Xyra Cruz Bacani

■ Xyra is a street and documentary photographer known for her black-and-white photographs of Hong Kong and documentary projects about migration and the intersections of labor and human rights

■ Before leaving the Philippines to raise funds for the education of her siblings, she studied nursing. At the age of 19, she joined her mother in Hong Kong, working as a nanny for almost a decade

■ Her interest in photography started when she was still studying in college and only managed to take casual photographs after purchasing her first digital single-lens reflex camera with a loan from her employer in Hong Kong

■ Xyra is throughout her career she has covered the 2014 Hong Kong protests in Central and documented the lives of other domestic helpers at Bethune House Migrant Women’s Refuge in Jordan, Hong Kong

■ She has also received numerous honors such as being one of the Magnum Foundation’s Human Rights Fellows, a recipient of a resolution passed by the Philippines House of Representatives in her honor, HR No. 1969, one of the BBC’s 100 Women of the World 2015, 30 Under 30 Women Photographers 2016, Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2016, as well being a Fujifilm Ambassador.

■ She is the recipient of grants from Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting 2016, WMA Commission 2017, and part of Open Society Foundations Moving Walls 24

■ As of March 6, 2020 she’s accepted at the NYU Graduate School for Arts and Politics

Charisma Lico

■ Charisma is a commercial and Fashion Photographer based in Manila

■ She is an advertising arts graduate and had apprenticed under some of the most talented in the field—from Mark Nicdao, Jay Tablante, and Xander Angeles—spending few days to months absorbing their talent

■ Charisma’s style is described as soft, young, and with a feminine touch and has photographed Philippine’s widely known celebrities like Georgina Wilson, Toni Gonzaga, Isabelle Daza, Claudia Barrettoand many more

■ She describes, “I’m fascinated by the looks. From the makeup to the clothes, to the models, these all come to play in telling a specific narrative, and that’s what truly excites me.”