Behind the Scenes
Cover subject Nanette Medved- Po walks us through a distant path where four walls and a chalkboard signify a chance to completely rewrite a child’s future
Nanette Medved-Po first graced our cover in November of 2012, when she was chosen as Philippine Tatler’s representative to Asia’s Most Stylish. Since then, she has done many a spectacular deed in the name of giving, through her non-profit organisation Generation HOPE. Her achievements earned for her in 2017 a recognition from Forbes Magazine as one of Asia’s Heroes of Philanthropy. As such, she makes for a most fitting cover lady for our philanthropy issue.
To fully capture the essence of Generation HOPE’s endeavours, the Philippine Tatler team flew to one of its school projects in General Santos City for the shoot. After a missed flight and a 45-minute drive from the city proper to Colot S Aligado Indigenous People High School, escorted by an army truck of about a dozen soldiers we finally reached our destination.
Children of the B’laan tribe and their families greeted us with dances and songs in their native dialect. The views around us were breathtaking: clear blue skies, cotton-like clouds, and wild horses roaming freely. We did the shoot around noon, when the sun was at its hottest. There was no electricity in the area so we could not use any lighting equipment. We tried to take as many photos before the sun set.
There were some earth-shaking (literally) events as well. The team led by fashion editor Monique Madsen and documentary photographer Xyza Cruz Bacani were awakened in the middle of the night to evacuate our hotel because of a strong earthquake. We did not get any sleep after that as the fire alarm went on blaring the entire evening. In spite of this, everyone remained in high spirits for the entire shoot, perhaps because we were surrounded by smiling children and friendly soldiers. It was certainly an unforgettable trip. For the full story, turn to page 192.