Inside Aces and Queens’ first Visayas screening

CEBU, Philippines — Beauties from the Queen City of the South had a taste of what’s it like to be scrutinized by premiere pageant camp Aces and Queens.

At least 16 girls braved the organization’s first ever Visayas screening last September 24 at the 21st Gold Hall of Golden Peak Hotel and Suites. Several Binibining Cebu candidates joined the screening straight from the Philippine Terno Competition held the night before in Argao. Among those who tried their luck were Bb. Asturias Samantha Ashley Lo, Bb. Dalaguete Lou Dominique Piczon, Bb. Catmon Trixie Ann Medalla, Bb. Alcoy Vida Reya and Bb. Carmen Moselblick Madera, while Bb. Badian and Aces and Queens talent Apriel Smith hosted the event.

At the helm of the screening were Aces and Queens pillars Jonas Gaffud, Nad Bronce and Arnold Mercado, alongside other members of the Aces and Queens family. Bb. Pilipinas International 2017 Mariel De Leon, Bb. Pilipinas Intercontinental 2017 Katarina Rodriguez and Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas 2017 Winwyn Marquez also sat in the panel that scouted for their possible successors.

After introducing themselves, the ladies were asked about all sorts of things: from their interests, to their priorities, advocacies and general knowledge about their hometowns since girls hailing from Leyte and Siquijor, among others, were present.

The girls were inspected from head to foot – the panel looked closely at their teeth, assessing their height, telling the girls to come closer and let their hair down, turn this way and that, cover their ears, or take off their dangling earrings.

The screening was conversational and comfortable. Not the good cop-bad cop interview we’ve come to expect. The panelists pointed out the ladies’ best features and those they needed to work on. The girls who got riddled with nerves were given the chance to compose themselves, with everyone having a fair chance to stand out on their own.

You can tell when the panel was interested in a girl because they told her outright: they asked if she was willing to be based in Manila, if she was willing to put everything on hold and train for a year, which pageant she’d like to compete in and when she wanted to join.

Beauty queenmaker as well as head of Mercator Artist and Model Management Jonas Gaffud also launched his book “The Crown: Your Essential Guide to Becoming a Beauty Queen” before the screening. The book’s pageant crash course and inspirational content comes handy for girls who want to follow the strides of Filipina beauty queens.

“What we’re looking for is someone dedicated,” Mama J, as Jonas is fondly called in the pageant industry, tells The Freeman. “Someone who has the aura, who is beautiful inside and out and someone who can be a good influence to others.”

Being the crème de la crème of pageant camps, Aces and Queens has come a long way in their quest to bringing out the most beautiful, intelligent, and inspiring women from the country. The challenge now? Professionalizing the game.

“I would like to professionalize Aces and Queens as a studio that trains people. We’re planning on giving special classes for maybe moms who would like to get the feel of the beauty queen training, and even those in the corporate world,” Gaffud muses, as he emphasizes that their beauty queens are their scholars thus they get the training for free.

Gaffud, who has more than 30 titlists under his belt, admits that it’s also a challenge to find the next Pia Wurtbzach, arguably the most popular Miss Universe yet. He stresses that you can never tell who it’s going to be.

“You will never know until someone wins again. We have very pretty Bb. Pilipinas titlists who can be the next Pia but didn’t get the Universe crown. Kanya-kanyang journey yan,” Gaffud quips.

The Visayas screening brought about by the Golden Peak Hotel and Suites, The Padgett Place, Morals and Malice, Seafood and Ribs Warehouse, Handuraw Pizza, Cebu Marriot Hotel, Sugbutel Family Hotel, M Talents and Promotions and Boombox Philippines, was held in Cebu in the hopes of reaching out to more ladies in preparation for Aces and Queens’ Class 2018.

“There is no difference between screening here and screening in Manila. The ladies are all beautiful, they are all Filipina. It’s just that Cebuanas tend to be very eloquent,” Gaffud said post-screening, noting that there were a lot of beautiful girls in the Queen City that had lots of potential.

Throughout the screening, Gaffud had to convince a bunch of the ladies to take a leap of faith despite the doubts and the odds.

Despite being considered the top pageant training camp, Aces and Queens says there is not much difference when one is handled by them or another organization. It all really boils down to how you’re willing to learn, and how passionate you and your handlers are in supporting each other mentally and emotionally.

As a pageant-crazed country, the Philippines sure loves their beauty queens and are just as picky and demanding with who they want to represent them in the international stage. However, like anything in the world, beauty pageants still get flak from cynics.

“We have our own likes. If you don’t like pageants, then don’t watch them. Other people are allowed to have and like their own things and excel in them. As for us, we like to excel in this,” a gracious Gaffud replies.