“Inside Malacanang” by National Geographic Channel

The National Geographic Channel (NGC) will soon broadcast the documentary about the Presidential Palace, “Inside Malacañang.”

Directed by filmmaker Marnie Manicad, the documentary gives viewers a peek into the country’s most tightly guarded address – the official residence and workplace of President Benigno Aquino III.

Manicad didn’t go into the project blindly; she was fully aware of the challenges. Securing all the necessary permits and gaining the insiders’ trust were only the beginning.

“We got access to the most secluded parts of the Palace,” Manicad recounted. “We also had to convince the Presidential Security Group (PSG) that we needed to film their training sessions and operations.”

 Manicad and her team had to justify their every move, especially if it involved the four people who are closest to the President – the group commander of the PSG, the personal security aide, the food tester and the presidential photographer.

She was stunned to discover that there actually was a person assigned to taste the President’s meals beforehand. She admitted, “I thought the food tester was an urban legend.”

Making the docu yielded other discoveries as well. “I learned more about the history and evolution of the place. It provided us with a deeper insight on the Palace – not just the physical structure, but its meaning to us, as Filipinos.”

In making “Inside Malacañang,” Manicad said, she was inspired by the NGC docus “Inside the Vatican,” “Inside: The Obama White House,” “Air Force One” and “Restrepo: Outpost Afghanistan.”

                         

These “nontraditional” stories encouraged Manicad to “push the limits” of local docu-making. “It’s difficult to make docus, especially if it’s about a heavy topic,” she admitted. “In doing narrative feature films, you can adjust on the set. But with docus, you need complete grasp of the subject, because you can’t make excuses once you start shooting.”

Things are made more arduous by the very high journalistic and filmmaking standards set by NGC, whose editors went over every line of the script with a fine-toothed comb. “For this docu, I had a 16-page voiceover script,” Manicad related. “But with the added research annotations and references, it reached over 84 pages. NGC is that strict when it comes to facts and details.”

NGC doesn’t accept popular online sources such as Wikipedia for the kind of information she needed. “You should only rely on books, actual reports and first-hand interviews,” the filmmaker said. “The script had to be cleared by NGC Singapore, Hong Kong and Washington DC before we could record the final narration, done by veteran actor Joonee Gamboa.”


It’s a landmark docu. It will not just give viewers an unprecedented, all-access pass to the Palace; it will also be shown on National Geographic channels all over the globe in the first quarter of this year.
“It’s unbelievable. I only used to dream about making docus. Now, not only did I finish one; as a bonus, it will be aired on NGC,” Manicad said.

It was once dubbed as a “foremost home” by Spanish governor generals. The Americans made it a social hub for the country’s elite while the Japanese transformed it into a garrison.

Yet after all these changes, Malacañan Palace still stands proudly by the Pasig River today. One would wonder what is now inside the cordoned-off areas of the palace.

On March 18, at 9pm catch the premiere of the original documentary Inside Malacañang as National Geographic Channel (NGC) takes you to an exclusive guided tour inside the official residence of the country’s chief executive.

This exclusive feature, which took one and a half years to produce, delves into chambers of the palace that were previously off-limits to the media and the public.
Inside Malacañang also examines and breaks long-held myths and beliefs about the President’s entourage. Get to know the everyday routines of the Presidential Security Group commander, the close-in security aide of President Benigno S. Aquino III, the presidential photographer, and even the presidential food tester.

                           

“NGC has been aiming to feature more relevant programs to the Filipino audience. With Inside Malacañang we hope more Filipinos would appreciate the office of the President and the people who help run it everyday,” said Jude Turcuato, Fox International Channels vice president and territory head for Philippines.

“Through this documentary that was proudly made by a Filipino production team, Marnie Manicad Productions International, in the hallmark standards of the NGC, we also wanted to show the world-class talent of Filipinos in producing long-form documentaries.”

The Inside Malacañang production team is composed of director, producer and head writer Marnie Manicad, writer Cris Lim and narrator Joonee Gamboa.

                               Film Trailer of "Inside Malacañang" by National Geographic Channel

(Stories courtesy of the Philippine Daily Inquirer and press release)