MANILA, Philippines--IT WAS A CAST OUTRAGE, captured on video and still photographs, targeting the Facebook, Twitter and YouTube generation.

Enraged by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) decision to disqualify the gay party-list group ?Ang Ladlad? from participating in the 2010 election, Niccolo Cosme, a fashion photographer, and Jethro Patalinghug, an independent filmmaker, were moved to participate in Team Pilipinas? video project, ?I Am Not Immoral.?

Free of charge

Cosme, a contestant on the GMA 7 talent show ?Celebrity Duets 3? this year, said: ?I was upset. How dare they condemn gays in a shallow, general way.?

Although he was very busy with both his fashion and commercial work, Cosme volunteered his services for the shoot, ?free of charge.?

Patalinghug, who has worked for QTV, MTV Philippines and Myx, explained that ?I Am Not Immoral? is a ?protest action? especially conceived for the digital era and the Gen X, Y, Z demographic.

?We have to exhaust all other forms of protest, apart from rallying in the streets,? Patalinghug said. The shoot was held on the day of the grand Gay Pride march in Malate, Dec. 5.

As part of the video?s concept, various personalities?some famous, some anonymous, but all achievers in their fields?were invited to give testimonials and lend a human face to the protest.

Not all gay

?The participants were not all gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transsexuals. Some were straight, like Rep. Rissa Hontiveros,? said Patalinghug, who was a contestant in this year?s Mr. Gay World Philippines as well.

He is writing his feature film debut on the local gay scene and HIV, after making short films like ?Truth or Dare? and ?Tulong,? which competed in the filmaka.com in Los Angeles, California.

?The video is a fitting [retort] to the Comelec decision,? said Hontiveros. ?I am straight, but I have many gay friends and relatives.?

Discrimination based on gender and sexual preference violates a person?s ?basic human right? and should be deemed a criminal act, Hontiveros pointed out.

Act of courage

Cosme said the video project is one of the bravest acts he has ever committed in his life?next to singing on live national television for ?Celebrity Duets.?

Team Pilipinas launched the videos online last month.

?We plan to spread it in different gay networks and websites all over the world. We also hope to tap Facebook. We cannot underestimate the power of the Internet to spread our message.?