SCREENGRAB from www.rocketkapre.com
MANILA, Philippines – What happens when Filipino heroes learn how to use Foursquare or start jamming to Top 40 hits?
Their posts are probably going to trend on Twitter worldwide.
This year’s #RP612fic proved just that. It was also a testament to the Filipinos’ spot on humor.
#RP612fic, organized by RocketKapre.com editor Paolo Chikiamco, for the first time since it started in 2009 bagged the top spot in Twitter’s worldwide trends on Thursday.
The online event is in commemoration of the Philippine Independence Day on June 12.
Chikiamco told INQUIRER.net that #RP612fic started out as a venue for writers to share short stories featuring alternative histories. It has later evolved in content, with many netizens “mashing-up Philippine history with popular culture.”
“For something like a hashtag, especially one that becomes popular, what it’s “about” is really dependent on what the majority of participants do with it,” he said.
“Maybe the best approximation I can make for it is that #RP612fic is about celebrating Independence Day by creating small stories, and reading those made by others,” Chikiamco added.
Some of the popular posts shared on Twitter included heroes exchanging lines based on pop songs or local commercials.
“Jose Rizal turned around and said, ‘You shoot me down but I won’t fall. I am titaniuuuuum,’” posted one user.
Another pretended quoting Sisa, “Sayang daw ako. Cause I’m a single mother. It’s a shame there still is that double standard.”
There were multiple mentions of selfies, loom bands, unfollow, seen zone and other pop culture references.
Not to be missed are contributions of comic book artists and writers of speculative fiction.
For his part, Chikiamco said it was “tremendously gratifying” to see the hashtag trend.
“It means that there are a lot of Filipinos writing stories, reading stories, sharing stories, that have something to do with who they are—whether it be our shared history and culture, or their personal fandoms and desires,” he said. “For me, that’s a great way to celebrate Independence Day.”
Below are some of the best #RP612fic posts: