2012: A year of firsts for Reel Time

“Marami na kasing existing documentaries. Marami nang nagawang dokyumentaryo. At ang Pilipinas, bilang isang mahirap na bansa, marami nang napag-usapan o natalakay na mga paksa (There are already a lot of existing documentaries on TV. Especially in a poor country like the Philippines, where a lot of social issues have already been thoroughly discussed in the media),” said Jayson Santos, Executive Producer of the GMA News TV documentary show "Reel Time." “Ang hamon sa mga dokyumentarista ay magkaroon ng bagong panlasa ‘yung dokyumentaryo (The challenge to documentarists is to give documentaries a fresh new flavor)." Responding to this challenge, GMA News TV’s highest-rating documentary program “Reel Time” pushed the envelope last 2012 with stories that startled, enlightened, and provided viewers with fresh perspectives on social issues that persist in the Philippines. 2012 was a year of firsts for “Reel Time.” The show produced the first-ever photo-documentary to air on Philippine television. Through “Reel Time,” Filipino audiences heard the surprising stories of foreigners living in our country. The show also experimented with mixing fiction and drama to tell real stories of real people. Last December 30, “Reel Time” revisited some of these groundbreaking documentaries in their year-ender special entitled “Reel Time Rewind.” Dayuhang Dukha Date aired: February 11, 2012 It’s not everyday you get to meet a blue-eyed, white-skinned foreigner living like a beggar on the streets of Metro Manila.  Foreigners in the Philippines are normally seen living affluent lifestyles, but the documentary “Dayuhang Dukha” featured the heartbreaking stories of a Belgian, a German, and an American who each travelled to the Philippines in hopes of starting their own businesses. Each lost all his savings after a number of misfortunes.  “Reel Time” viewers were moved and shocked by the stories of these foreigners living homeless and hungry in a strange land. Watch an excerpt of the episode here: Dayuhang Dukha Burdado Date aired: August 19, 2012
An inmate from New Bilibid Prison literally covered himself with tattoos during his 17-year stay in the correctional institution. After being released, he decided to turn a new leaf.  To complete his transformation, he went back to school and had his gang tattoos removed. His story was featured in “Burdado,” the first photo-documentary to be shown on Philippine television. “Reel Time” used almost 15,000 still photos to explore the culture and history of tattoos among Filipino celebrities and rock stars, the inmates of Bilibid, and the Manobos of Arakan. Watch an excerpt of the episode here: Burdado Batang Birador Date aired: September 9, 2012 "Hindi ko na po alam kung ilan ang napatay ko (I don’t know how many people I have already killed)," said the 14 year-old Niño, whose turbulent life was featured in “Reel Time’s” first docu-drama, “Batang Birador.”   A shocking narrative about innocence corrupted, the documentary focused on the stories of children who have been forced to steal and kill just to put food on the table. Watch an excerpt of the episode here: Batang Birador Gusto Kong Sumikat Date aired: September 16, 2012 There’s nothing in the world that Tala Halina wants more than to be a superstar. Tala Halina is the fictional character of “Reel Time’s” first ever mockumentary, “Gusto Kong Sumikat.” A mockumentary is a fictional representation of reality. Through the character of Tala Halina, “Reel Time” told the story of the many aspiring actors and actresses who line up for hours at auditions just to fulfill their dream of one day becoming celebrities. Watch an excerpt of the episode here: Gusto Kong Sumikat “Reel Time” airs every Sunday night at 8:45 PM on GMA News TV. Follow the program on Facebook and Twitter for updates about their upcoming documentaries and episode replays. —Bernice Sibucao, PF/GMA News