Asean: Asia's Perfect 10: Filipino

(Photo courtesy of axn-asia.com)

"Inspiration sparks hope, hope sparks action and actions sparks change."

Jonathan "Jon" Allen Yabut, a senior product manager of a pharmaceutical company in the Philippines, was hired by Tony Fernandes, a renown Malaysian entrepreneur and the "Boss" of The Apprentice Asia TV show, in its first season ever. Having competed with other 11 contestants from across Asia, Jon was acclaimed for his leadership and management skills, most importantly his ability to bring the best our of other people, which have the greatest appeal to the Boss's taste. The 27-year-old Pinoy will receive a work at one of Fernandes's firm with a 6-figure salary in one-year contract.

The Apprentice Asia is the Asian version of famous TV reality show "The Apprentice" hosted by Donald Trump. In Asian version, the Boss is played by Tony Fernandes, founder of AirAsia and owner of English football club Queen Park Ranger Football Club. The show comprises of 12 contestants from Asian countries and aired 11 episodes on AXN-Asia.

Congratulation to Jon, to Philippine, and to ASEAN.

Aseanclan Blog manager

Chhaly Samsokrith

By Chhaly Samsokrith

In the modern world of entertainment, and in the country of anime and video game enthusiastic lives a princess who contributes highly to the art of cosplay. Filipino's Alodia Gosiengfiao has found herself in this area of attention since 2003 when she was awarded 3rd place in an event known as C3 Convention [1]. Her fame rose gradually since and she has been featuring in magazines, events, and books.

Here is the list of her awards:

2003 Culture Crash Comics Convention Magic Gunner Rikku of Final Fantasy X-2 3rd Place and People’s Choice

2004 Ragnarok Online World Championships Isis of Ragnarok Online Alberta Craftsmanship Award

2004 3rd Philippine Toys and Hobbies Collection Convention Chii of Chobits 3rd Place

2005 Anime Explosion Creature Pink of Gunbound Online 1st Place, Best Props and Most Innovative Awards

2006 5th Philippine Toys and Hobbies Collection Convention Alexiel of Angel Sanctuary Best Group

2006 National Cosplay Competition Arua of Rose Online Online Voting Winner

[2]

As a youth, Alodia put her interest in arts, anime, piano and video games. During that time, she got involved in many school's art competition and earned quite a reputation. She also got involved in online fan forum known as Anime Club where she met many other people who shared the same interests. In 2003, due to enormous supports from her forum's friend, she made a decision to participate in the cosplay competition C3 Convention where she posted as Rikku from Final Fantasy X-2 along with her sister, Ashley as Yuna from the same game. Later, she gained more attention with her appearance as various characters of different franchises.

Due to her fame, she is invited to be a judge in many cosplay competitions. In 2009, she was named FHM's 100 Sexiest Women in the World [3]. Currently, she is a spokeperson for CSCENTRL, continues her habits in participating in many cosplay events and often featuring in many teen magazines. Her reputation is worldly recognized.

To Filipino, and Cosplay fans, she is a symbol of creativity and enthusiasm. Her background with arts coupled with her passion in anime, video games and other creative media franchises has led her to contribute to the rise of Cosplaying activities in Philippine. At the time she started cosplaying, there have been already much interests in that. In recent years, cosplaying in Philippine has been intensifying. Even people who do not cosplaying, they also know her name, such is a great contribution to Cosplaying.