Chady Pantaleon
Miss Universe has been chosen and Miss France Iris Mittenaere will go down in history as the third queen (the first one is Spain’s Amparo Muñoz in 1974 then Sushmita Sen of India in 1994, ) crowned in the Philippines. The stories and anecdotes about the prestigious pageant, however, are far from over. Here, we have a “backstage pass” of what happened before the 86 stunning ladies from all over the world faced the crowd during the swimsuit presentation at JPark Island Resort and Waterpark, Cebu last Jan. 21.
This, as we squeezed details from Cebuano makeup artist Chady Pantaleon, who must have been favored by the gods as he was right there at the “war room” of the Miss Universe ladies, helping them look even more beautiful a few hours before showtime.
Chady thought it would be like any other Tuesday, until he got a surprise call and eventually found himself seated in the waiting area where the ladies could approach the makeup artists for a quick retouch. It was Miss Switzerland Dijana Cvijetic who saw him first and asked for help. And the rest, as they say, is history and pure bliss.
So while everyone else had to endure waking up earlier than usual, paying a fortune to brush elbows with or just to get a glimpse of the ladies, there was the unknowing Chady.
Oh, and did we mention that Andrea Tovar, Colombia’s representative to the Miss Universe, who was eventually named second runner-up, loved Chady’s work that she gave him not just one but two video greetings?
Here’s more of Chady’s unforgettable Miss Universe experience, and how he proves that passion and perseverance, coupled with luck, can bring you to unexpected places.
Close encounters with
Miss Universe beauties:
(clockwise from top row, leftmost)
Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach, 2016 candidates Miss Spain and Miss Colombia.
How did you get to be one of the makeup artists for Miss Universe?
The MAC marketing representative in Manila always gets in touch with me when they have events scheduled in Cebu. MAC is the official cosmetics brand of the 65th Miss Universe. I was very lucky that day. I was notified at the last minute that they needed more makeup artists, so I said yes in a heartbeat.
How and when did you know?
It was on the spot! I was informed that Tuesday, a few hours before the event of Miss Universe at JPark Island Resort and Waterpark, Cebu. They sent me a text message around 7 a.m. and I quickly left the house to proceed to JPark.
How did you prepare for the task?
I didn’t have to bring a lot. I just prepared some of my favorite brushes since the products were all taken care of by MAC.
How many makeup artists were there?
We were around 10.
Chady with Miss Colombia Andrea Tovar
So tell us about the experience.
We were put inside the “war room”— the backstage and holding area for the Miss Universe candidates. It feels surreal, and I was just really lucky to be there, not to mention that they were very strict on who gets inside. The work started at 9 a.m. when the first batch of candidates arrived. Some of them already had their makeup on, so what
I did was a retouch. There were also candidates who wanted me to redo their makeup. Meanwhile, others did their own makeup. It was pure crazy, very busy room, no wonder they called it that… where the girls prepared for war, which was the fashion show at 12 noon.
How many girls did you work on?
We were sitting at the table and the girls just choose any one of us, the makeup artists. It’s not like they assigned you to someone…. it was really pretty random. It was Miss Switzerland who first approached me, followed by Miss Panama. And then when Miss Colombia saw my pink hair, she approached me to do her makeup as well. After the first three, the rest of the girls came lining up. There was Miss Spain, Miss Kosovo, Miss South Africa, Miss Paraguay, Miss Ukraine, Miss Albania, Miss Bulgaria, Miss Poland and Miss Barbados. After all the candidates changed into their swimwear, they went back to us for the bronzing and highlighting of their bodies. It was crazy!
Did you have favorites among the candidates?
Miss Colombia, of course! As I did her makeup, she was very friendly, and was even giving me tips and tricks on how to do her makeup. Hers is one of the most beautiful faces among the candidates.
Was there a point where you got starstruck?
I am used to handling beautiful ladies, but Miss Colombia, Miss Kosovo, Spain, Puerto Rico and Nigeria were very pretty.
How will you describe that once-in-a-lifetime experience?
I’ve spent a lot of time backstage in many shows around the country, but the Miss Universe is one prestigious occasion. You just don’t brush elbows with the candidates— you get to make them prettier.
From the point of view of a Miss Universe fan, what was it like?
Yes, I’m a fan. There was immense pressure, of course. With one wrong stroke, you can ruin the entire look of a face, and I didn’t want to make that mistake.
Miss Brazil, Miss Haiti and Miss Barbados
What’s the most challenging part?
It’s satisfying them with your output. You must get your fangirling out of the way, and be confidently beautiful as well when talking to them so you can achieve the perfect makeup.
What was the best part?
A memorable experience was when Miss Colombia told me that she got the best makeup artist from among the ones in the war room. I couldn’t thank her enough. Thanks, Miss Colombia!
In three words, the experience was:
It was the perfect TIMING, I got LUCKY, and the experience was AMAZING.
How did you start doing makeup?
Like many other makeup artists, I started my craft in a salon, then did freelance work. For practice, I do face charts using my makeup and challenge myself to do it in different forms —that’s where I learned new techniques and tricks.
Was it your dream to become a makeup artist?
No. But since I started making money from it, I dedicated myself to my job.
What is your greatest dream as an artist?
My greatest dream is to travel around the world, work on many different faces, and eventually make a book documenting my journey.