CHALLENGED by the growing social problems in the CNMI, a group of local talents have pooled their resources to produce the first ever TV soap opera in the Northern Marianas.
The show aims to change how the community views the CNMI’s multi-racial society.
This is the first time in Northern Marianas history that a drama will be produced locally on TV. The one-hour show is planned to have 10 episodes that will run for 10 consecutive weeks on KMCV.
Galvin Guerrero, the show’s director, said their team was motivated to produce the show because of the numerous social problems in the CNMI, particularly those involving teen-agers.
“Recently, it seems that there’s been a lot of problems in our society. Lot of topics about drugs, substance abuse, teen suicide, violence. It seems that a lot of people are trying to do a lot of different things,” Guerrero said.
“And for many of us that have experience in drama, our belief is that a lot of time you can entertain at the same time educate. It’s easier to teach while entertaining,” he added.
Guerrero said not only would the soap opera entertain and educate the public, but it would also breed local artists interested in drama and scriptwriting.
Four local scriptwriters—Guerrero, Erin Nolton, Sean Maycock and Jimmy Arriola—will alternately write scripts during the first season.
Aside from the four, other local leaders such as former Northern Marianas College President Agnes M. McPhetres—the executive producer—are also involved in the show.
Judging from the popularity of U.S soap operas, Guerrero is confident that the CNMI will be willing to give their production a chance. “Life is one big soap opera,” he said.
Last Saturday, Guerrero and his team launched an islandwide search for the cast, tentatively numbered at 20, excluding extras.
Several had auditioned but Guerrero said they would still conduct another search next Saturday, June 8.
Since the project is on a tight budget, the cast will be working voluntarily. However, Guerrero said this arrangement might change in the future if the community supports their venture.
“This is fully voluntary at this point. It costs a lot of money to run it on KMCV. We’re trying to pay for that,” he said.
The story line revolves around two families—Chamorro and Carolinian—a Filipino maid and her daughter.
The episodes would have interesting and unexpected twists that would leave the audience wanting for more, Guerrero said. He declined to give more details.
