‘I want to be like Naomi Campbell —hindi sa ugali ha,’ says this next top model

Asia’s Next Top Model finalist Jodilly Pendre refers to herself in third person — a disarmingly charming nuance that only someone with her childlike energy can pull off. She says she’s 5’10”, but with her lithe frame and the day’s fluorescent pink heels, she looks about 10 feet tall, and with the presence to match. Her Filipina features are made slightly oriental by her fresh new ‘do, a shoulder-length bob with full China girl bangs courtesy of Tresemmé’s Lourd Ramos, who is also a guest judge and beauty specialist for ANTM Cycle 2. It flatters her jutting cheekbones just right. She looks every inch a model now, a result of over a month’s worth of challenges, displacement, and immersion for the show.

It’s the day after the pilot episode of Cycle 2 aired and Jodilly appears nervous about our little interview. But experience has taught me that appearances can be deceiving and, true enough, as soon as we begin, she opens up like I am an old friend, entrusting with me every juicy detail she is allowed to divulge about her life before the show and the dramatic change of pace that came with living in the model house.

“I like to observe people, how they react to what I say, how they react to things around them. That’s how I know if we will get along,” she tells me, and I respond by awkwardly darting my eyes around the room. Is she sizing me up right now? This kind of confidence and nerve to withdraw from the world before selectively diving right in is rare and powerful in a 20-something. What did they feed them at the model house? I ask myself. She jolts me from a brewing inner monologue when she says, “Jodilly is the quiet one.” Third person. “I think that is my asset,” she laughs. “It can be really crazy in the model house. Sometimes you want to sleep, but the other girls are still wide awake. And then there’s the singing! Someone is always singing!” The singing, though, was one of her slighter worries. “When some of the girls would fight, I would just be in some corner hugging my stuffed toy thinking, ‘Talaga bang nangyayari ‘to?”

Jodilly has been a working model most of her college life, booking top ramp shows on top of her already impressive portfolio. She just graduated last April with a degree in Information Technology at University of Santo Tomas. She is the youngest among three siblings and is the breadwinner of the family. (“My brother always asks me for money!” she jokes.) She has always been told that modeling is a waste of her education. “But I always knew that modeling is what I really wanted to do. I love IT, but I honestly can’t imagine myself as a computer programmer 10 years from now,” she says with a laugh.

“I want to be like Naomi Campbell — hindi sa ugali, ha. I want to be able to say ‘I won’t get out of bed for less than P50,000, or whatever, a day. I’m claiming that.”

She’s serious, too. So serious that she has this on her vision board, which she keeps at home, along with other things she wants, like cutouts of Lebron, Jordan and Kobe sneakers (“When I have the money, bibilhin ko talaga ‘yan!”), as well as Hermés and Gucci ads (“I don’t want the items; I want to be the girl in the ad!”)

It is with this will-driven positivity that Jodilly maneuvers through life. Her example is classic: “I am forever the commuter,” she says. “Minsan ‘pag wala nang masakyan, ‘pag wala nang jeep, imbis na mainis ako, iisipin ko ‘May darating na jeep. May darating na jeep.’ Tapos may darating nga.”

She says this is what kept her focused on her goals at the model house — through the crying of girls who have undergone drastic makeovers, through every challenge, through the ups and downs. “I can relate to girls who cry at makeover challenges. Kung buhok mo ‘yung asset mo, tapos puputilin? Iiyak ka talaga ‘nun. I can relate, but I don’t care. Hindi para intindihin ko pa ‘yung pag-iyak ng iba. The whole time, I was focused. There, you won’t even have time to miss your family. We were so busy.”

To Jodilly, her biggest challenge wasn’t the other girls, it was herself. “People say the girls fight because they want to be popular, they want air time, that they’re not really there to win. I never believed that. Of course they’re there to win. And so was I,” she says. Jodilly stayed focused on the challenges and improving after each one. “Some of the challenges really pushed me. Some required us to stay underwater, and I thought, ‘Ginagawa ba talaga ng model ‘to?’”

Being the keen observer that she is, Jodilly says she learned just as much about modeling from the girls as she did from the challenges. “I came to the house bringing my jeans and shirts and then I saw the girls with their dresses and high heels. That was when I realized I had to start looking the part. I didn’t have my own makeup, so I would borrow from the other models. I learned how to present myself as a model and own my look. I saw Brazilian models at the go-see and I had two choices: I could think I am never getting in because I looked so different, or believe that I will get in kasi ako yung nag-pursigi.”

But it’s one thing to compete against Brazilians and another to compete against another Filipina. I ask her how she felt about competing with fellow finalist Katarina Gonzales — if having another Filipina around changed her game. With a genuine glint of fondness for Katarina in her eyes, she says, “Having her around did not change my strategy. We’ve grown very close, I guess because we understand each other. We support each other. It was never about Team Jodilly or Team Katarina. For us, it was always Team Philippines.” She tells me how she would look to Katarina for support when she would rank a little lower at judging, how they would always help each other out.

Later on, after our interview, the two would share a four-tier grilled cheese sandwich with me and I just sat there, bemused by their banter. Katarina is training for track-and-field and is under a strict diet. She has a plastic tub in front of her, containing a meal that has been prescribed by nutritionist. “I can’t eat anything else kasi sayang naman what I paid for,” says Katarina. Meanwhile, Jodilly insists otherwise, “Ang sarap kaya,” pertaining to the sinfully cheesy sandwich.

It’s amazing how these young women have already claimed their spot in the modeling scene, and how they can snap out of it, just like that, and be goofy kids again. I find myself rooting for them both, there’s no way I can pick a favorite after meeting the two. With their talent, charm, ninja smizing skills, and salon-gorgeous hair (the winner of ANTM will also be the face of Tresemmé Asia), they can definitely conquer the Top Model. Only one thought came to mind after talking to Jodilly. In my head, I could hear Tyra banks telling them, “Gurrrl, you better werk!”

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Asia’s Next Top Model Season 2 airs on Starworld every Wednesday at 9:40 p.m., and on TV5 starting Jan. 16, Thursday, from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. Starworld is on Sky Cable channel 48 or channel 172 on HD; Cignal channel 50 or channel 100 on HD, Cable Link channel 28 or channel 30 on HD, Dream channel 16, and 400 cable operators nationwide.

What’s in Jodilly’s bag?

A hair brush, a digital watch, a hair tie, an umbrella, her taxpayer’s ID, Victoria’s Secret Rockin’ Body Perfecting Cream for picture perfect gams, Tresemmé Keratin Smooth Heat Protection Shine Spray — the secret to her high-gloss ‘do, I Declare by Joel Osteen, a rosary from what she calls her “banal pouch” (“I brought it with me to the model house in Malaysia, but we weren’t allowed to show it.”), a hard drive containing her model portfolio, an Instax Mini camera, random photos including this one of her mentor and friend, designer Noel Crisostomo, and a Thank You note pad (“In case I need to thank anyone.”)