Listen to Director Lester Pimentel Ong's story on how a broke wushu stylist turned into a successful entrepreneur and trailblazing action director.
#LesterPimentelOng #PEPInterviews #PEPVideo #PEPFK #PEPRommel
Interview: FK Bravo
Video & Edit: Rommel R. Llanes
Music: "Ghibli Station" by The Mini Vandals, "Midnight Special" by E's Jimmy Jams, "Grut" by Patrick Patrickios
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#LesterPimentelOng #PEPInterviews #PEPVideo #PEPFK #PEPRommel
Interview: FK Bravo
Video & Edit: Rommel R. Llanes
Music: "Ghibli Station" by The Mini Vandals, "Midnight Special" by E's Jimmy Jams, "Grut" by Patrick Patrickios
Subscribe to our YouTube channel! https://www.youtube.com/@pep_tv
Read the latest in showbiz at http://www.pep.ph
Watch more videos at https://www.pep.ph/videos
Follow us!
Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/pepalerts/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pepalerts/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PEPalerts
Twitter: https://twitter.com/pepalerts
Viber: https://bit.ly/PEPonViber
Kumu: pep.ph
Visit our DailyMotion channel! https://www.dailymotion.com/PEPalerts
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PeopleTranscript
00:00Excuse me, you can pedal here for stress relief.
00:57You can pedal here.
01:12Oh yeah, I grew up as an athlete, particularly as a martial artist.
01:20I am raised in a very, very disciplined household because my father is also a martial arts teacher.
01:28And then he trained us, all siblings, in martial arts.
01:33And I became a very competitive athlete.
01:36I was a national athlete for Wushu.
01:40I represented the country.
01:42So the discipline in martial arts, in training as an athlete, I carry it through everything and every endeavor that
01:51I do.
01:52Being an entrepreneur, being a filmmaker, yung discipline na yun, dinadala ko siya.
01:58Even sa filmmaking, yung cost efficiency, time management, discipline, I instill it to myself and to all of my team
02:07members.
02:08So a lot of my producers and other audiences are surprised even though with very, very little budget, we can
02:16make our shows look expensive.
02:20Like Incognito's, to be exact, Incognito's budget is exact same budget as any other ABS-CBN teleserye.
02:28It doesn't have any budget bigger than, wala siyang budget na mas malaki sa kahit na anong ginawa ng ABS.
02:37Because of discipline, because of cost efficiency, because of my expertise as an entrepreneur, I was able to help the
02:45production, save a lot of money and make it look more expensive than it is.
02:56Number one, of course, the taste of the filmmaker, of the creators.
03:01Me, my producers, my writers, and all of the team, we choose carefully so we have the same taste.
03:07That's number one.
03:08Number two, you cannot afford that taste naman if you're not disciplined in your spending.
03:14So that's where my expertise as an entrepreneur comes in.
03:18Cost efficiency, cost management, we call it cost engineering in production.
03:24In every film project or series that I do, before we embark on anything, we would go into a production
03:33meeting and I would ask help from everyone and take the lead in the task called cost engineering.
03:40Meaning, we engineer the cost from costumes, from talent fees, to locations, to how the scenes are being written.
03:52It's all according to the budget.
03:55Dapat swak siya lahat.
03:56And if you think about it, it's not small at all.
04:01Mayroong pera.
04:02Mayroong resources.
04:04Pero pag wildas ka, hindi ka maingat.
04:07Lagi mong isipin kulang.
04:10Pero sa Philippine way of shooting things, mayroon naman, kasya naman.
04:15Pero you have a very, very thin margin of error.
04:19Like even pag break time ng buong team, it should be planned.
04:26Paano tayo magbe-break?
04:28Everyone has one hour break.
04:30Pero hindi tayo sabay-sabay magbe-break.
04:32Kumbaga.
04:33This is a very good example that I instill to everyone.
04:37Lahat ng makeup artist, lahat ng wardrobe.
04:39Pag nagro-roll, ang nagtitake, naka-tenga sila eh.
04:46So mag-break na kayo.
04:47So, di ba?
04:49Lahat ng art depth dun sa next scene,
04:51pag na-setup na dyan, mag-break na kayo.
04:53Kami, mag-shoot pa kami.
04:54Pag tapos namin mag-shoot, kakain na kami.
04:57O magtrabaho na kayo.
04:59So, my set is always grinding every time.
05:04And I'm proud to say that we are able to
05:07abide by the Eddie Garcia law of
05:10a certain number of hours and breaks.
05:13Wala kaming overtime.
05:14We are very disciplined in doing that.
05:17I'm very thankful to the people that I work with
05:20kasi sometimes, kahit na hindi pa sila
05:22tapos yung one hour nila,
05:2445 minutes pa lang,
05:25they started moving na.
05:27For the love na tawag natin dun.
05:29For the love of the show, di ba?
05:42Number one, of course,
05:43the quality of the script should be good.
05:47But other than being good,
05:49it should be realistic to your budget.
05:51Kasi maraming script na napakaganda nga naman,
05:54pero hindi match sa available budget.
05:58So, you would end up compromising on the shoot day,
06:03on the set.
06:04Dun ka talaga ma-malalaglag,
06:08maka-compromise.
06:09So, the script should be written according to the budget.
06:12And then, second,
06:15the most important part is execution
06:18on a day-to-day basis.
06:20Pre-production, to production, to post-production,
06:22everything should be very, very efficient
06:24to maximize the budget.
06:27Not just meet the budget.
06:29To make your money go longer than it should be.
06:37It's how you would run your set efficiently.
06:48Our first founding brand is RBX Rice in a Box.
06:53We celebrated its 25th year
06:57a few months ago.
06:59Our goal for RBX Rice in a Box
07:02is just to put food on the table.
07:03I was very poor and very young
07:05and starting a family that time.
07:07So, I needed something to supplement my income.
07:12So, I started to open a very small store
07:16with an 80,000 peso capital
07:19galing sa savings namin.
07:22ng wife ko, si Rosette.
07:23And then,
07:24we opened it in a very small kiosk
07:26using surplus equipment from home
07:29like stove,
07:31cooking equipment,
07:33refrigerators,
07:34yung mga sobra sa bahay.
07:35Ginawa namin siyang stove.
07:37We started it RBX.
07:38And the goal is to serve
07:40a very, very affordable filling meal
07:43that is a necessity for Filipino,
07:49which is rice.
07:51So, yun yun.
07:51And then,
07:52after the success of that,
07:54we were able to open
07:55more than 100 stores.
07:56We were able to open restaurant brands
07:59like Wang Fu.
08:02It's a Chinese-Singaporean restaurant.
08:04It's a casual dining family restaurant
08:06where people eat on a daily basis
08:09and celebrate birthdays,
08:11celebrate anniversaries,
08:12or whatever.
08:13And then,
08:13we also have a ramen restaurant
08:15called QQ Ramen 99.
08:18I want it to be known
08:20as the Jollibee of ramen
08:21because it's very affordable.
08:24It's priced as Jollibee or McDonald's,
08:27pero ramen,
08:29gyoza,
08:29gyudon,
08:31very affordable.
08:32And now,
08:33we have 190 branches.
08:34So,
08:35we also operate Dinen Deluca.
08:37So,
08:39our positioning is
08:41all market segments
08:42of the Philippines
08:44from the very,
08:46very affordable one
08:47to quick-service fast-food restaurants
08:50to casual dining
08:52to a little bit more
08:55expensive lifestyle dining.
08:58Basically,
08:59we wanted to cater to everyone,
09:01but one thing we make sure,
09:03all the brands that we do,
09:04we wanted it to be reasonable.
09:08So,
09:09our mission,
09:10vision is to provide
09:11world-class quality food and service
09:14affordable to every Filipino.
09:24this is located near ABS-CBN,
09:28and we choose this area
09:29because this is the,
09:31let's say,
09:32I call it the downtown of Quezon City
09:34or the downtown,
09:36the CBD.
09:37This is where,
09:38the center of Quezon City
09:39in terms of business,
09:41in terms of food,
09:42in terms of showbiz.
09:46This is the Hollywood of the Philippines.
09:47So,
09:48I work in both industry.
09:51Number one,
09:52I work in the food industry.
09:54Most of our restaurants are here.
09:56Most of the offices
09:56of our partners and suppliers
09:59are here
09:59in this area of Quezon City.
10:01And then,
10:02in terms of my work
10:03as a film director,
10:04all of the major networks
10:07and studios are here.
10:08All of the offices
10:10of other productions are here.
10:12This is the Hollywood of Metro Manila
10:15or the Philippines,
10:16as we can say.
10:17So,
10:17this is very convenient.
10:18So,
10:20here we are.
10:21My favorite part of the office
10:22is this one.
10:23We call it the bullpen.
10:25This is where everyone works.
10:26I personally designed this.
10:28Actually,
10:30I took inspiration
10:31from the movie
10:32The Intern,
10:34the movie of Robert De Niro
10:35and Han Hathaway.
10:36I love the movie.
10:37I love the narrative.
10:39And,
10:40I like the production design
10:41of the New York style
10:44repurposed set.
10:45So,
10:46I made it.
10:47So,
10:48as you can see,
10:49industrial lights,
10:50open set up,
10:52just black and white.
10:53I love this one
10:54because I can
10:55see and interact
10:57with everyone.
10:59Just like that.
11:01You can see all of them.
11:02Everyone is working.
11:03I hate the office setup
11:07because everyone is so segregated.
11:08This one,
11:09we are cohesive.
11:11We can talk to each other.
11:12We can see each other.
11:13So,
11:13my favorite item here is,
11:15I'll show you.
11:18This is Luigi.
11:20This is my son.
11:21He's,
11:22this is my favorite item here.
11:24I built this bike
11:25and
11:26I'm an avid rider.
11:28Both
11:28bicycle
11:29and motorcycle.
11:31And,
11:31normally,
11:31I would drive from home
11:32to here.
11:33And,
11:34if I'm here na,
11:35I would move around the area,
11:37I would just use bicycle.
11:38Actually,
11:39I designed my office
11:40wherein I can ride it.
11:49Thank you, sir.
11:53You can pedal here
11:55for stress relief.
12:07This is a very light bicycle.
12:09I custom made it.
12:10It's titanium.
12:26So,
12:26taste consistent
12:27across different branches.
12:29Oh,
12:30that's one thing that I,
12:32I trained my managers very well
12:34about the quality of the food.
12:37I would train them
12:38on how they are
12:40being made.
12:41So,
12:42even though I'm not there,
12:44they can test it.
12:45Oh, sure.
12:45And then,
12:46I would trust their taste
12:48that it is good.
12:49But,
12:50basically,
12:51nothing,
12:52there's no substitute
12:53of me going to each
12:55brand,
12:55each branches
12:56to go and test the food.
12:58So,
12:58there are certain days
12:59of the week
13:00that I would really
13:01go there
13:02and eat.
13:03And,
13:04I would conduct
13:05my meeting
13:05in the restaurants
13:07while eating
13:08so to make sure
13:09that the food are good.
13:10I would
13:11talk to the chefs.
13:13What are their challenges?
13:15What are their,
13:15and all.
13:16And then,
13:17I would sometimes
13:17meet customers
13:19and just
13:20casually ask them
13:21how's the experience like.
13:23Oh, okay.
13:23Yeah.
13:24So,
13:24you're still on the ground.
13:25You still work on the ground.
13:26On certain days
13:27of the week,
13:27I would go to
13:30certain restaurants
13:31and then
13:32eat there.
13:33And then,
13:36if I would see
13:37the problem,
13:38then,
13:39the next day,
13:40I would call
13:40the people
13:41and try
13:42to make sure
13:45everything is rectified.
13:47What do you think
13:48is one of the most
13:49common challenge
13:51when you go there?
13:53What's the challenge
13:53you usually see
13:54the staff faces
13:56or the branch faces?
13:58Each and every customer.
13:59We are in a customer service.
14:01Other than selling food,
14:02we are a very,
14:03very customer-oriented
14:05industry.
14:06So,
14:06each and every customer
14:07has different kinds
14:08of demand.
14:09So,
14:10the challenging part
14:11of running a restaurant
14:13is,
14:13of course,
14:14your goal
14:15is to make everyone happy.
14:16And it's very difficult
14:18to make everyone happy.
14:19Of course.
14:20But,
14:20we try our best.
14:22We try our best.
14:24How do you train employees
14:25to handle both volume
14:27and service quality,
14:28especially during peak hours?
14:31Training is very,
14:32very important.
14:34Efficiency in their movement,
14:36discipline in their movement.
14:37The same way,
14:39you have to train them.
14:40So,
14:41we have a very good training program
14:43for each and every one.
14:44We have,
14:44we call it a school.
14:45We have a school
14:47for each and every brand.
14:48We have a ramen school.
14:49We have a Wang Hu school.
14:52They would go under
14:53the school for orientation
14:55and classroom training
14:56for a very extensive
14:57period of time.
14:59And then,
15:00before they are deployed
15:01in the stores,
15:04I invested a lot of
15:06resources and money
15:08to build it
15:10because
15:10that's the only way
15:12we can
15:14give quality service
15:15if they are
15:17properly trained.
15:18And then,
15:19these challenges,
15:20they are trained
15:21to solve it.
15:24I don't tell them
15:25it's a problem.
15:26Oh,
15:26it's not a problem,
15:27operational problem.
15:28It's a challenge
15:29because
15:30as long as
15:31there are challenges,
15:32that means
15:33we have opportunity
15:34to make money,
15:36to earn,
15:37to grow.
15:37as long as
15:38there are challenges.
15:39Advice for young
15:41entrepreneurs
15:41who also want
15:42to get into
15:43the food industry.
15:44My advice
15:45for the young
15:46entrepreneurs,
15:46for people
15:47who wanted
15:47to do startup,
15:49Philippines
15:49is a goldmine
15:51for small
15:53entrepreneurs
15:54like all of us.
15:57We have
15:58130 million Filipinos.
16:00I don't know
16:01if the number
16:02is correct,
16:02but we have
16:03more than
16:03100 million Filipinos.
16:05And most of
16:05these Filipinos
16:06are young
16:07and they are
16:08a good
16:09potential
16:10customers
16:10for whatever
16:12brands or
16:13products that
16:14you are doing.
16:15And there
16:16is so much
16:17opportunity
16:18in the Philippines.
16:19Ang importante lang,
16:21if you're gonna
16:21start your business,
16:22do it yourself,
16:24learn fast,
16:25fail early,
16:27recover early,
16:28and
16:30just keep on
16:31pushing forward
16:32until you reach
16:33a突然.
16:33It's a truly
16:33going.
16:34Yeah.
16:45I'll see you next time.
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