Pilipinos have been subject to the lack of relevant exposure in mainstream media. Many aspiring actors and actress have been typecasted in roles such as a leader of a child gang of misfits, a ninja turtle accomplice, and many other non-Pilipino characters. Other than films like "The Debut" and "Lumpia," when do Pilipino Americans actually play...Pilipinos? The last couple of years have been great in terms of representing Pilipino talent in singing, dancing, and the arts. But what about Pilipinos on the main stage as a character portraying their own ethnicity?
This brings us to Skittles™. The fruity candy has taken a very odd, almost viral approach to their commericals. They've introduced quite baffling things like a man that turns objects into candy with his hand (how the heck does he clean himself?) and a sad story about a traded talking rabbit. They've also introduced another mainstream oddity-- a Pilipino acting as a Pilipino! Tagalog and all!
But then numerous questions arise: does the general public understand the interchange of dialogue between the Pilipino man and the Thai tailor? Do people even understand that they're two different languages? (I didn't--I thought the Thai was some odd dialect) And does the commercial project any images of Southeast Asian men?
Disclaimer: This is no way in support of Skittles or associated brands and businesses. The author doesn't even like Skittles, however despite the questions, finds the commercial hilariously weird.
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