Cover Pangasinan’s 4th District Representative Christopher de Venecia
Pangasinan’s 4th District Representative Christopher de Venecia
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A landmark law authored by Pangasinan’s 4th District Representative Christopher de Venecia augurs a brighter future for Filipino artists
The creative community has traditionally been getting the short end of the stick. It could be said that in the absence of a proper enabling environment, a creative would have to continuously strive and forever struggle to thrive.
Not anymore. Through Republic Act 11904 or the recently enacted Philippine Creative Industries Development Act (PCIDA), Filipino creatives now have the opportunity to proliferate and achieve a more sustainable and productive future for themselves and their careers.
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At the forefront of this movement is Pangasinan’s fourth district representative, Christopher “Toff ” de Venecia. A creative force himself—theatre director, producer, writer, and former child actor—he shares, “At the height of the pandemic, arts and creativity were deemed as non-essentials and creative freelancers were revealed to be very much vulnerable.”
He recalls various sectors such as live events, fashion, and film banding together and realising that they needed to move past palliative solutions and towards long-term institutional support. He shares that the lack of government support for homegrown talent and creative firms in areas such as education, entrepreneurial development, technology, investment promotions, and market access has been a persistent problem despite the Filipinos being known for their creativity the world over.
It is this same reason that we’ve been overtaken by our neighbouring countries like South Korea, precisely because their government has been investing in the talents of their people since even before 1997. He shares, “The Hallyu [or Korean wave] didn’t just happen overnight. K-Pop and K-Drama are creative consequences of an intentional policy shift that galvanised public-private synergy.”
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With creative industries contributing 7.3 per cent to the Philippines’ gross domestic product and close to 8 million Filipinos to the country’s workforce as per a recently published study by the Philippine Statistics Authority, it is apparent that the sector is ripe for the picking. Rep de Venecia passionately believes that it could be a game-changer for the Philippines’ post-pandemic recovery.
“Imagine, prior to the law, we didn’t even have a government agency dedicated to growing this sector,” he shares. “Just a few that catered to handfuls like film, books, or theatre when in total, there are about 70-plus creative industries that could benefit from developmental programs and policies that would address pain points in their respective value chains.”
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Funding is now secured for Year One of the PCIDA’s implementation, and the Philippines is playing catch-up with its neighbours with the goal of becoming the #1 creative economy in ASEAN by the year 2030. “I thought, ‘Okay, the law is passed. We have to make sure it’s funded and implemented properly. Now the real work begins,’” says Rep De Venecia.
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Images: Toff de Venecia
About
Gabriel found his passion for writing through poetry in high school. He sharpened his skills at Ateneo de Manila University and hopes to write a play worthy of Broadway one day. A self-proclaimed geek, he loves to spend his free time playing video games and board games. When he's not clicking heads on Valorant or roleplaying as a barbarian in Dungeons and Dragons, you can find him exploring art galleries or watching stage plays.
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A creative writer who writes about anything and everything, Gabriel loves to dive deep into the arts and culture scene—as well as going on long road trips for travel pieces.
You can reach him on Instagram at @gbohol for any leads, casual conversations or game invites.
