How Negrense teen artist reached 200k on Instagram in 2 weeks

GMA Network

2 days ago

Alex Loygos, a 17-year-old content creator from Dumaguete City, set a goal at the start of the year: gain 50,000 Instagram followers before the end of 2025. On January 6– three days after hard-launching his dare into cyberspace, he hit his mark.
Halfway through the year, and with nearly 300,000 followers, Alex has become a full-fledged artist-creator on Instagram, producing original short-form content that have racked up millions of views.
Fueled by the youth of his content creation journey, and amidst the ebbs and flows of evolving art spaces, here's how young Alex made it happen.
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED
'I decided to just one day take that big step– that leap– and challenge myself to give it a shot.'
Alex Loygos (@alexxx.mp4 on Instagram), a Mass Communication student at Siliman University in Negros Oriental, has 288,000 followers on Instagram as of publishing. The reel where he announced his self-imposed challenge is now viral with 8.2 million views and counting and almost a million likes.
'It started as a floating idea in my head,' he told GMA Regional TV News in an interview, 'I would see all these talented creators online, it is really inspiring to me how they could express themselves so freely, and connect with an audience.'
Alex, while relishing in Christmas break boredom, came up with the idea in late December 2024, and decided to 'create something that felt personal and that could inspire others the same way they (creators) inspired me.'
The dare commenced on January 3 with a 60-second Instagram reel where Alex bares his plan, challenging himself to 'reach 50,000 followers at the end of the year as an artist.' After two days, he hit 10,000. Before he knew it, he had gone above and beyond his initial goal.
'I really did not expect that I would reach it that quickly. That is why I set my goal pretty low at 50k, thinking that it would really take me about a year.'
Surprised by the swift accomplishment, he said it 'felt really unbelievable,' and even thought it was a joke when a close friend messaged him to announce the feat.
'I guess it is very pressuring,' said Alex, who has immediately recognized the often overlooked responsibility to make consciously made content, 'knowing that I have to face this responsibility because I have grown a bigger audience. And that just means more motivation to me that I really just have to stay consistent because otherwise I would disappoint everyone supporting me.
SIMPLICITY OF PROCESS
Alex's videos exude a personality– ingeniously quirky and youthfully quick-paced– that lets you know he is a product of his milieu.
The narrations are straightforward as the editing is intentionally complex, and at the core of it all is the young Negrense's aspiration to break through as an artist.
Impressive as it sounds, his videos, like the one that went viral, take only a day, sometimes less, to create– from concept to output.
'It was shot, edited, and posted on the same day. I was a one-man crew, and it took like half a day. I think I started around six in the afternoon and ended around like 11,' he said.
His production gear is also not that deep: 'Everything is shot with this phone,' referring to an old iPhone 8 from eight generations ago, 'and a tripod, then I own two softboxes which I use for lighting that I got online for 300-plus pesos. Everything works perfectly for me.'
Between start and finish, Alex claims that he encounters much of the laborious stages in his creative flow when drafting, writing, and storyboarding, just like a typical filmmaker in action.
'It doesn't necessarily take too much time since my style of videos are very short form. But it does take a lot of effort to set up each shot– from lighting, background, wardrobe props, and everything else. It does take time.'
Alex talks about his tasks like a seasoned veteran, suggesting that he's well in control of his burgeoning art. His pragmatic view of methods and raw descriptions of his process offer not a simplistic purview, but a simplified version of the chaos that is in his head.
ARTISTIC BEGINNINGS
In the viral reel, Alex introduces himself as someone who 'was always drawn to art' growing up, dabbling into painting, theater, drawing, and other forms of performing arts.
He has an ate and a kuya, the latter he considers as his earliest inspiration to go the arts-and-creatives route.
'My passion for creativity and filmmaking specifically came from my big brother. It started off as him shooting these Vine videos… seeing that, it inspired me when I was younger,' Alex shared, 'and it made me grow my love for filmmaking and art in general.'
'It was just his hobby, a side thing he did for fun and entertainment… But that experience created a big impact for me. Eventually, I was the one who pursued an interest in the arts, which I still do to this day,' he added.
One crucial aspect of his content creation journey that he's grateful for is the support he gets from his family.
'They are very supportive with whatever I do, especially in my interest in art,' he shared.
'They love supporting me all throughout, because it's not very common for a Filipino family to support their children who choose to pursue the art industry rather than something more generic like STEM,' he added.
Earlier this year, Alex finished senior high school at the Foundation Preparatory Academy in Dumaguete City, and is now a Mass Communication freshman at Silliman University.
MOVING FORWARD
Naturally constrained by the curricular necessities of school, Alex hopes to first thrive as a storyteller on Instagram through digestible short-form content.
'Since I'm still a student, I have to work hard on balancing between content creation and school responsibilities, and that means I have to manage my time carefully to meet deadlines for both my videos and school,' he shared.
For the Negrense teenager, the virtual spaces on the Internet are just another canvas where his desired modes of expression can flourish and inspire further.
'It feels very fulfilling that I know I'm creating an impact in simple ways like filmmaking or just through my Instagram reels. And it makes me really happy to know that I inspire other people– that's mainly my goal, to share my stories and inspire people in the creative industry,' said Alex.
He plans on staying consistent with his minute-long shorts on Instagram for the meantime, but looks forward to integrating more long-form content on his docket.
Alex's long-term objective is to be a true-blue auteur– a filmmaker– working on bigger projects with a bigger audience on much bigger platforms. He has ambitions of joining film production giants such as A24, Paramount, and Universal in the future.
'My ultimate goal is to become a film director. So, I guess content creation is just me taking small steps to reach that goal. I really plan to keep on creating on social media on every platform to showcase my art,' said the young film aficionado.
Artistry and creativity know no age, because expression of one's ingenuity is innate to our very existence. It is fortunate that young aspirants like Alex Loygos have the courage, brilliance, and seriousness to brave the less frequented roads of the arts and humanities.
'I carefully plan and shoot my videos to ensure that they're engaging and well-created. But I also make sure that I also allow room for flexibility and spontaneity and just to keep the process fun and authentic.'
For Alex and his newfound function as filmmaker and content creation on the Internet, the metric is not anymore the number of followers and the amount of engagement, but a level of consistency that will feed his fire but will not let it consume him.
'I really want to inspire people to go after their creative passions and just to not be afraid to express themselves and share their own stories. And I just hope that my work encourages other people to chase their own dreams and believe in their ability to create something amazing. And it's all about showing that creativity can definitely open doors and make an impact.'