It was her 1st official illustration job, but it was not what she imagined when she was still in art school. “Well here we go, first official illustration job. Not what I imagined. Pencils don't fail me now,” said Ala Paredes, former commercial model and daughter of APO Hiking Society's Jim Paredes. The 26-year-old was referring to her “job” as a court artist at the murder trial of Datu Unsay town mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr., the main suspect in what is considered to be the worst political massacre in the Philippines. The Supreme Court has tapped Paredes to capture the drama inside the courtroom through her sketches after it prohibited the live coverage of the murder trial to avoid “trial by publicity.” Cameras have been banned inside the courtroom during the proceedings. For Paredes, who took up an art course, it was “pretty much” her first professional job since graduation. “I don't know if I'm getting paid. We haven't really discussed it,” she said. - Although noamount was discussed, she said her dad was “really excited” when he found out about it. On the first day of the hearing Tuesday, Paredes was able to make 5 sketches, including Ampatuan and Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes of Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 221. “I did about 5. I tried to do as many as I can but the hearing was pretty short… As much as possible, I tried to capture the moment,” she told reporters.
