JUNE / JULY 2026
We ran a bit late on our fourth issue, but we’re pleased with our lineup for this edition. Our fourth issue is led by Dominic Penaloza, a Chinese-Filipino serial entrepreneur who has built and launched several successful companies from the early dot-com era, created a social platform before social networking became mainstream, and now enters today’s age of AI with his brand-new solution, Sync. Reading his interview is very much like sitting in an exclusive founders’ masterclass where he shares experience, tips, and valuable lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs.
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“Over millennia, most of humanity’s greatest problems have been solved by technology. So, it’s both a privilege and responsibility to work on technology innovation.”
– DOMINIC PENALOZA
THE PROFILES Behind the Work. THE STORIES BEHIND THE BUILD.
THE CREATORS’ JOURNEYs.
Reneé Dominique: Over 100 Million Views, and Counting
Reneé Dominique is a Manila-born singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who has quietly built one of the most remarkable international footprints of any Filipino independent artist. Her covers on YouTube have amassed over 100 million views and more than 1.5 million subscribers across Asia, America, and Europe.
Elvis Boniface: Giving African Education a Voice
Elvis Boniface is the Founder and Managing Director of Edugist, a pan-African education newsroom reaching over a million readers. What began as a free blog has grown into a 16-person newsroom reporting across a dozen-plus African countries, built on the belief that African education deserves both hard scrutiny and honest documentation of progress, not just crisis coverage. In this interview, Elvis discusses building independent media from scratch, reporting across a continent of different systems and languages, and the discipline of stepping away from social media to think.
“Where I came from, we knew Mathematics. That was it. Nobody had told me there was another subject I would need.”
– Elvis Boniface
“An early spark came when I contributed to the Walking with Wheels project. That experience really opened my eyes and inspired me. It made me realize that photography isn’t just for personal expression, it can actually serve society.”
– Kevin Leung
Kevin Leung: Capturing Hong Kong and the World, a Walk at a Time
Kevin Leung, also known in the social world as @vin.coemgenus, is a self-taught, former construction-industry professional turned street photographer with over 16K followers on Instagram. His breakout project, 在這座城市散策的藍調 (“Blues of Strolling in This City”), captures the city’s post-emigration-wave mood through cold, melancholic tones, striking enough of a nerve that outlets like inmediahk.net, HK01, and Ming Pao cover it as much for its social commentary as its craft.
In this interview, we talk to Kevin about his journey and how he started, his method, doing photography with a purpose, and what lies ahead for him.
Tom Croom: Bringing Anime Conventions ACROSS North America
Meet Tom. Tom Croom has spent over two decades working in America’s anime and fan convention scene, from founding Wasabi Anime in 2001 to leading Green Mustard Entertainment today, taking fan conventions across different cities in North America and Canda. We talk to Tom about the beginnings, the challenges, and the most unforgettable memories building Wasabi Anime and Green Mustard Entertainment.
“My advice to my younger self would be simple: pay closer attention to the anime that annoys you.”
– Tom Croom
“What moves me most is seeing the ripple effect. Some of the people we have helped before started volunteering with us, and some even created their own food rescue initiatives. ”
– Mac Florendo
Mac Florendo: Performing Magic, Building Communities
Mac Edsel Florendo has spent his life mastering two kinds of disappearing acts. Onstage, he’s known as “Mr. Magic of the Philippines,” a cardistry champion and close-up magician who has performed for the likes of Manny Pacquiao, Nas Daily, and Mimiyuuuh, dazzling audiences with sleight of hand sharp enough to win him a spot among Southeast Asia’s Top 10 Masters of Magic. Off stage, he’s been making something else disappear: hunger. Discover his journey, challenges, and future plans in this interview.
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dotSpotlight features conversations, stories, inspiration, and passion that drive global digital creators, creatives, founders, and tech builders. It is brought to you by Cheryl Fuerte and Stefan Janssens, the founders of 2nd.digital, a network of global independent agencies focusing on creative digital production, digital marketing, search, and data science.
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