Connecting Filipinos through skincare, makeup and all things beauty, wherever in the world they may be, the editors of Pinta Magazine conceived an Instagram beauty zine at the height of the pandemic.
After spending years being in the editorial industry—from Meg Magazine to Mega Magazine—Ionne Ocampo is starting something of her own in the beauty space.
On September 2, the Creative Director introduced the world to Pinta, a new Instagram beauty zine that’s rooted in Filipino heritage, and all of the stories and brands that have sprouted in the beauty community.
Ionne and her team have laid out some inspiring groundwork that put a strong emphasis on celebrating, creating, and promoting Filipino beauty. And despite new digital media brands launching every other day, the Pinta team is confident in what their IntaZine can offer.
In this NYLON Manila exclusive, Ionne Ocampo, Mich Sancianco, and Guia Galvez talk about what it’s like creating a digital brand with nothing but their shared love for beauty and a longing to stay rooted in their Filipino culture.
How did the idea of Pinta Magazine come about? And why start it now, amidst a pandemic?
The three of us have bonded through our love for beauty since our beginning in the editorial industry. We’ve seen how the representation of morenas and locally-made products are still “special issues” instead of the norm. Pinta’s purpose (or “Panatang Pinta,” as we like to call our mission-vision) is to fill that gap. The idea for Pinta has always been in the back of our minds, but being in lockdown—with 2/3 of the team living far from home, strengthened the longing and the need to connect to our roots.
This is the first time I’m hearing of an “InstaZine” to be honest. But I’m loving the concept. What can the readers expect when they click that follow button?
Pinta is a beauty zine that lives entirely on Instagram. Instead of releasing the whole issue at once, our readers can expect weekly updates throughout the month, and each post is part of a theme—so we encourage our readers to view our feed for the full experience. We have a balanced mix of traditional long-form articles and snackable content. We have an interactive vlog series called, Roundtable Review, and we love engaging with our readers through Pinta Polls on IG Stories. Being based on Instagram makes it easier for us to find under-the-radar local brands, feature emerging talent, and instantly connect with our beauty community.
What do you think makes a magazine now, in this modern age? I believe some of your team were once Meg girls too (like me!), but I never made it to the era when we were still doing print issues.
When you turn the pages of a glossy, what are the articles that interest you? What are the feelings they evoke? How are the ads and images different from, say, a newspaper? Or a Buzzfeed page? These elements of editorial creation, from the way we write our prose, to our approach to art, remain essential and relevant even if the platform has changed. Media has converged from print to online. It’s something we’ve seen coming for a long time and a change we embrace.
What is something you guys learned from the publishing industry that you still apply now?
Every issue of Meg Magazine that we worked on was deeply collaborative and conceptualized through the team’s unique perspectives. Our lineup meetings would always begin with each team member sharing an issue/problem that’s been on their mind (be it as shallow as getting a bad hair dye, to something as deep as dealing with loss), and from there we would develop content. We approach Pinta in a similar way. We’ve learned to take from our experiences and turn them into something that could be helpful to someone else. This zine is anchored on our collective experience as Filipinos and we’d like that to be reflected in the content we create.
Can you tell me what roles each of you fill in the team?
Ionne Ocampo is our Creative Director, Mich Sancianco and Guia Galvez are our Managing Editors.
It’s been a month since you launched, how is it going so far? What are the challenges you guys encountered and how are you pushing through it?
We are honestly floored with the support we’ve been getting! Pinta shines the spotlight on Filipino faces, voices, brands, and stories, and it is so affirming to read messages from our readers saying that they feel connected to their Filipino roots through our magazine.
It’s challenging to stand out and get noticed, especially on a fast-paced platform like Instagram. Because we’re a new title, it will take time for bigger brands and personalities to recognise Pinta. There are already many great digital publications out there, but by focusing our scope on beauty interwoven with Filipino roots, we’re able to slowly build our brand through an engaged following.
