Miss Universe Asia Chelsea Manalo (sixth from left) with her 2024 Miss Universe Philippines sisters. Image: Armin P. Adina/INQUIRER.net
A documentary that followed the 2024 Miss Universe Philippines pageant hopes to show Filipino culture to the global community through the beauty contest platform.
“A Queen’s Runway” gives the audience an inside look into the national pageant’s staging last year that not a lot of people have access to, following the action backstage, taking a glimpse of the delegates’ lives even from their own homes, and getting the thoughts of the people behind the annual spectacle.
“I think what people should remember is how diverse the Philippines is, and how much culture there is in the country. And if you see it through the pageants, how big that is through this?” the documentary’s writer-director Erik Sopracasa told INQUIRER.net at the sidelines of the project’s launch event held at a retail shop in Mandaluyong City on Jan. 11.
The store is owned by Shamcey Supsup-Lee, 2011 Miss Universe third runner-up and one of the officers of the Miss Universe Philippines organization (MUPH).
Sopracasa also emphasized how they aimed to highlight the journey of the candidates. “We really focused on their growth, because we went with them to all the different places. We went to Sultan Kudarat, Boracay, Palawan, and all the shoots in Manila, their homes, and their families. So you’ll see, basically, really a story throughout the documentary, the growth and actually, how difficult and competitive it is to compete in such a pageant,” he explained.
As an Italian man who studied in the United States, he said he observed that pageantry in the Philippines is like what soccer is to Europe, and what American football is to the US.
Sopracasa added: “The culture of the Philippines, I hope people around the world will see more of that, and then actually what it means to be part of such a big event like Miss Universe Philippines.”
He said he pitched the idea to his Movart Studios business partner Tom Sys in May 2023, and the latter was very receptive to his idea. They then got in touch with MUPH Pres. Jonas Gaffud to present their concept.
Miss Universe Philippines EVP Voltaire Tayag (center) with Erik Sopracasa (left) and Tom Sys of Movart Studios. Image: Armin P. Adina/INQUIRER.net
MUPH Executive Vice Pres. Voltaire Tayag confessed that he was adamant at first. “I didn’t know who they were, and my first reaction was ‘no!’ I’m not so sure because I fear that they might put pageantry or Miss Universe Philippines in a negative light because they’re not from the country, and most of the documentaries that have been shown negatively portrayed pageants,” he said.
But as he observed the two filmmakers, Tayag said he knew the pageant, and especially the delegates, were in good hands. “That is my primary concern. I did not want the women to be exploited in any way, or be portrayed negatively,” he said.
Tayag also cited the professionalism and humility of the two, which made them earn the organization’s trust. “They were quite respectful of whatever was going on. We never see them trying to be ‘pabida,’ or asking for whatever request from the team. The only thing that they asked is ‘can we have the schedule, and what time do we need to be there?’”
He said MUPH did not meddle in the creative process of the two filmmakers, respecting the vision that both Sopracasa and Sys had for their first feature film. And Tayag said he is also grateful to the Movart Studios team.
“You could imagine that by now there would have been a Filipino filmmaker who would have documented one of the pageants in the Philippines. We’re so thrilled that it took foreigners to take that chance to document something that Filipinos love so dearly. And this is going to be amazing,” Tayag said.
Sopracasa was quick to clarify that “A Queen’s Runway” is not a documentary about the story of just one candidate, or of reigning Miss Universe Philippines Chelsea Manalo. The film aims to give audiences a rare glimpse of the side of pageantry seldom seen by the general public, the facet that shows there is a less glamorous aspect in mounting the competition, and that it takes tremendous mental and physical fortitude to navigate the industry.