Monday, May 05, 2008 The advertising man and his advocacy for peace By Charles Raymond A. Maxey
IGY J. Castrillo does it all, from being a database encoder to systems developer, to doing consultancy work on advertising and marketing.
Not only that, Castrillo loves photography and is involved in documentation of Mindanao museums, which has taken him to different parts of the region like Tawi-Tawi, Jolo, Basilan and Zamboanga.
The Grand Regal, Marco Polo Hotel and some schools like the Ateneo de Davao University (AdDU) are just but a few of Castrillo's clients. He prints their flyers and brochures and does their packaging that would attract customers.
"We've been doing this job for the last 20 years," the 39-year-old Castrillo told Sun.Star Davao, referring to his wife Pamela who is assisting him on projects for different clients in Davao City.
Castrillo said his job pays good, but was quick to add that the rate in Davao is way below the rate in Manila. The only good thing about doing business here, he adds, is that the cost of living in Davao is far much lower than it is in Manila.
When Castrillo and his wife moved to Davao back in 1996, their first client is the Grand Regal Hotel. Soon, the Marco Polo Hotel, schools like AdDU and Holy Cross of Davao College and some restaurants in the city availed of their services.
The Max's Chicken and Tagum City are also their clients. It was Castrillo who designed the logo of the city government of Tagum.
Castrillo said they are not the only ones who are into this kind of job, but confessed that their top competitors are the business owners themselves.
Castrillo attended high school at the Lourdes School of Mandaluyong and graduated in 1985. He took up Computer Science at the AMA Computer College and was a working student at that time only two months into his freshman year, working as database encoder in the library of international center for living aquatic resources management.
"We were the pilot NGO counterpart of UP Diliman's Institute of Library Science in what was then the beginning of library automation," Castrillo said.
"Part of my job, besides encoding and database maintenance, was to train people who came in from all over the world in the new system developed by UNESCO," he added.
Later, Castrillo's work with database systems turned into a major project involving the compilation of all Asian aqua- and mariculture studies.
While still in Manila, Castrillo started by conceptualizing some campaigns and collateral designs for other advertising agencies. He also developed the first database for an art gallery and another database for the Department of Health (DOH).
Igy Castrillo and Pamela are blessed with three children -- 14-year-old Meg, 12-year-old Martin, and nine-year-old Miguel.
Although a very busy man, Castrillo also sees to it to spend time with his family and enjoy life.
"Live life to the fullest. Stop and smell the roses," Castrillo beamed.
But when one wants to do something, he said, he or she should take things seriously.
"When you do something, do it well," he said.
Today, Castrillo is developing a system wherein schools will be able to trade multimedia materials that highlight their culture, people, traditions, province and music as part of his advocacy.
Castrillo started with virtual reality scenes he took in Basilan, Jolo and Zamboanga, and showed these to Sun.Star during the interview.
"I already have the technology. I've also started preliminary talks with leading universities in Davao, Basilan, Jolo, Cotabato and other parts of Mindanao.
In his journey around Mindanao, Castrillo got to see the real situation in the countryside, first-hand information on the difficult life others, specially the children, experienced.
"We made a lot of friends on our trips across Armm and other provinces and cities of Mindanao. We also learned to appreciate Mindanao and her people, and their cultures more," Castrillo said.
Castrillo, like most individuals do, desires for peace to reign in Mindanao.
"I pray that, in my own small way, my simple advocacy would be able to contribute to the development of peace and education in Mindanao."
