing company for almos two years made me understand this journey a bit different.

Bear with me as I mix idols with some basic marketing models, something I want to do after reading a Reddit thread on the LoveLive! School idol project, one of Japan’s biggest-selling musical acts, and why it’s considered a “Marketing Visionary.” (I think THE IDOLM@STER, having been established before LoveLive!, deserves its own version too.)

The Marketing Models

By far, we have two marketing models that are used in the current practice: the 4Ps and S.A.V.E. The 4Ps has been the standard, but as times change, so does the way of promotion, and that’s where S.A.V.E. came to fruition. (You can delve deeper in these models by clicking on the links.)

The 4Ps of Marketing

In 4Ps, we have the Product, Price, Promotion and Place, basically answering the basic question on how to market your product or service:

  • What product (or service) you are going promote?
  • How much (price) will the product be?
  • In what way you will promote it?
  • Which place/s will you promote it?

As the applicants promote themselves, they are subject to verification and scrutiny, sometimes a lot of it.

This reminds me of a conversation between me and Wiljanz (Protektor) who heads the local wota propaganda group Do it for the Aidols (DIFTA — I’ll be mentioning a lot of this), where he mentioned to me that idols in the 48 Group focus more in the appearance.

For applicants in MNL48, this is very important — I believe First Impressions Last. How the applicant presents itself will reflect on the decision of the potential supporter to oshi her.

Some supporters reacted negatively when they are showed a video of an applicant inside the audition booth sexy dancing to the popular Heavy Rotation, in which I felt a story of a high school girl confessing her love.

Now we go to Price — or should I say in this case, the Value of an applicant. What are her strengths? What are her skills? What are the things that she need to improve on once she gets to MNL48? What will make the supporter oshi her?

In mobile games such as THE IDOLM@STER Million Live, they have groups which focuses on either singing, dancing and others. What I see early in this journey is that we have applicants who somehow have personalities of the likes of Sally Amaki (of 22/7 or Nanabunnonijyuuni, whom AKB48’s Yaushi Akimoto is also the producer), or Keyakizaka46’s Yurina Hirate, and I’ve met some of them, actually — some even before the search started.

I can say that MNL48’s promotion is coursed through two channels — Television (through its partner ABS-CBN) and Online (via its website and Facebook).

Before the Top 200 gets selected, MNL48 already has the tools that they offer to applicants which they can share on their Facebook profiles to get more supporters to push for them.

Prior to this, Facebook groups and pages about MNL48 are already built as a way to increase their supporters. As for TV, you know they’re going to be shown on It’s Showtime.

Last year, I already saw a few applicants showing up in events such as the Ozine Fest Anime Figure Special and Cosplay Matsuri. DIFTA, a group dedicated to idols (which is different from anime idols or anidols), made a few videos based on it.

The S.A.V.E. Marketing Model

Dubbed as the “New 4Ps of Marketing,” the S.A.V.E. Model focuses on different aspects:

  • The solution to a problem,
  • How accessible it is to the people (and who should access it),
  • The value of the solution that is being promoted, and
  • How it shall solve the problem (product education).

I can rationalize this as follows:

  • The Solution — “What/Who will solve the problem about today’s music industry? (Too deep to answer, but I’ll drop this here in place of a better question)”
  • Access — The 48G is known for having “Idols you can meet,” having their handshake events. They stick to doing this regardless of the incidents that has arise before because the fans are more important to them — if not for the fans, they’re not idols.
  • Value — I’ve discussed this in the Price part of the 4Ps Model, but it can be anything of value to the supporter. “Why should I support her?”
  • Education—Fans decide who will be their oshimen (oshi menba, or their number 1 idol) later in the journey, so they will be scrutinizing on the applicant’s life story.

DIFTA was able to interview some of the idols in person, which led to other pages opening up their doors to help the applicants promote themselves.

Moreover, I am actually surprised is that in the last part of the search, Teams from Quezon City and Cavite held their guerrilla events, inviting supporters to watch them dance up close.

Aside from guerrilla events, some applicants actually did giveaways — you vote for them, you get an entry to win a prize from them. This is aside from the sharing of their life stories, why they deserve to be in the first batch of MNL48 and so on.

As I write this post, I remembered my visit to the MNL48 auditions in Tutuban — there’s the 48G dancers in their MNL48 t-shirts dancing to Koisuru Fortune Cookie, Aitakatta and Heavy Rotation; and then there’s the applicants who are donning their own MNL48 t-shirts who are at the side, joining the 48G dancers. Sometimes, dreaming about being an idol is not enough — you have to do something to make it real, like those girls.

I can’t wait to know the Top 200 who shall compete to be part of the first batch once the first Senbatsu (Election) strikes this April. All the best to the applicants, and looking forward to oshi you further.

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MNL48.ph is up — I signed up as a fan

It’s happening — or so I say, “IDZ HABBENING!”

After a long wait, we now have MNL48.ph online, and I will take a look at it in the coming days. The MNL48 mobile app was also launched earlier in the morning as per the MNL48 Facebook page. (Press release here)

Just this afternoon, AKB48 Team 8 had it’s second performance on ABS-CBN’s “It’s Showtime” prior to its appearance in the Japan-Philippines Friendship Anniversary Celebration with STARMARIE at Market! Market! BGC Taguig tomorrow afternoon.

Now that I’m in the site — let’s get the ball rolling as I will be one with the fans in monitoring MNL48 as it starts.

I have my upcoming post on keepsakes. as well at around 9:30pm tonight, and it’ll be about food. Foooood. Catch you up later!