You may have come across the famous videos of “Chismosang Marites” with a killer “Bridgerton-like” accent in one of your social media accounts. Justine Luzares, fondly called by his followers as “Marites”, has created one-of-a-kind acting and comedy skits on social media that have drawn people’s attention. His British adaptation of “Marites”, a stereotypical name for women who are fond of gossip, has become popular on TikTok and Facebook because of its real-life representation of a “chismosa” with a twist.
Unknown to many, the comedy content creator spent his college years at Visayas State University (VSU) where he graduated cum laude in the degree of Agribusiness. Justin is originally from Albuera, Leyte, but now currently based in Manila working as a process trainer for a business process outsourcing firm in Alabang.
Justine was in seventh grade when he started to play with lines from the famous historical movie “Troy” (2004). He saw his ability to copy accents as a funny skit that he showed to his friends for fun. Since then, his skill grew as he watched more movies, particularly Game of Thrones and Lord of the Rings, which he is fond of. Throughout the years, his French, Australian, Indian, and British accents developed as well. However, he made it clear that his skills did not improve instantly overnight. He spent time practicing these accents before becoming good at mimicking them. He has been learning for more than a decade now by exposing himself to social media platforms. He never stopped learning!
The famous content creator admitted that he was not quite interested in Tiktok, but later on used the platform to kill boredom and entertain himself during the community quarantine. The character he is known for is a savage gossiper “tita.” He revealed that he did not plan the character of Marites at all, and that the idea just sprang abruptly in the middle of his conversation with his co-worker. Although he is not a gossip-type by nature, he believes that Filipinos can relate so much with having a “chismosang kapitbahay” like Marites. Since then, his “Chismosang Marites” earned him half a million followers, with 3.7 million likes in the video-sharing app and 44 thousand followers on Facebook.
When asked about his Viscan roots, he expressed how much he missed being at VSU, which he hopes to visit when things return to normal. He added, "There are a lot of things that I miss about being in the university that I cannot materialize by words." Just like any other VSU alumna and alumnus, Justine still feels a connection and a sense of nostalgia to his endeared university despite years of being away. He describes his college life as a time of fun and happiness that he will never forget.
He shared that one of the most valuable lessons that VSU taught him was to be confident in whatever he does. He is sure that he possesses the courage to pursue any undertaking as a product of an institution committed to excellence. Justine proudly tags himself as a #ProudViscan.