One of the aspirants faces the camera during the grand audition in June. (Joseph Agcaoili)
In its first five telecasts, TV5’s “Artista Academy” presented how more than 13,000 hopefuls who showed up at its one-time audition at the Smart Araneta Coliseum tried to put their best foot forward.
This Saturday, the show dubbed as the country’s biggest and most inventive talent search will finally make its much-awaited announcement on the identities of the top 16 aspirants who made the final cut.
With P20 million worth of total prizes, the biggest amount ever given by any talent search, TV5 head of creative and entertainment production Perci Intalan disclosed that out of the 13,000 who auditioned for “Artista Academy”, only 300 advanced to the next level, then was further trimmed to 178, then down to 75 and finally to the Top 16.
“It’s not an easy task to trim down 13,000 to 178 then 75 and finally down to 16. I was there at the grand auditions, and many of those who auditioned really showed a lot of potential,” said actor Marvin Agustin, who hosts the show along with exam presenter Cesar Montano. “But I believe TV5 has done a good job and made the right choice with the 16 finalists.”
And these 16 finalists, consisting of eight male and eight female aspirants between the ages of 16 and 21, are already winners right off the bat, even though only two will walk away with the coveted Best Actor and Best Actress awards, their own lead roles in a forthcoming TV5 teleserye, and the P20 million in total prizes aside from the chance to achieve the fame, fortune and stardom that “Artista Academy” promises.
Each of the 16 finalists gets a full scholarship at Wilma Galvante’s Asian Academy of Television Arts (AATA) where they will train under the tutelage of such industry luminaries as multi-awarded director Joel Lamangan, music master Louie Ocampo and dance guru Georcelle Dapat of G Force.
Win or lose, they are already certified talents of the Kapatid network.
“No other program has offered such school-based learning and development from a real academy of television arts. It will truly be a life-changing experience for not just the eventual winners but also for all the 16 participants,” Intalan stressed.
Filmmaker and TV5 Talent Center head Mac Alejandre, who along with Intalan and Galvante, is one of the brains behind “Artista Academy”, also pointed out that in addition to acting, singing and dancing modules, a significant part of the curriculum will also cover personality development, image-building and English proficiency.
A glimpse of the 13,000 hopefuls at the grand audition at Smart Araneta Coliseum in June. (Reuters)
For his part, Cesar Montano underscores that character is just as important as the actual talents. As the resident exam presenter of “Artista Academy,” he said his job is to mainly “give advice and try to be an example and inspiration to them by telling my story on how I started as an actor.”
“We have to hone not only their talents but more importantly their character,” Cesar noted. “That’s where things like punctuality, efficiency, focus in their work and their curiosity in what they do all come out. Sila kasi ang magse-set ng example sa next generations of talents.”
Intalan agrees and said that while the P20 million prize is there, it’s “how the eventual winners will learn, react and follow their mentors as they develop their talents and characters that will determine how far they’ll go in this business.”
Hosted by Cesar Montano and Marvin Agustin, “Artista Academy” airs Monday to Saturday after “Wil Time Bigtime” on TV5.
