Chris Leonardo just became the first ever scholar booted out of the Artista Academy, its official!
TV5 and the country's biggest Artista search with a whopping 20 Million pot prize could have changed his and the rest of the 16 hopefuls life but of course there will be someone who had to go. We were able to interview most of them after their live show a few days ago. Imagine they didn't know who was gonna get voted out at this time and we were asking them who deserved to go out first. One name surfaced but it wasn't Chris Leonardo. So it must have been so shocking he had to go that evening. He was one of the guys who never wanted to tell who he thinks would get voted out which I remember quite vividly. Oh my.
This Saturday is again going to be another day for live exams and the only thing they are worried about is how to do good in the tasks assigned to them. Some of them are no triple threats and are having difficulties acting, dancing or singing. They are giving it their best but will it be enough to impress the judges come crunch time?
In hindsight they kinda know that nobody is safe because a few weeks ago it was even Alberto Bruno, Stephanie Rowe and Jon Orlando who were in the bottom 3. This week was also more bizarre when Brent, Benjo and Chris who apparently they thought were front runners just became the three lowest ones.
Brent Manzano kinda knew almost all his compatriots wanted him to be eliminated last week but he insists he's just doing his best in both acting and singing and he's got to practice a lot which the others probably find annoying. Even with this in their mind Brent says he's just going to do his part and he said he knows its nothing personal with the other scholars.
The ladies are actually front runners believe it or not. They've got some of the most number of followers in social media compared to the boys. They too had their own people who they think should be in the bottom two. We kinda squeezed it out of them as well. I was also kinda disappointed about how the Marvelous - Alberto love team ended up. I talked to Alberto and he told me he just ended it with her because he doesn't want to continue something that means nothing to him. Marvelous and Alberto are still friends but they haven't talked in a while she says. When I told her about what Alberto said she looked kinda disappointed. I would have loved to see these guys get developed. They guy really had spunk and Marvelous is kinda sweet. If they end up together pretty soon tell me I'm right okay? =)
This guy was a treat the last time I saw him in a press conference. He was naturally funny and he didn't even know it. When asked about who his idol was he said Michael V without batting an eyelash. To the amusement of everyone there, he was dead serious. When I told him that he had that Robin Padilla vibe with him he said thanks but I was quite surprised he didn't really know him that much. I had a hard time interviewing him in English because he either understands Filipino and Italian, I was turned off by that but that's okay. He's still good in my books.
Julia, oh Julia.. She's Julia Quisumbing and she's my bet to win Artista Academy. I find her very sincere. She talks quite classy, smart and she really wants to learn. She was so eager to even learn tagalog so she could better relate to everything Filipino. She can act obviously but she can understand most of it if its in English. She's a very good dancer and she wasn't lagging behind when it comes to that and singing when they held these live exams. She was a model before she came into this competition and guess what she knows my Sensei Xander Angeles; a world class photographer from New York. It was a small world and I wanted her to know I'm rooting for her. I'm sure she'll win, but even so if she doesn't she's got one of the best faces in the industry which TV5 can use as leverage since she's in this Academy now.
Top Artista Academy scholar Mark Neumann just celebrated his birthday. He was so humbled by the fact that he's got the highest scores so far and hopes it continues. He's my bet for the boys. Just look at him. He's got the nicest face of them all. Lips are gorgeous too. Don't get me wrong but I just find him physically perfect for the title. Talent wise he's learning really fast. Although he needs to improve on Filipino so he can relate to the masses. He's got a lot of time on his hands and I hope he wins this tilt.
Benjo is probably third in my books as far as the guys are concerned. I was really disappointed to hear he got into the bottom three. This guy is obviously worth more than that and he's got one of the nicest bodies in the batch. His throng of fans must not be too complacent because voting is tough. You need to do that in order to get counted. He's good at dancing when I saw him the last time. He probably had better acting than the others and I hope people find that in him soon enough so he stays in the academy and not get kicked out.
Among the guys, I find Jon Orlando the most telegenic, eloquent and intelligent. He's the most confident when it comes to facing the camera. When they did a video when the competition started he was the only one that wasn't shaking and totally understood how serious this competition is. He is ready and if there was someone I hoped to win among the boys, he comes a close second. He's very smart and once you get to know him you'll never get tired of talking to him, just ask Rod Magaru coz he's got an in depth interview with him LOL. We were not able to talk to him because Rod loved him too much (to interview I mean!) haha!
Vin Abrenica is one of the front runners too. Although I heard from some of my peers that he was rather a little too safe in answering some of the questions. He wasn't that spontaneous but don't get me wrong I find that very mature for his age. He's got the body of a demigod and he's making his own mark now and not being overshadowed by his more famous brother. He's so thankful for the people who had been sternly supporting him, even the fans of his brother are behind him and why not... he's definitely got everything that an Artista should be. He's a good boy, got good looks, great body, confidence in singing and probably is every girl's dream guy. I don't have to promote him really because as far as I know, you guys know him now a lot better. Am I right? :)
He's got the nicest demeanor and one of the guys who had the best online presence. I don't blame them though because Akihiro is probably the ladies favorite. He's young and good looking plus the eyes tell it all. Girls go gaga with chinky eyes eh? He's one of the nice ones who felt also so comfortable talking with people and the press. He was so far contented with what he did in the last exam and he hopes to maintain what he believes is his best so he can become the winner pretty soon. I'm sure he'll be one of the few who'll end up in the top but in order for that to happen he needs all the help we can give him. Make sure you vote for him alright? =)
Artista Academy will be having their Live Exams again tomorrow, that's a Saturday in Manila and for all the nice things I've been hearing so far with this competition I'm sure TV5 will surely have gorgeous ones lining up on their artist roster when the time comes. Stay tuned to TV5 at 9:30PM and watch their adventures daily Mon-Fri @ 11:45AM & 9:00PM. Who's gonna win the coveted 20 Million Pesos? We'll know soon so make sure you watch everyday or else! Capisce?! =)
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