When she was still production manager for one of the country’s biggest television networks, Donna Gopez Ocampo was a little perplexed why their rising talents did not get any formal training in TV hosting.
Stage Masters Director Donna Ocampo mentoring two of the Batch 3 participants in the ABCs of TV show interviewing.
Sure, everyone underwent the mandatory workshops for singing, dancing and acting but nary a session for hosting events such as guestings in shows, corporate events, formal occasions and the like, where nascent and full-blown celebrities were often called in to lend glitz and glamour to the occasion.
Necessity being the mother of invention, Donna and her crew put together a program which they themselves designed. Needless to say, Cebu is now reaping the harvest of those efforts with a new breed to TV hosts who are giving talents from the Metropolis a run for their money.
Now that she’s back in her native Cagayan de Oro, Donna set up Stage Masters, a workshop designed to professionalize hosting by local talents.
“I start with defining hosting to better understand what the responsibilities that comes with it,” Donna explained during a break in her third workshop. “Then we start with proper mike holding, stance, speaking and ad-libs, intro of self and guests, then the proper look before we proceed to the various events that call for professional hosting.”
Elton Ladd Batinga (center) from the 2nd batch of Stage Masters
Elton Ladd Batinga, an up and coming events host from the 2nd batch, said Stage Masters came in at the most opportune time in his chosen vocation.
“I’ve just been starting to host a few events around that time and wasn’t really confident yet. Even so, I already felt that hosting was for me. So it came at the perfect time when I had just enough experience to say I was ready to follow through on this path, but knew that I still had so much more to learn,” he explained.
“I knew I needed so much more improvement but I never really knew what was there to improve coming into the workshop. It was only then that I received professional coaching that I saw myself differently,” he added.
Although not a teacher by profession, Donna explained how her professional track record in radio and TV inspired her to come up with the workshop.
“What I’m sharing are practical tips I’ve learned from my experience as a producer and mentor of TV hosts,” she said.
“For instance, for TV hosting, we discuss how television is all about the audience, proper stance, voice delivery, speaking and being comfortable on-camera for talk shows, magazine shows, and event coverages.”
The road to being the best HOST starts with knowing that looks are not everything. Being humble enough to learn, adjust, and want to be better is the 1st step to greatness. Being good looking is a bonus
With the advent of the internet and live events, Stage Masters will next tackle on-line hosting and video blogging. Statistics have shown that live events in the social media site Facebook have the highest rate of engagements compared to still photographs and posted videos.
Down the road, the nascent enterprise is looking at doing a purely wedding hosting and organizing workshop, hosting a kiddy party host, as well as coaching voice-overs.
“I also want to do workshops on how to produce a show on TV, and how to produce a variety show,” Donna said.
“One of the highlights of what I shared was about making sure to keep their events short, quick, and happy,” said Kirk David Mercado, who shared a video of his wedding hosting tips with the 1st batch participants. “I hope they learned from me through that short time I was given to speak to them. Congrats to Ma’am Donna Ocampo and team!”
It’s not only the participants who gain from the Stage Masters workshops though.
“Over 12 years of being in this industry has taught me so much, and I’ve always believed that sharing the lessons that I’ve learned through the years is something that brings more meaning to my career and my life in general,” Kirk shared.
With its expanding repertoire of workshops, Stage Masters looks forward to producing its own shows online, or a local variety show.
“Bottom-line, Stage Masters is about helping local talents improve or perfect their hosting skills,” Donna explained.
Louis Ramas, a participant from the second batch of Stage Masters, couldn’t agree more.
This is Teacher Louie. How lucky is she to have a school family helping her be a better host. Soon she will be a stage master.
“Thank you so much for all the knowledge you’ve shared and all the incredible power of wisdom you’ve inculcated in us. To those who would like to enhance their hosting career, Stage Masters is the perfect match!”
For Elton, a professional attitude and openness to learning is equally important in helping a host strive for perfection in his craft.
“Ms Donna was able to pack in so much in the time that we had and I’m sure the other participants would agree with me that we learned so much,” he explained.
“But, the most important lesson for me isn’t in the modules, it was in observing Ms Donna and the other participants. For me, the best thing was learning and realizing that it’s never just about you, and that perfection can never be achieved, and so you’re only real goal is to keep learning and keep bettering yourself.”
-30-