Redefining Boundaries

Jewelry designer Wynn Wynn Ong celebrated her 15 years in the industry with a retrospective  titled Redefining Boundaries, on view until June 15 at the Masters Gallery of Yuchengco Museum in Makati City.

The museum showcases the works of Ong — from art jewelry to objet d’art to couture. The highlights of the retrospective include couture and private jewelry in collaboration with style brands, as well as furniture and lighting pieces.

Born in Burma and raised in Vienna and Manila to a family of women who collected jewelry, Ong’s continental upbringing and childhood travels around Europe formed her distinct sense of aesthetics. She started designing jewelry in 2001 without training or any formal background in gemology because she could not find jewelry that she wanted to wear. Her work is celebrated for its craftsmanship and meticulous attention to detail.

The Wynn Wynn Ong: Redefining Boundaries is presented by Yuchengco Museum and Wynn Wynn Ong Artisanal Works in celebration of Women’s Month.

(Yuchengco Museum is located at RCBC Plaza, corner Ayala and Gil J. Puyat Avenues, Makati City. For more information, call 889-1234 or visit www.yuchengcomuseum.org and @YuchengcoMuseum on social media.)

Going indie

International filmmakers and the local indie community recently gathered to celebrate the Sinag Maynila 2017 Film Festival at the Samsung Hall of SM Aura Premier in Taguig.

Now on its third year, the recent Sinag Maynila, a joint project of Solar Entertainment, Centerstage Productions and SM, featured films that reflected Filipino culture, while presenting social issues deserving of discussion among audiences here and abroad. These were showcased at SM North EDSA, SM Megamall and selected cinemas.

With its new tagline “Sine Lokal, Pang-Internasyonal,” the festival lived up to its core with finalists that were handpicked by Sinag Maynila CEO and founder Wilson Tieng and internationally acclaimed film director Brillante Mendoza.

Tieng said, “The upgraded mechanics for this season may have been a risky move, but we are very happy with the outcome. We are looking forward to the reception of these films here and of course, internationally.”

This season, five films were selected for Full Length, Short Film and Documentary categories. The finalists for the Full-Length films included Bhoy Intsik by Joel Lamangan, Kristo by HF Yambao, Beyond the Block by Ricardo Carranza, Ladyfish by Jason Orfalas and Tu Pug Imatuy by Arbi Barbarona. 

During the festival, guests had the opportunity to view the opening film The Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2016: Reflections series, a co-production by TIFF and the Japan Foundation Asia Center and a triptych of compelling stories featuring Mendoza’s Shiniuma Dead Horse, Japanese director Isao Yukisada’s Pigeon and Sotho Kulikar’s Beyond The Bridge. The closing film was Korean filmmaker Lee Sang-woo’s Walking Street (2016).

Event sponsors included Metrobank, SM Aura Premier, 2nd Avenue, CT (City Television) and Jack TV.

Be smart & make the switch

In 2012, Watsons first launched the “Switch & Save” campaign, an effort to inform shoppers that they could actually save on their personal care essentials in order to afford more of the things they really wanted. All they had to do was shift from the leading brand to the Watsons label brand, which they said was the same quality but lower in price.

The Switch & Save concept worked and more customers all across the county made the switch to Watsons.

To further expand the campaign, Watsons launched its Generics line in 2014, bringing that same promise of affordable quality to Filipinos everywhere. But the notion that “cheaper means lower quality” had some shoppers resisting the change. Yet the Watsons team knew that with the products’ amazing quality, most people wouldn’t even feel the difference.

That’s when the Switch Test was born. The team mounted an in-store activity that asked shoppers to compare Watsons to the leading brands in a blind test. From body scrubs to hair irons, shoppers felt their way through the Watsons selection. The result revealed that eight out of 10 shoppers chose the Watsons Label product over the leading brand counterpart, an amazing testament to the Watsons quality.

This year, Watsons pushes the campaign even further as it gathered its six celebrity endorsers, put them all to the Switch Test and captured it in their newest TV commercial. The new TVC was shown to members of the media at a launch event held at Shangri-La Makati.

Running the same blind test used in stores, each of the celebrities was asked, “What’s the difference between these two products?” Their verdict: None! They all agreed that if one switched to Watsons, one could save up to 80 percent.  

Present at the event were brand ambassadors Christian Bautista, Tessa Prieto-Valdes, Iya Villania, Lorna Tolentino and Edu Manzano. They were joined by Watsons marketing director Viki Encarnacion, group marketing manager Karen Fabres and trading director for health Danilo Chiong, who welcomed Kylie Padilla as the newest brand ambassador.

For the women who #NeverFade

It was one shining moment for Southeast Asian women when they were celebrated for their unfailing spirit and timeless beauty. It was a fitting tribute for them by Downy, a leading global fabric conditioner, when it launched its Parfum Collection.

The launch mounted a multi-country gala event across Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines on International Women’s Day. The regional campaign was led by Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach, along with Malaysian actress, model and TV host Scha Alyahya, Thai actress and model Araya “Chompoo” Hargate and Miss Vietnam 2012 Dang Thu Thao.

Wurtzbach said, “‘Never settle when you can dream bigger’ is a saying I’ve always lived by. I tried three times for Binibining Pilipinas, and faced so many rejections, but I refused to let anyone bring me down. Looking back at those times, I’m glad I persisted and refused to give up. The path has not always been easy but I’ve always believed that we should work hard for our dreams and just keep on moving forward. I’m proud to join Downy in its endeavor to empower more women across Southeast Asia to #NeverFade.”

Country marketing leader for Downy Philippines Cedric Legoff said, “All scents in the new collection — Mystique, Passion, Romance, Fusion and Daring — have been upgraded to feature the highest-ever intensity of premium perfume oils and the best dual perfume capsules technology in Downy’s history in Asia. This new formula enhances the scent character and longevity of the fragrances to ensure long-lasting freshness, which is released by simply rubbing the fabric.”

The Philippine leg of the  #NeverFade campaign launch was graced by women who have made a great impact in their own fields like climate change advocate, TV host and mother Bianca Gonzalez-Intal; and artist and World Food Program ambassador KC Concepcion.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) has fought for Filipinas’ rights since its formation in the ‘80s. A steadfast partner in celebrating women, the fabric softener brand supported PCW’s 2017 Women’s Month theme of “We make change work for women” and honored executive director Emmeline Verzosa as one of the #NeverFade Filipinas.

Regional brand communications for P&G Asia fabric care Louie Morante shared, “We celebrate the woman’s never-fading spirit and timeless beauty on the occasion of International Women’s Day. We are proud and honored to celebrate the stories of Pia, Bianca, KC and Emmeline who embody the essence of #NeverFade. Together, we aim to inspire and encourage more women to be relentless in pursuing their dreams and ambitions in life.”

(For more information, visit www.facebook.com/DownyPhilippines.)

(Follow me on Instagram @pepperteehankee.)