MANILA, PHILIPPINES — In support of the Philippine creative economy, the country’s legislators are optimistic that House Bill 10107, which was ratified in May, will lapse into law on July 27, 2022. Otherwise known as the Philippine Creative Industries Development Bill, it seeks to provide enabling policy and governance framework to develop the Philippine creative industries into something that is globally competitive.
Under HB 10107, the Philippine Creative Industries Development Council will be created to ensure the development of the sector that has the potential to drive sustainable development and create inclusive job opportunities.
The bill was principally authored and sponsored by House Committee on Creative Industry and Performing Arts Chair Pangasinan 4th District Rep. Christopher “Toff” de Venecia. A creative himself, de Venecia is a writer, director, and producer. In 2014, he founded a performing arts collective, The Sandbox Collective.
In an exclusive interview, adobo Magazine sits down with de Venecia as he expounds on why the future is creative.
adobo: What does the ratification of the Creative Industries Bill mean for creatives in the Philippines in the most tangible way?
De Vencia: The impact of the ratification of the Creative Industries Bill on creatives is going to be huge. This is a sector that has managed to survive and even thrive on its own, but with institutionalized support from the state, it will really help the creative industry sector grow and accelerate to the point where we want it to be — which is by 2030, the Philippines will be the number one creative economy in all of Asia.
And you know, what we’re seeing with South Korea and the dominance of hallyu on the world stage — it’s not something that happened overnight. It was planned for decades ago, and now they’re reaping the benefits of an intentional policy shift on the part of the state in really identifying content and creativity as a pillar of their economic recovery, post-financial crisis. So we look forward to being able to achieve that same sort of momentum for the creative industry sector here in the country.
Talking about the Philippines’ creative economy, what value does it bring nationally?
We have these data sets generated by the Intellectual Property Satellite Office (IPOPHL) and YPO study conducted several years back. After being able to identify the economic contributions of the creative industries to the country, we arrived at the 7.34% GDP figure. It was also shared by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) that there are about 4 million freelancers here in the country, most of which can be assumed to be working in the creative industry sector. You also have more than 700,000 employees working in creative firms and businesses. That’s a huge chunk of our labor force coming from this sector, and it has to be said that the creative industries are among the most inclusive, economic sectors in the country and that it allows for a lot of women, and members of the LGBTQIA+ to join the workforce.
The capital here is really one’s creativity, talent, and skill set. That certainly brings a lot of value to the country.
What about when the bill gets enacted into law, what’s going to change for creatives?
There is going to be a whole of value chain support for creatives. Human resource development, from capacity building to creative education, is touched upon in the bill. The Creative industry Development Council, which will be charged with creating the plan, will have to take into account how the K-12, technical-vocationals, and higher tertiary education sectors will work in tandem with the creative industries so that the human resources that are being turned out will be employable when they graduate.
Industries are also being developed in the regions and provinces so that there’s a decentralization of creativity outside of Metro Manila. If you want to be a creative, you can totally pursue that in UNESCO Creative Cities like Baguio and Cebu, and hopefully more creative centers as the Philippine Creative Cities Network (PCCN) achieves its vision of social-economic inclusivity for the grassroots creative.
There is also a space for venture capital in case you’re looking for investments and you’re considering having the state as one of the investors in your company. For startups, there will also be funds and grants so that creative firms and individuals can be ushered in towards the formal economy.
Lastly, how has your personal experience as a creative informed the decisions you’ve made in regard to this bill?
I think, my personal background has a lot to do with my passion for seeing this build through because it’s not just me, it’s also the people in my life and seeing them struggle and work hard just to make ends meet, yet they don’t have security or opportunity despite the talent and creativity that they possess.
Based on my experience in film and theater, I want to decentralize to bring opportunities closer to the grassroots. I wish that future generations of creatives can proudly declare wanting to join the creative industry and not be told by other people that there’s no money in that. In fact, I want it to be at the level where STEM careers are at, whereupon making that declaration, you get the support and validation that you deserve because of the trail that’s been blazed ahead of these future creatives. Hopefully, this is the kind of world awaiting them.
