Parnuay rolls out discussions aligning education with creative industries
Educators, cultural practitioners, and industry leaders gathered at the Ilocandia Cultural Center on December 16-18 as the 3rd Creativity in Philippine Higher Education Summit rolled out a series of parallel workshops focused on advancing digital and performing arts, culture, and creative industry education.
๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐ด๐ถ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ, ๐บ๐๐๐ถ๐ฐ, ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ฎ๐น ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐
The sessions covered theater arts curriculum development, contemporary Filipino music, inter-agency alignment for game development and animation, and strengthening a Filipino niche in creative content creation.
Dr. Glecy Atienza, full professor at the University of the PhilippinesโDiliman College of Arts and Letters, led the lecture-workshop โDulang Pambansa: Theater Arts Curriculum Development,โ providing participants with a comprehensive grounding in the elements, aesthetics, and ideological foundations of Philippine theater. She discussed key components such as dramaturgy, performance conventions, staging, and ensemble work, emphasizing theaterโs role as a space for cultural memory, social reflection, and nation-building.
Dr. Atienza stressed the need to recalibrate theater curricula by treating theater as a multidisciplinary learning platform rather than a monodisciplinary pursuit. She highlighted the integration of literature, history, music, movement, visual design, and cultural studies as essential to developing holistic theater practitioners and educators. A Senior Artist-Teacher of the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) since 1976, Dr. Atienza is an award-winning playwright whose work Lutong Bahay (Home Cooking) has received national recognition.
Meanwhile, Dr. Pedro โEdruโ Abraham Jr., founder of Kontemporaryong Gamelan Pilipino (Kontra-GaPi), facilitated an interactive music and dance workshop titled โMusika ng Pagkakaisa: Contemporary Approaches to Traditional Filipino Music.โ The session engaged students and faculty through guided clapping, rhythmic exercises, and movement activities that introduced fundamental concepts of rhythm, coordination, and musical structure.
Using traditional instruments such as the djembe, kubing, and flute, Dr. Abraham demonstrated varying rhythmic patterns and encouraged participants to embody musical expression through movement. He emphasized the diversity of cultural responses to rhythm, the discipline required in dance and music, and the importance of awareness of space, sound, and audience. The workshop concluded with Kontra-GaPi performances, including โKaya ng Pinoyโ and their version of the Game of Thrones musical score.
Ms. Marla Angela de Castro Rausch, President of the Creative Content Creators Association of the Philippines, led the session โStrengthening the Filipino Niche for Original Content,โ highlighting Filipino culture as a powerful foundation for globally competitive creative works. She discussed the growing international demand for authentic cultural narratives and the role of higher education institutions and TESDA in advancing the creative sector aligned with the Vision 2030 creative hub agenda.
Ms. Rausch presented global creative trends and practical strategies in content development, including identifying intellectual property (IP) seeds, understanding IP protection, and applying rapid prototyping to transform ideas into viable creative pitches. She encouraged participants to consciously define narratives rooted in Filipino identity and called on academic institutions to help uncover and amplify untold local stories from across the country.
Industry leaders Norman Lee, chair of the Technical Panel Group on Game Development and representative of the Game Developers Association of the Philippines, and Daniel Enriquez, executive chair of the Animation Council of the Philippines, Inc., led a discussion on aligning the Department of Education (DepEd), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to strengthen the countryโs game development and animation ecosystem using the Philippine Skills Framework (PSF).
The alignment meeting resulted in a proposed ladderized framework for new academic offerings, including the Bachelor of Science in Game Design and Development and degree programs in Animation, supported by credit transfer mechanisms, industry collaboration on microcredentials, and national certifications. The speakers emphasized sustained inter-agency and industry collaboration, integration of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, and expanded teacher training to develop globally competitive Filipino game developers and animators.
๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป๐ฑ๐๐๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐๐ต๐
Challenging the long-held perception that creative work is financially unsustainable, the second day of panel discussions themed โWalang Pera Dโyan (?): The Economics of the Creative Industries and What Higher Education Institutions Can Do,โ reframed the creative industries as a viable, growing, and economically significant sector anchored on policy, education, and industry alignment.
Central to the discussion was the Philippine Creative Industries Development Act (RA 11904), a law that clarifies industry demand, enables project-based and non-linear career pathways, and strengthens mechanisms for intellectual property protection, which allow creatives to turn passion-driven labor into sustainable professional careers.
Ms. Sari Molintas, Creative Economy Manager of the British Council Philippines highlighted that the Philippine Creative Industries Development Act has introduced to creatives clearer pathways to learn how to monetize creative work, opening opportunities for non-linear, project-based careers in the creative economy. Echoing this, Atty. Gio Franco Gomez, Executive Assistant for Industry Partnership of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), emphasized that creative work is no longer peripheral but a legitimate and growing professional path, adding that the government plays a key role in safeguarding creatorsโ rights.
Further highlighting that the creative industries now constitute a major economic force, driving employment, innovation, and cultural development, Ms. Mae Angelica Therese Heruela, Executive Director of the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA), described the sector as โa multi-trillion-peso industryโ that is often misperceived as mere entertainment rather than a driver of labor and economic growth.
During the discussion, panelists stressed that higher education institutions (HEIs) must align curricula with industry realities and underscored the need to embed creativity across the curriculum as a way of thinking rather than a standalone subject through the integration of practitioner-led instruction, project-based assessments, interdisciplinary electives, and industry partnerships.
Alain Zedrick Camiling, Chairperson and Assistant Professor of Arts Management at De La SalleโCollege of Saint Benilde, noted that there is a shift from managing arts to managing creatives, expanding student career pathways in fields such as cultural tourism, diplomacy, and creative entrepreneurship.
Heruela reinforced this perspective, emphasizing the need to professionalize creative labor early. โThe moment we see dancing, singing, drawing, and painting not just as passion but as labor, we begin to demand proper value and fair compensation, and that starts with professionalization in higher education,โ she said. She also underscored creativity as a transferable skill rooted in empathy, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking.
Finally, reframing HEIs as community and cultural spaces, Prof. Benhur Ong, Chancellor of De La SalleโCollege of Saint Benilde, stressed the importance of experimentation and innovation, where students, educators, and local artists co-create knowledge and opportunities. He added that creative industries โare not just economic engines; they also strengthen cultural cohesion, which universities must fully embrace.โ
With this, the parallel workshops underscored the summitโs commitment to strengthening creative education through interdisciplinary learning, cultural grounding, and industry alignment. By bringing together educators, artists, and industry leaders, the sessions highlighted the vital role of higher education in nurturing globally competitive yet culturally rooted Filipino creatives.
Dec, 19, 2025 12:47:pm
Written By:
STRATCOM
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