Oscar Llamas Lopez IIIFor the sixth in a series of new Lopez Values vanguards, the next-generation Lopezes, greatgrandchildren of Eugenio Lopez Sr. (EL Sr.), LopezLink presents Oscar Dionisio Martin “Marty” Llamas Lopez III, eldest son of Oscar Martin “Cary” Rufino Lopez Jr., president of First Philippine Realty Corporation Inc.

This series shows how the future generation is doing in living up to the values of their elders by their lifestyles and the principles they uphold. Marty is the grandson of Lopez Group chairman emeritus Oscar M. Lopez and the sixth great-grandchild of EL Sr. Can you give us a background of how you were raised and the schools you attended, the courses you took and trainings you underwent. 

I attended high school at the International School Manila, where I graduated in 2006, after which I completed my BFA in Film & Television at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts in 2010.

Currently, I am enrolled at Columbia Business School, where I am completing my MBA with a focus on media and management.

What do you remember most regarding how you were brought up by your parents, grandparents?

Growing up, most of my time revolved around family. School breaks, vacations and Friday dinners were always spent with the entire family. Because of this, my cousins and siblings were some of my first best friends and continue to be so until this day. 

These bonds that we had formed have only strengthened throughout the years, which I can attribute solely to the efforts of my parents and grandparents to constantly keep us together.

The importance of family unity is a value that never had to be articulated to us since it was something that had just become so entrenched in our everyday lives. Even when I’m thousands of miles away from them, I still find comfort in spending time with cousins and family whom I make time to see once a week whenever I’m home.

What values and lessons in life did they teach you?

My dad had always instilled the values and importance of humility and living within our means. As a child, these were concepts my dad constantly imparted to myself and my four siblings.

Once I started living abroad, I started to see the importance of these values even more as I began to meet people with backgrounds totally different from my own. Expanding my social matutulungan ko ang pagpoprotect sa kalikasan,” Aba said.  This is the second year of the VIP Swim Junkie Challenge, which aims to spotlight the need to protect the Verde Island Passage. ABS-CBN Lingkod Kapamilya Foundation Inc.’s Bantay Kalikasan took the initiative of protecting the Verde Island Passage when it was announced that a mining operation and coal plant might enter the area.   Together with First Gen Corporation, ecotourism and livelihood opportunities were developed for the community.
network, together with living on my own and learning how to budget and manage expenses, were experiences that had become invaluable to me and helped mold me into the person that I have become today.

Did you ever work for a Lopez company? How was it?

After I graduated from university in 2010, I started working as a script continuity supervisor and assistant director for Star Cinema.

Film had always been my passion and while I was still in high school and college, I would visit the Star Cinema film sets to get a more in-depth look at production life. There, I had the opportunity to meet the directors and teams and learn about the complexities of filmmaking in the Philippine film industry. Unbeknownst to me, these would be the same people I would be working with during my fiveyear stint at Star Cinema.

The environment and culture at Star Cinema was incredibly creative and I had the amazing opportunity to get to work with so many exceptionally talented individuals who shared my same passion. 

Working in production was definitely not like the usual 9-to-5 desk job, but this was exactly what made coming to work every day very exciting and challenging. Despite the long and demanding hours of production life, I enjoyed the work and felt very fortunate to have been able to pursue my passion at Star Cinema. It was an experience that constantly pushed me outside of my comfort zone, but was also one that was extremely invaluable in building my character, confidence and work ethic.

What advice would you give your younger cousins and siblings?

I would tell my younger cousins and siblings to follow their passions while keeping an open mind and an entrepreneurial mind-set. We are incredibly lucky to be given the opportunity and support from our family to pursue our different passions in life and with that, I feel it is our duty to ourselves to make the most of it. Can you share any anecdotes showing how you live up to the Lopez Values of family unity, integrity, business excellence, innovativeness?

Unity and integrity have been the Lopez Values that have resonated with me most throughout my personal and professional life.

Professionally, I feel that unity is most important when motivating groups and teams. In my experience, I’ve been able to effectively lead teams cohesively and successfully when I’ve been able to foster positive group dynamics.

Leading with integrity has also been a value that I’ve admired very much when looking at my grandfather. Being a man that leads by his principles, I’ve seen how he has been able to positively inspire those around him, which is why integrity continues to be a value that I regard very highly and use to guide my decisions in life and leadership. (Story/Photos by: Dulce Festin-Baybay)