Operation STOM: Octopussy Dinagyang Field Report

Written by Lestari Hairul

Photographs by Lestari Hairul and Emily Choong (collage)

     The Octopussy team was assigned to cover the Dinagyang Festival on the ground over the two days we were there. We were a roving team of one videographer, Anis, impromptu photographer, Emily and a motley crew of girls and a guy excited to experience the festival (Andrea, Tracey, Gwyn, Paolo and myself).

Operation STOM: Moonraker Dinagyang Field Report

Written by Helen Sneha and Esther Ho

Photographs by Melissa Chia

*Names in this article have been changed to protect their identities.

     During days eight and nine of the In Search of Iloilo City study trip, the six-person Team Moonraker was assigned to the Capitol area of town. Having arrived there and discovered that good seats were hard to come by, we decided that it would be more productive to split into two separate groups. While Team Moon obtained a birds-eye view of the proceedings for a while (see ‘We Storm the Capitol’), Team Raker remained on the ground to sift through the crowds and speak to people. The following are some of the people we spoke to, and what they had to say about this year’s Dinagyang, its crowds, and its performances.

Operation STOM: Thunderball Dinagyang Field Report

Written by Team Leader Sheril A. Bustaman
Photographed by Sarah Chong

*Names in this article have been changed to protect minors’ identities.

     Beneath the scorching heat of the Iloilo sun, four students, a student guide and their pathfinder were struggling to find a nice spot to watch the Kasadyahan Street Dancing that was to begin in an hour. Whilst walking down the streets of Iloilo’s Chinatown, team Thunderball had an encounter with the boy who was to play the child Jesus, in the flesh.

The boy who was to play the Child Jesus in the festival.

     This little boy was getting made up by a professional make-up artist at the back of his parents’ car when our team happened to walk by. Judging by the fuss that was being made by the people around him, we decided he’d be a good subject to interview. Being Malaysian, we always think people who a fuss is being made of are important, and almost always we are never wrong.

One With The Tribe: Part 3

Written by Chrishandra Sebastiampillai

Pictures by Jonathan Lim, Sarah Chong and Melissa Chia

<< One With The Tribe: Part 2                                  One With The Tribe: Part 1>>

     Last night, we attended the last dress rehearsal of Tribu Panayanon in their school hall. We managed to speak with some of the dancers, and caught a glimpse of their preparations for today, the morning of the Dinagyang Ati-ati competition.

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     We are up bright and early, sitting in our jeepney and heading into the heart of the city. As part of Team Moonraker, I am headed to the Capitol judging stage. Traffic is heavy, and roads on the parade route have been shut, which means that we will have to continue on foot. The way is not entirely unfamiliar, as we spent yesterday covering the same area for the Kasadyahan parade- read about our adventure in pursuit of a good vantage point for filming HERE, and the rest of our team’s encounters HERE. 

We Storm the Capitol

Written by Chrishandra Sebastiampillai   

Pictures by Melissa Chia

The night before the Kasadyahan parade, we held a council of war in the Conference Room. We had to plan an all-out assault on the city of Iloilo. The mission: cover a complex and sprawling street festival as comprehensively as possible, with just four camera teams dispatched to various locations the parade would pass. We decided unanimously on a James Bond theme: we would be teams Skyfall, Thunderball, Octopussy and Moonraker conducting Operation STOM (take Iloilo City by storm).

Teams Skyfall, Thunderball, Octopussy and Moonraker. STOM. Yes, really.

And I think you’ll agree that we succeeded.

One With The Tribe: Part 2

Written by Chrishandra Sebastiampillai

Pictures by Jonathan Lim, Sarah Chong and Melissa Chia

<< One With The Tribe: Part 1                                  One With The Tribe: Part 3 >>

   On Saturday, 26th January, we were invited by Mr. Rommel Flogen to watch the last full dress rehearsal of Tribu Panayanon. Due to unforeseen circumstances, we were not able to make it in time to watch the full rehearsals, but caught the tail end of it, and managed to interview some of the student participants.

One With The Tribe: Part 1

Written by Chrishandra Sebastiampillai

Photographs by Jonathan Lim, Sarah Chong and Melissa Chia

One with the Tribe: Part 2 >>

     When I first found out that our trip to the Philippines was to see a street festival, the immediate thought I had was food, dancing and music. When I found out that the street festival was in honour of Señor Santo Niño, I found myself struggling to insert the child Jesus into the mix. As a born Catholic raised in a conservative family, attending a conservative church, I had to wonder how Jesus would go with body paint, tribal drums, war cries and San Miguel’s. This three-part story chronicles my journey from polite disbelief to absolute acceptance- in the Philippines, Jesus does come with the works.