By Benjie S. De Yro
‘Sileeence! Ibanag version. Take 2, Cut 3... to countdown. Go!’
The husky voice of the big man behind the controls inside a recording booth boomed. Silence, indeed. Three individuals, seated a meter apart, microphones on hand, focused their attention to a thin, long bond paper called the script.
Welcome to the second taping session of the National Nutrition Council Region 2 on the First 1000 Days ni Baby. Move over Manang Remy, Susan Robles, Luz Fernandez and Phil Cruz: members of the Balay Ni Ifan Media Group can give you a run for your own money.
From an original script translated into Filipino, Ilocano and Ibanag, the plugs center from Day 1 of a woman’s pregnancy until the baby has grown into a full two years. The scripts are peppered with all the do’s one should follow during these periods.
Comparatively, a radio drama becomes more effective than a straight announcement which tend to be dull especially if it comes from a poor production, that is poor script, poor delivery from the voice-talents and poor sound effects. This is because soap operas have been with the Filipino audience since the introduction of radio in the Philippines. It has since then become a part of the Filipino culture.
As in all dramatized plugs, there were characters assigned to the real Ibanags, Ilocanos and those who prefer the delivery in Filipino.
For a full three-hour session inside the technically equipped studio of the Philippine Information Agency, the mother, media, the local government officials, and the husband came to life thru the versatility of the actors’ voices.
“We appreciate the Balay Ni Ifan media group for being active and flexible as scriptwriters, voice actors and editors themselves. They come in as a full package in all phases of the production,” noted John Nestor Ballad, Nutrition Officer II of NNC.
With the plugs in three dialects, the agency expects a wider reach as they have been distributed to all possible media outlets in the region.
Suddenly, an actor raised a hand to signal a ‘cut’ in the proceedings. Everybody released a hearty laugh. Silent frowns. An Ibanag word had been mispronounced which elicited a comment from PIA-Cagayan Infocen Manager.
“It seems like it should be flawless. I realized the Ibanag language can be difficult when read and recorded,” he said.
Consider that the actors, while 90 percent of them have been into radio for so long as news anchors, field reporters, newsscript writers/ producers, commentators, and voice- over talents, voice acting sessions only come in between.
“Media practitioners in the region have talents in writing and producing multi-lingual radio plugs. However, no matter how good you are, the best critics are your colleagues,” veteran broadcaster Teresa Campos of Radyo Pilipinas-DWPE, said.
The session was full of bloopers for laughters, each one commenting on the other on how a word should be pronounced to include accent for authenticity.
“Parang nasa prusisyon ka, ang bagal-bagal mong magsalita,” a colleague told another talent.
The takes were many, so with the cuts to ensure good production.
A self-proclaimed drama coach was telling the actors: ‘feel the characters, the roles. Imagine you’re the mother, the husband, the politician. You are the character, you are what your roles are.”
Boisterous laughters broke the otherwise order for silence.
“With the comment and input of everyone, the delivery of lines was improved,” Campos, a mass communication graduate added.
Funny, but she thanked the activity as it brought the media once more to gather for a common cause and to laugh and to ‘insult each other without hurting one’s feelings.”
Didn’t I tell you the media belongs to the Fourth Estate?
Despite the nature of their jobs, the actors believe they can always come together regardless of personal differences; it is part of the territory.
For Digna Pagulayan, another veteran broadcaster and who acted roles in Ilocano, Ibanag and Filipino, it paid that the production was well explained, understood and delivered.
The NNC Region 2, which partnered with the region’s media practitioners since Day 1 of the establishment of the group, has earlier seen the potency of radio plugs to reach unlimited number of target audiences.
In the coming days, as you listen to these plugs on First 1000 Days Ni Baby, remember those group of individuals who lend their voices for a healthy and nutritious Cagayan Valley society.
Not until the shouts of “Silence... take 3, cut 3” either from Alvin Delos Santos of PIA or Ballad of NNC come along next taping session.
A world without radio is a deaf world. I say, a radio station without a nutrition drama could be fatally unhealthy. I bet my five Take 2s on that.
