Walang Sa’yo Nicole: A Look at Feminism in Female TV Lead Roles

Arquillan Gerry Agustin, Lea Regina Dulay, and Ariessa U. Codilla*

College of Arts and Sciences Education, University of Mindanao, Philippines

*Corresponding author: acodilla@umindanao.edu.ph 

Abstract

Feminism is the social, economic, and political belief that all genders and sexes deserve equal treatment. In Philippine TV, the cases of how feminism is represented in a different light is an issue that needs to be scrutinized nowadays. The main objective of this study is to investigate how false feminist representations on Philippine TV radically affected how the public perceived the true essence of feminism. Moreover, through creative works, the researchers produced a documentary film. The proponents investigated why this is prevalent in the industry and how these representations influence the viewers’ perception. The study encompassed the residents of Davao City. To further understand this research, the researchers gathered information from different sources from local media practitioners, filmmakers, and feminism advocates, all from other gender sectors, to ensure that there is no gender bias. This explains the factors that cause these representations to be relevant in today's teleseryes. In addition, the implication of this creative research highlights one of the most prevalent societal issues that must be addressed, particularly in the Media, which affects gender equality and societal norms. Upon thorough investigation and insights gathered from related literature and conducting interviews, the researchers discovered several reasons why these false feminist portrayals continue to thrive. One factor is people's general fascination with pop culture and media references, in which these tropes are used as examples. Another factor preventing these stories from being produced is a need for more options on free television. This relates to another factor that contributes to the airing of these shows, which is the ratings of these teleseryes. Companies that create this content assume that this is what the audience wants, but there are few options for the viewers. 

Keywords

feminism, feminist, teleserye, Davao City, creative works.

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