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Call me Mr. Quote of the Week


Hi, for those of you who don’t know me, I’m Budjette Tan, Philippine animator extraordinaire-- and I sold out.

Let me explain.

Last week, I attend the launch of Eddie Boy Escudero’s photo exhibit “When We Danced”-- which is more like an exhibit of Eddie Boy’s photos and Karen Kunawicz words.

While checking out the exhibit, I saw Tim Yap who introduced me to two kids. “Budjette! I wanna introduce you to our two new super writers…”

Super writers? Huh?

My brain quickly hyperlinked Tim to the Inquirer’s Saturday SUPER! Section.

Oh… Super! writers.

Anyway, their names got lost in the rest of the people’s chatter. Tim pointed to me and said, “Guys! This is Budjette Tan! One of the Philippine’s best animators!” (At least that’s what I remember Tim yelling in the din.)

“I sold out!” I yelled. “Don’t do what I did!” (At least, that’s what I remember yelling.)

So, not only did I NOT correct Tim about my job description, I ended up giving advice to the two Super!writers, which was something I just wanted to say because I thought it was funny and it was something short enough to blurt out and make my exit and go back to viewing the exhibit, which was something I DID NOT INTEND TO END UP AS A QUOTE IN THE NEXT ISSUE OF THE Saturday SUPER!

A couple of days after that exhibit, I went on a trip and got back to Manila last Sunday. As Sunday night slipped into Monday morning, I was wading through a week’s worth of the Inquirer, when I finally got to SUPER!

In section G2 and read “The Dairy of James and Pepe (from high school to high society in a week)” Text and photos by James Gabrillo and Pepe Diokno.

I saw it had pictures from Eddie Boy’s exhibit, so I proceeded to read their little adventure.

Then I read this part:

Pepe: One of the people we met was Budjette Tan, animator guy extraordinaire. (I don’t actually know know him, but his name sounds so Budget-like, I feel like I do.)

James: He told us, “We sold out… you shouldn’t.”

Pepe: Then he cries and rolls on the floor. Just kidding. Budjette Tan wins Best Quote of the Week.

They continued to talk about the different parties and events they attended, under the guidance of the Yapparazi.

Later on, I read this:

Pepe: I woke up at 12 in the afternoon. I was so inspired by what Budjette Tan said, that I did my art-- a piece entitled, “Budget.”

Bummer.

That’s what I get for opening my mouth in front of media people. (Seems like I didn’t learn my lesson, despite numerous viewings of “The West Wing”.) Super writers, indeed.

(But I have to say, James and Pepe’s article was funny. I’m sure me and Mark would have written something like that back in our day. Did I just say, “Back in our day”? God, I feel so old.)

Anyway, going back to something else that happened at Eddie Boy’s exhibit, I also got to talk to singer/song writer/ photographer/designer Wawi Navarozza. She came up to me and said, “Is Alamat still alive?”

So, at one end of the exhibit, I had people who thought I was an animator, that I was the best animator in the land, and that I was an animator who sold out.

At the other end of the exhibit, I’ve got some one who actually knew that I’m a comic book writer but wonders if our little comic book group is still alive because… because… well, for the obvious reasons that we haven’t been publishing anything lately.

Around a month ago, I attended a reunion of college classmates. One of them told me how his officemate got a peek of his cellphone’s contact list and saw my name. His officemate gushed, “Sir, you know Budjette Tan? The comic book guy? THE Budjette Tan? Wow!”

Seems like I’m not just Budjette, I’m “THE Budjette” to some guy who works in a company that manufactures skin whitening products. Funny, considering I’ve only written five comic book stories in my entire life and those issues didn’t sell as well as the other local comic books.

So, what’s the point of this entry?

I don’t know.

Forgot.

Wanted to make a point about success and selling out and making money to fuel your dream projects and not opening your mouth in front of reporters if you don’t want to get quoted and become the punch line to their next article.

Goes to show we are all material for someone else’s story.

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