114. Creative Guild TV Ad of the Month, August 1989: GOLD EAGLE BEER, “Pagbabalik”

KA FREDDIE FLIES HIGH WITH GOLD EAGLE. Print ad, 1989.

One of the strong contenders for the Creative Guild TV Ad of the Year for 1989 was a commercial for GOLD EAGLE BEER, entitled “Pagbabalik”, produced by PAC-BBDO (Philippine Advertising Counsellors) for San Miguel. GOLD EAGLE BEER has been making headway since it was it was introduced in the early 1980s as a flanker brand. McCann-Erickson had originally handled its launch with its “Let the Gold Eagle Fly” campaign, showing a man releasing an eagle in the air.

When the brand moved to PAC-BBDO, the agency created a successful campaign—“Para sa Iyo, Pare Ko”,  starring the rowdy “Bad Bananas” gang (Christopher de Leon, Edgar Mortiz and the late Jay Ilagan) in 1988.

The next year, folk icon Freddie Aguilar was tapped to appear in a new ad that still carried the theme, but with a more subdued, nostalgic mood and tone. The San Miguel connection with San Miguel was also strengthened with a message overlay, “May pangalan ‘to, pare ko” (This beer’s got a name, friend).

WATCH GOLD EAGLE "PAGBABALIK" TVC 30s HERE:

The GOLD EAGLE BEER “Pagbabalik” TVC follows the homecoming of Freddie Aguilar in his old town, after making a name for himself---where he is warmly received by long-time friends, neighbors, town mates and his barkada. The jingle, sung by the folksinger, talks about going back to one's roots, and the importance of keeping one’s name—which is an implicit reference to San Miguel, the name behind GOLD EAGLE. Two versions were made—one, a mostly instrumental version (“Freddie”), and the other, utilizing the full jingle (“Pagbabalik”)

WATCH THE  GOLD EAGLE "Freddie" VERSION HERE:

The commercial was well-received for its cinematography that captured the rustic,, provincial feel of an old town, and for the jingle that could very well have been the theme song of a balikbayan or an overseas Filipino worker. When the Creative Guild of the Philippines convened to vote for the best ads of 1989, GOLD EAGLE BEER’s “Pagbabalik” was selected as the best TVC for August. It also was a nominee for Best Direction (Vitt Romero), Best Cinematography (Rody Lacap, Jun Kraft, Fred Manansala), Best Jingle (Charo Unite, for both versions), Best Production Design (Joey Luna, Aped Santos, Gino Marasigan).

CREDITS:

AGENCY: Philippine Advertising Counsellors-BBDO

CREATIVE DIRECTOR/WRITER: Romy Sinson

ART DIRECTOR: Pit Santiago

PRODUCER: Vivian Abalos

JINGLE COMPOSER: Charo Unite

SINGER: Freddie Aguilar

PRODUCTION HOUSE: Provil, Unitel ('Freddie' version)

DIRECTOR: Vittorio Romero

CINEMATOGRAPHERS: Rody Lacap, Jun Kraft, Fred Manansala

CLIENT: SAN MIGUEL BEER CORP, BRAND: Gold Eagle Beer

SOURCES:

1990 Creative Guild Ad of the Year Program

youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cG4z-CDRJNI, uploaded by Filmmaker Vitt Romero, published on May 11, 2014

youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TDKIzlLygA&t=8s, uploaded by Filmmaker Vitt Romero, published  May 13, 2014