Icebreaker lang muna. Taray lang!

Caramoan lures more 'castaways' from Israel

By Volt Contreras
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:45:00 07/05/2009


MANILA, Philippines-A piece of paradise in Bicolandia continues to draw an international cast of castaways.

Like the French and the Bulgarians before them, Israelis have shot their own version of the popular reality TV show "Survivor" on the Caramoan peninsula in Camarines Sur, opening this tropical Eden to a larger global audience and tourism market.

"For Israelis, it's a view they won't see anywhere else," said Guy Hameiri, CEO of the production outfit Reif Hameiri, in an interview last month at the company offices in Tel Aviv.

"We were overwhelmed when we saw the location, and I'm sure it will be very tempting for our audience to go see it themselves," Hameiri said.

Show producer Gregory Bekerman observed that "the Philippines has a certain kind of green that I haven't seen anywhere [else]."

He said he would return to the Philippines in September to scout for another site for future "Survivor" seasons.

"It's paradise" captured through 22 cameras and some 3,000 hours of raw footage, Bekerman said.

The challenge now is to squeeze those amazing shots into 40 hour-long episodes.

A popular TV reality game show produced in many countries, "Survivor" isolates its contestants in the wilderness to compete for cash and prizes. They are divided into tribes and they vote off other contestants until only one is left.

$7 million

The two production executives updated Tourism Secretary Joseph Durano and a number of Manila-based journalists on the project during Durano's official trip to Israel late last month.

A dramatic, minute-long teaser of the Caramoan episodes featuring sweeping aerial shots of beaches, cliffs and lush forest hills, with cutaways to local wildlife and colorful flora, was shown during the briefing.

The Israeli production, which Hameiri said cost some $7 million, conducted the Caramoan shoot from March to April.

It brought from Israel 20 contestants and a crew of around 120, and hired some 300 Filipino support personnel (about 80 from Manila and the rest from Camarines Sur).

The show-the third Israeli season of "Survivor"-will premiere in Israel in October.

The first two, which were shot in the Dominican Republic and Panama, had between 700,000 and 1 million viewers, covering a 40-percent share of the TV audience, Hameiri said.

But unlike the first two seasons where the shows' title cited only the name of an island or region ("Survivor Caribbean" for the Dominican Republic shoot and "Survivor Pearl Island" for Panama), the Caramoan episodes will recognize the host country itself.

'Very big thing'

"This season will be called 'Survivor Philippines,' so there is no question where it was shot," Bekerman said.

He said it was the first time the show would be named after the host country "because, as we said, the place is so unique and it was a very big adventure to go there."

"So it must be a very big thing for you," Bekerman said, turning to Durano during the meeting arranged by Philippine Ambassador to Israel Petronila Garcia.

The French were the first to "discover" Caramoan as an ideal "Survivor" locale early in 2008. They closed Gota Beach to the public for weeks under the guise of what the provincial government then called "massive developments" at the local resort.

Though officially a secret, the French project nevertheless started a buzz that would eventually boost Caramoan's reputation as the "next Boracay."

In May, the Bulgarians also started shooting their edition of "Survivor" there.

Unique balance

Bekerman offered an explanation why Caramoan seemed to have become a favorite:

"On one hand, [a 'Survivor' location] has to be isolated from tourists, from local villages. But on the other hand, it must have the facilities to accommodate all the [production] people.

"This balance is quite unique [in Caramoan]."

And apart from the breathtaking scenery, Bekerman said, "we were amazed by the generosity of the people-very professional yet always smiling, and thinking how things can be better done."

The local hires included residents of nearby villages, including women who helped build the various structures needed on the set as well as maintain the lodgings for the Israeli crew.

"I also personally liked [the local dishes] laing and another that had green papaya in it," Bekerman said, smiling.

Until he came to the Philippines, Bekerman thought of it as just the homeland of the foreign workers in Israel.

"The whole experience turned out to be a pleasant surprise," he said. "When I first came to your beautiful country [to scout for locations, I discovered that] the farther you go from Manila, the more welcoming the people are."

Tour packages

Secretary Durano said Caramoan's debut on Israeli television in October should put the Philippines back among the top leisure destinations for Israeli tourists.

"We in the Department of Tourism will support this [exposure] by facilitating tour packages with our partners in and outside the Philippines and other promotional events on the ground, as what we've done after [the French shoot]," he said.

Before the Reif Hameiri briefing, Durano met with Israeli tour and aviation executives at the Philippine Embassy in Tel Aviv, where he was told that some 100 Israeli teachers would be arriving in Manila for a congress later this year.

The embassy has since begun sending promotional materials to the teachers, according to Tourism Undersecretary Eduardo Jarque.