5TH KOMIKON TALES-2009

Komikon 2009

The staging of the Komikon festival in SM Megamall, Mandaluyongon October 18 was successful. More than 10,000 people trooped to the convention area just to mingle with over 100 comic artists, publishers, writers, enthusiasts, collectors and sponsors.

charity auction for victims of Typhoon Ketsana and Typhoon Parma

There was a comic auction where proceeds of the said event was donated to the victims of Typhoon Ketsana ( Ondoy) and Typhoon Parma ( Pepeng) The combined proceeds amounted to over Php10,000 .

on the spot caricature contest winners

Contests like the Independent Comic Book Creation Contest, On the Spot Comic Strip Making and the Original Character Making Contest hopes to bring out the next generation of Comic Book creators to the forefront. Various comic works by the legend Mr. Alfredo Alcala, Mr. Larry Alcala (cartoonist), Tony Velasquez, Mars Ravelo, Pablo Gomez, among others were displayed on a gallery type setting. Friendly marshals, staffs and the secretariat offered help and assistance to the people visiting the convention site. Unlike other event, this convention caters to the teenagers, generations x, y,z , the yuppies and young professionals who were avid fans of the comic industry.

This convention aims to promote the camaraderie and to foster the artistic nature of the Filipino comic industry. While the comic industry of the Philippines may date as far as the early 20th century with popular Filipino comic heroes such as Kenkoy , Kalabog en Bosyo , Larry Alcala works , Darna, Panday , Gagambino were turned into movies and depicted on stamps , let us not forget that hundreds or even thousands of Filipino cartoonists from all over the world working for the top anime or comic companies such as Marvel, Disney- Pixar Thus Filipinos are ranked as one of the “World’s Top Cartoonist”. FilCartoon , Philippine Animation Studio Inc. were some of the foreign based companies which set up their outsourcing jobs in the country. FilCartoons, for example, does work on Flintstones, Mad Jack the Pirate and Toonsylvania, cartoon shows for the American firms Saban and Dreamworks SKG. Their artists have done much of the acclaimed work in Fox Studios’ Anastasia and Disney’s Mulan, Finding Nemo among others. Cartoonists find affinity with their fellow nationals doing multinational and overseas contract work.

They are hired because of their pleasing personalities, command of the English language, high skills, western disposition, and their acceptance of lower salaries than their counterparts. However, Just like in any industry, there are pitfalls in the Philippine comic industry examples are lack of government support, high production cost among others.

Love in the Bag comics

ASEAN countries like Thailand and Malaysia minimum volume of comic print over 5,000 per issue , while one artist publisher Mr. Ace Vitangcol revealed to me that his orginal work ” Love is in the Bag ” series have about 1,000 copies!!!!! In the comic and book publishing industry 1,000 copies is indeed a very limited series…. a collectible item !

Mr. Mike Unson 

I personally met the dynamic duo host Mr. Mike Unson and Mr. Stanley Chi in Philippine prime time comedy skit ” Front Act ” which is beingaired every sunday on TV channel 5 . The show is one of the event media partners together with Jack television . Mr. Mike Unson is a stand up comedian, actor, comic collector among others while Mr. Stanley Chi is the producer, host, comic artist, graphic master etc…

(left) Mr. Stanley Chi

Mr. Chi is well-known in the Tsinoy community as a comic illustrator and was once featured in Tulay Forthnightly Digest a bi-monthly digest and Manila Bulletin among others . 

The friendly hosts gladly took some time in chatting with me despite of their hectic schedule. 

Kudos for the organizers , sympathizers and to all the people who went and support the Komikon 2009 !!!! With this , everyone is hoping for the best in the Philippine comic industry !!!

Original post October 18, 2009

COLLECTICON 2009 TALES

Collecticon 2009

This was one of the conventions in which toy, anime, comics, cd’s, coke and other stuffs would not totally missed. However, compared to the 8th Toy Convention held last June 13 to 14, 2009 in SM Megamall, There were fewer freebies and (toy collection) exhibits.

Toy dealer 

The People

crowd at the Collecticon 2009

There was no entrance fee, which means more people and collectors alike can go to the event. Compared to the Toy Convention, There were far more tourists like Japanese, Chinese, Koreans, Iranian, Americans, Indians , Brazilians and Europeans were seen buying toys and curio stuffs. The place is accessible to commuters and near university belt area (meaning, even more students can go!!!)

cosplayers

 Cosplay players were all over the place!!!! They serve as a mascot for the event. Some even went to the 3rd and fourth level of the mall.

Toys and other collectibles 

Despite of the 2 storms that hit the country and the on going recession, the traders were having a brisk sale!!! There was only one vintage curio trader within the vicinity. According to some people who visited the event, This was just a smaller version of the convention.

toy auction

There is also a live auction. Unlike regular auction, starting bid may start as low as 1 peso and some toys may reach a few hundreds or even a few thousand.

spot the bomb contest

There was a promotional booth were people were given a piece of paper in order to” spot the bomb”. They had to spot the 10 bombs in the drawing and if they spotted them correctly they are given instant gifts and a stub for a chance to win some toys.

an array of coca-cola merchandises ( license and private issues)

One stall (perhaps the only one) that caught my fancy sells a lot of curio and vintage stuffs. coca-cola bottles both opened and unopened, old car plates from the United States, plaques, reproduction photos, coins, pins and other stuffs. The owner is a member of the Bayanihan, Bank Note Society of the Philippines and had a regular commercial outlet in Tomas Morato, Bulacan and Cubao.

anime and cartoon dvd

There is also a trader which sells anime cd’s, basketball cards, baseball cards, movie cards, phone cards, celebrity cards among others.

The basketball trading cards were very popular in the 1970’s to mid-1990’s.

Philippines provincial coca-cola bottles limited edition

Colorful hair dyeing colors are the must buy for the day. The free hair styling and dyeing sessions was an –in thing for the kids!!!! The owner told me that even cosplay players and television celebrities bought a lot of the hair colors.

Kewpie dolls

There is also a store that sells the popular Kewpie dolls. The Kewpie dolls first appeared in a Ladies Home Journal in 1909. Rose O’Neillhad become America’s highest paid female illustrator.

In 1911, a sculptor named Joseph Kallus was chosen for the job, He was a young art student from Pratt Art Institute . Mr. Kallus was the one who have the talent to turn Ms. Rosie O’ Neil illustrations into a doll. Kallus sculpted the very first Kewpie Doll model in bisque, soon followed by celluloid dolls, Ms. O’Neill took a voyage to Germany to contract with a doll manufacturer to begin producing Kewpie Dolls for the public.

The fat, roly-poly babies were meant to depict the alter ego of the Roman myth of cupid. According to O’Neill, cupid is guilty of getting people into trouble. Kewpie, by contrast, exists to help people get out of trouble! From a modern psychological viewpoint, one can certainly conjecture that Rose O’Neill had good reason to long for a friendly little being with the power to heal a troubled heart.

The toys became an instant hit among the American people, the trend of collecting the dolls soon spread across Europe and other parts of the world.

The toys reach the peak of popularity in the mid 1960’s and 1970’s. Some Kewpie dolls were made of porcelain and command higher prices.

For bargain hunters like second hand matchboxes toys- there is a stall that sell them at a bargain prices – price ranges from Php 20 pesos and above. People from all walks of life were swarming around the booth just to buy some toy cars. Who said Ukay-ukay is just confined to clothes and home furniture???

crowd buying second hand die cast toys

Serious toy collectors wanted toys to be in pristine condition (mint) that included the original boxes and their contents unopened.

I hope that more vintage collectors, sponsors and media tie-ups would be given a chance to participate in the event. Whether just a lecture series or a commercial booth.

(Oct 12 2009)

ARK AVILON 2009

Ark Avilon

AVILON had its un seeming beginnings when Mr. Jake Gaw, an avid animal hobbyist who,at the age of four had his first encounter with animals while staying at his grandpa’s farm in Sta. Ana,Manila (still quite rural then) mingled among goats, cows, pigs and chickens at the farm. This initial encounter would make such a lasting impression on young Jake that he carried his interest in animals from then on. Thus, from guppies and budgies, Jake over the years extended and expanded his interest and collection to arapaimas and eagles and lions and macaques, pythons,etc.

Mr. Jake Gaw – owner of Avilon zoo

There are two, so to say, crossroads in the history of AVILON. The FIRST was when Jake had to transfer his pet lion to a new home, because his neighbors were concerned about the presence of a full-grown male lion living amongst them inside a subdivision. This search for a new home to house IO led Jake to the scenic countryside of San Isidro, Montalban (later to be called Rodriguez) in the Province of Rizal where he decided to build a weekend place for his family and, of course,home to his other pets. It was 1992.

By 1994, the land within AVILON had been leveled and the concrete hollow block perimeter walls finished. Several man-made lagoons and ponds were then excavated, and the Big Lagoon where the Pavilion now stands is the largest, comprising an area of 3,000 square meters. Construction of animal exhibits followed, starting off with the Corrals where hoofed animals are being kept, the Multi-Purpose Building (now the Herpetarium) and the Hexagonal Birdcages (now the Avian Exhibit), followed by the Crocodiles and the Hornbills enclosures,and many more.

Avilon had also a big collection of exotic palms, orchids, bromeliads and trees aside from the animals from all over the country and the world.

PROPERTY DEVELOPER Ortigas & Co. Ltd. Partnership has added a zoo as one of the newest attractions in its children’s corridor in Frontera Verde, Pasig.

Ortigas Chief Operating Officer Rex C. Drilon II said “The zoo is meant to add to the wholesome family oriented experience Frontera Verde was built to offer.”

Mr. Drilon said the P24 million, two-storey ark-shaped structure sits on a 2,000-square-meter lot, which is home to over a dozen of animal species.

“The idea of the ark/mini zoo was born here,” in an interview, Zoo Administrator Jake Gaw said.

giant gourami

“The Ortigases were trying to come up with innovative developments for Frontera [Verde]. The original idea was to have a mini zoo and since I had Avilon Zoo in Montalban, I said, ’why not build an ark?,’” he added.

Mr. Gaw said that the Noah’s Ark-inspired structure was born out of a collaboration with Ortigas Technical Planning Manager Art Alcantara.

Avilon Zoo contact information:
Ms. Teena Gaw at 0917-8311224 or call 9418393 and 9489866
Bo. San Isidro, Rodriguez, Rizal
Tel. Nos.: (632) 941-8393 * (632) 948-9866 (63917) 899-5126
Fax: (632) 941-8530
Entrance Fee: Php208.00 or $5.00/person

Ark Avilon
Weekdays 9:00 am to 6:00 pm
Weekends & Holidays 10:00 am to 7:30pm

Frontera Verde Ortigas Avenue Corner C5, Pasig City
Telephone Nos. (+632) 706-2992/ 706-2993

(oct 13,2009)