Will she survive the ‘extra challenge’?

Her throat a bit parched. Phoemela Baranda graciously interrupts the interview twice to say she wanted iced tea. Waiters, presumably from the Ocampo-owned Kitchen restaurant, had been serving pandan-flavored iced tea since the press launch of i2i New York eyewear endorsers started. However, since we had taken her to a corner away from the human traffic, none of them was within calling distance. Still, she remained cool, friendly and accommodating, never mind if everyone save her (and most likely co-endorsers Piolo Pascual and Jericho Rosales) had eaten lunch and was even ready for merienda at past 3 in the afternoon.

This scorching afternoon, her ultra challenge is to field questions as if she wasn’t running on empty. Her throat dry and her stomach empty, Phoemela pulls it off. But she is quickly on her feet when someone suggests she take a bite while we continue the interview.

We find the lunch buffet of finger foods at the poolside of Tina Maristella and Ricco Ocampo’s North Forbes home. Phoemela excuses herself, munches on a sandwich and sits down again. Before long, she worries out loud about getting that last piece of chocolate cake. Again permitted to revisit the buffet, she takes her prized dessert and smiles triumphantly.

"I never gain much weight," she says while savoring her first bite. "I was never overweight. I’m just lucky, I guess. Actually, this is already overweight for me since I‘m now 120 pounds."

The 24-year-old is an only child born late in the lives of her parents. (Her mom was then 38 and her Dad in his forties.) Her father passed away in 2001. He was in his seventies, seemingly healthy and was still employed as a civil engineer. Phoemela describes his death as "sad but not traumatic" since he quickly drifted from this life to the next after a massive stroke.

"I know he’s happy wherever he is now. At least I didn’t have bad memories of him being sick or anything. Besides, at that time, I had already finished school and was doing well in modeling."

Since the age of 14 (when she began doing commercials), she has endorsed everything from facial care to clothes to feminine products. Modeling never hindered her education. Phoemela has a degree in AB Interdisciplinary Studies major in Spanish Culture and language from the College of St. Benilde.

She didn’t mind being an only child since she grew up with her cousins. It is only now that she feels envious of her friends who go shopping with their sisters.

Believe it or not, she shops by herself. That’s even if her name instantly rings a bell. It was her mom’s idea to combine Pamela with Phoebe (as in Phoebe Cates, the FilAm Hollywood actress, who was quite popular at the time of her birth). She was named Phoemela for luck.

And charmed is what her life has been. Being on TV has its perks. But she insists it would be impossible for her to reach mobbing-status. Just recently, three young Ateneans introduced themselves as her "biggest fans" as she shopped in Rockwell. Thrilled was how she felt the moment they struck up a conversation.

That must have been the same emotion that swept over her when she was hired as new host of Extra Challenge. Miriam Quiambao left the GMA 7 adventure series late last year to marry Hong Kong-based Claudio Rondinelli. Phoemela bested four other challengers (Ethel Booba, Reema Chanco, Joanna Penalosa and Josephine Canonizado) to become Paolo Bediones’ co-host on the show.

Slipping into the shoes of Miriam hasn’t been that difficult. Paolo makes her job easier by letting her develop her own hosting style. That’s the kind of support Phoemela says she needs the most.

Meanwhile, the show’s concept has helped her face her demons. Phoemela overcame her fear of deep water after being challenged to scuba dive in open water. As a child, she almost drowned in a swimming pool after a panic attack. Conquering hydrophobia has made her fearless. She has since enjoyed kite boarding and rappelling for the first time in her life. And she looks forward to even more thrills involving such dangerous stunts as sky diving and bungee jumping.

Despite the many firsts exclusively aired on Extra Challenge, her hosting stint did not mark her TV debut. Phoemela naturally went the route of show business a few years back when she realized that her modeling had stabilized if not reached a plateau. Her first movie was the 2001 Cogie Domingo starrer, Cool Dudes. Then came TV guestings including a short-lived role in the Jericho Rosales-Christine Hermosa soap opera Pangako Sa’yo. Her two-month stint culminated in a crying scene after Phoemela’s character (as a model and the best friend of Christine) broke up with her boyfriend.

Recently, she did a cameo on the GMA series Narito ang Puso Ko where she played the young mother of Jolina Magdangal (then depicted as a baby).

Phoemela wants to be a serious actress just like her idol Cherie Gil.

Despite feelers, there have been no official movie offers yet. Surprisingly, TV hosting has revived her modeling career.

Tina Maristella and Ricco Ocampo, the brains behind i2i New York, had been eyeing Phoemela since last year. She was a natural choice since she has done work with Anonymous, the eyewear’s sister company. But the Ocampo couple was unaware that their new model was already starring in a daily TV show.

Fortunately, the fun adventure series fit the image of the brand.

What also perfectly fit were the personalities of Phoemela and her co-endorsers. There was no ice to break since they met some time ago during a magazine shoot. Piolo and Jericho easily warmed up to her. Their first pictorial for this project (there will be more to come as i2i launches new eye apparel throughout the year) was a pleasant experience. Piolo speaks well of her professionalism. He says her expertise as a model taught him a lot about projecting for the camera. She confesses to being a bit star struck by the heartthrobs who she swears arrived at the studio ahead of her.

Meanwhile, there was nothing rehearsed about Jericho’s playfulness during the press launch.

Their camaraderie belies impressions that artists from the two warring TV networks don’t mix well. Phoemela clarifies that her contract is only for Extra Challenge and does not indicate exclusivity to GMA 7. This gives her the freedom to guest in other TV networks (including ABS-CBN, the mother station of the two hunks) so long as the shows are not in direct competition with the daily adventure series. Hosting does not get in the way of modeling and other projects. She spends only a maximum of three days a week doing Extra Challenge. But she is even more careful now about her image since she joined the network. After all, Phoemela is a member of the News and Public Affairs department of GMA.

Now that she has gotten deeper into the show business, is earning a beauty title the next step? After all, TV has always loved beauty queens. Year in year out, Phoemela is invited to join pageants. But she is not so hot about the title or the crown.

"I’m not really the competitive type, I guess," she says simply. "I love adventure. I love new challenges. But I don’t see myself standing in front of a panel of judges and being judged by answering a question. I don’t like the idea. And yet, I admire the girls that join because they’re very courageous."

Maybe it just isn’t meant to be. Phoemela could?ve joined this year’s Bb. Pilipinas thanks to the persistence of her manager. Things changed after Extra Challenge. The choice was between hosting and becoming a beauty queen.

For now, the career is top on her list. The truth is pretty Phoemela is single but not looking. "I’ve managed to be happy on my own," she says with a self-conscious laugh. "I just enjoy being with my friends. Kasi I really find it hard to manage to maintain a career and a have a boyfriend. Mahirap!

"When I was just modeling before, I would only go out of town once in a while. Now, I’m out of town every week. My schedule is hectic. It’s gonna be hard for me and for him."

But pressed to describe her Mr. Right, Phoemela sounds strangely like a young Tina Maristela. "The first thing that attracts me is the guy’s personality. To be honest, I’ve worked with the most guwapo or cutest male models but I was never attracted. I’ve never dated a model. I don’t know why. I usually go for guys who are funny or someone who you can talk to."

Even size doesn’t matter. The statuesque model insists she has no height requirement. "I’ve dated a guy who was only 5‘4" and I‘m 5‘8". I don?t care about looks. Was the guy bothered by my height? That’s why I dated him. His height was 5‘4" but his confidence was 5‘10". O di ba?"