From being one of the celebrated child stars of his generation, John Prats is now leveraging his stardom into a solid career as creative person behind the scenes. Using the skills he picked up from working in front of the camera, the 39-year-old TV personality is able to transcend the trap of career stagnation and become one of the most sought-after concert directors today.
Last year, the gradual lifting of restrictions has spurred an unusually high demand for concerts, events, and specials, quickly filling up the plate of the highly-sought after actor, director, and TV personality for the whole year (a good problem to have given the effects of the pandemic on the industry).
“My creative freedom is not just for myself, I always collaborate with my artists. I do this because I want to make the artists I’m working with to be happy and at the same time entertain those people who bought their tickets and get their money’s worth,” John told Manila Standard Entertainment on why he enjoys working behind the camera.
“My work is very addicting. I would only draw things on tissue paper then it gives me so much pleasure when I see my vision turn into reality, say seeing my work come to life in a venue like Araneta Coliseum,” he went on.
As a concert director, John got to direct KZ Tandingan and Bamboo Mañalac’s concert in Pampanga (entitled Rock and Soul Supremacy) and Klarisse De Guzman’s solo concert at the New Frontier Theater (Her Time).
Also last year, John got the chance to also direct concerts and events for international artists, with the most notable being Jessi’s Zoom in Manila concert (the first-ever solo concert of the Korean hip-hop star). He got to direct the 2-leg Be You 2 concert (featuring K-Pop stars TVXQ!, BoA, Chen, and Xiumin of EXO), and the fan meet of Kim Soo-hyun (one of the highest-paid actors in Korea today).
These are just the highlights of John’s 2022 but prior to the pandemic, he has already accomplished a lot as a director, having directed Most Streamed Filipina Artist Moira Dela Torre’s Tagpuan concert in 2018 at the KIA Theater and the Braver concert last 2019 at the Araneta Coliseum.
The recently concluded sold-out kickoff concert of Moira’s 2023 World Tour at the Araneta Coliseum on February 3 is the latest sign that John is not only bouncing back with style, but that he is also still going strong, refusing to slow down, and continuously evolving as an artist.
In the field of television, John’s biggest highlight of 2022 would have to be the epic conclusion of the seven-year run of the wildly popular FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano. John was not only a cast member but also one of the directors of the show alongside Coco Martin. He also got to direct the star-studded 2022 ABS-CBN Christmas Special, too.
When not acting or directing, John could be found showing off his moves on It’s Showtime stage as a regular judge and mentor for the “Girl on Fire” dance competition.
In celebration of John’s 30 years in Philippine showbiz, Rank Magazine has released an exclusive feature about his career.
“Technically, I celebrated my 30 years in showbiz last year. But given that we were still in a pandemic, and it was only recently that we get to enjoy some sense of normalcy which is why I’m celebrating it just this year,” John explained.
“And it’s nice to celebrate how your career evolved throughout the years. I wanted to share this experience with the people who were there from the very start of my career and the people who still support the things I do now. I wouldn’t be where I am at right now without those people,” he ended.