Meet Chris Gamboa, the maestro behind horror podcasts 'Kwentong Takipsilim,' 'Sitio Bangungot,' 'Sitio Pangil'
Filipinos have long had a love-hate relationship with horror and are almost always all ears to spooky stories, their inner fears notwithstanding.
After all, the country has a rich oral tradition, especially with such kinds of stories—be it from the folklore and myths of the precolonial era, the nighttime tales of grandparents, the urban legend of a particular institution, the midnight episode of a radio program, the Halloween special of a television network, even the casual "maritessing" of a friend.
In the age of smartphones, podcasts are ever-ubiquitous, and it goes without saying that horror stories are aplenty on these platforms. A Filipino is bringing these stories to the international stage with his team’s award-winning horror podcasts.
Christian “Chris” Gamboa, the 40-year-old genius behind Kwentong Takipsilim: Tagalog Horror Stories, Sitio Bangungot: Pinoy Horror Stories, and Sitio Pangil: Pinoy Aswang Stories, is giving millions of listeners worldwide the creeps with local stories regarding the mysterious, the eerie, and the supernatural.
The podcasts’ episodes, which last for at least an hour, follow the radio drama format with a narrator possessing a mellifluous voice, voice actors injecting much pathos, somber background music, and sound effects for the likes of creaking doors. The heart of them all, of course, is the spine-chilling—and sometimes heart-rending—stories taken from online submissions.
Podcasting to pass time during lockdown
In an interview with PhilSTAR L!fe, Chris said he and his wife, who have been living in Canada, vacationed in the Philippines when the COVID-19 pandemic happened. To pass the time and cope with the days during the lockdown, they started a podcast.
“Nasa loob lang kami ng bahay. Nag-usap kami, sabi niya, ‘Bakit di tayo gumawa ng ganito,’” he said.
But they didn’t explore horror originally. Their creation, which Chris, in hindsight, dismissed as not a real podcast, comprised romantic love and family drama. It had about 10 episodes.
“’Do we still want to do this? Parang kulang ng kaunting push,’” he recalled telling his wife.
Chris, who shares a love of horror with her, then decided to take their podcasting venture in a different direction.
And all the more that they had to, especially since they befriended Jupiter Torres, the broadcaster and voiceover artist known for his soothing, raspy voice (or “malamig na boses” in local parlance) which becomes off-brand should it be used to narrate melodramatic stories. Besides, some of their earlier romance stories already explored killings and ought to take a darker turn.
“Sabi ko, ‘There's no way we can do love stories with him.’ Kaya mag-horror tayo,” Chris said. “Doon din kami talaga papunta.”
From writing the stories to receiving submissions
Chris and his wife wrote a horror story from the figment of their imagination, coming up with the debut episode titled “Buwayang Aswang” under Kwentong Takipsilim in July 2020. (Sitio Bangungot and Sitio Pangil came much later on as offshoots to segregate the types of horror stories they’re telling).
“Tinry namin ng isang episode with Sir Jupiter. Tapos 'yun na,” he said.
As Kwentong Takipsilim had more episodes written by the Gamboas, Chris said many listeners asked whether they could share their own stories. He thought it was a good idea to let them effectively have a say on the podcast.
Chris’s team receives up to five submissions per day through email alone. Their Facebook page has also been getting a lot of messages, prompting him to hire people to handle submissions.
The assumption is that the submissions are true and are based on experience. Still, Chris’s team, in time, has developed a taste for stories worth their attention.
“Imaginin mo nag-iinuman tayo. Pag kinwentuhan mo ako ng something BS, malalaman ko. Ganoon namin pinipili ang stories,” he said. “Marami na kaming nabasang stories at alam namin kung maganda ang kwento. Kung may potential.”
They also select entries based on whether it would resonate with the listeners and if it has enough emotional depth.
He cited his favorite episode about an overseas Filipino woman whose brother, who entered the military against his family’s wishes, died in battle.
“Tumatabi daw ‘yung kapatid sa pagtulog nila. Humuhugis yung kama at kumot. If I'm going to listen to this at mag-isa lang ako, nakahiga sa kama… nakakatakot na,” he said.
There was also an instance in which the woman, who was talking to her brother in the coffin, saw him crying, as did his fellow soldiers who were guarding his remains.
“Dadalhin ka rin noong moment sa wake,” Chris said. “If you're listening to a story like this, maniniwala ka talaga… Hindi lang siya nakakatakot, nakakalungkot din.”
They also have writers who make necessary improvements to cater to the public’s taste.
Chris said they upload about four episodes per week as much as possible.
Local and international success
On YouTube, Kwentong Takipsilim has over 309,000 subscribers, 1,000 videos, and 67 million views; Sitio Bangungit has over 146,000 subscribers, 450 videos, and 21.8 million views; and Sitio Pangil over 85,600 subscribers, 160 videos, and 8.1 million views.
On Spotify, Chris said the three podcasts have over 10 million listens each. Outside the Philippines, most of their listeners hail from the United States, Dubai, Qatar, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
Spotify Wrapped, the platform’s year-end report, showed Kwentong Takipsilim as the country’s fifth top podcast in 2023.
“Based on our analytics, North Korea na lang ang di nakukulayan (sa world map) pati ilang small islands,” he said.
Chris found it interesting that his podcasts have permeated everyday life. He noted that most of their listeners are from the working class, whether they’re in their offices or in public transportation.
There was even an instance in which one of their dubbers, who was eating at a burger stall on the street, heard himself on the staff’s phone. Some fans even approach them for photo opportunities.
Moreover, Chris said their podcasts’ known oldest listener is 80 years old, while the known youngest listener is 6 years old. He also found out that several people listen to their podcasts not for the thrill or fright but as a means of inducing sleep.
“I was like, 'Why?' But if it works, it works. We're very thankful sa lahat ng listeners namin,” he said.
Chris attributes their mass appeal—across ages and for various reasons—to their dedication and authenticity.
Even though their podcast team members are working from home, they make sure they deliver the highest quality with every upload.
“You’ll be amazed kung anong oras nagrerecord si Sir Jupiter: alas tres nang madaling araw!” he said with a laugh. “Minsan, naririnig pa nga na kakatapos lang niyang umiyak.”
Chris also took pride in not settling for artificial intelligence for their work, which is pretty much anchored on human effort.
“We're working hard on producing our stories,” he said. “Hindi pa rin kayang palitan [ng AI] ang tao… Iba pa rin ang emotions, lalo na this is in Filipino and this is horror.”
The country’s “colorful horror history” is also a factor for Chris, who believes that there will always be something scary to talk about.
“There's a lot of stories na andiyan. Kahit ilang taon na kami, may mga bago pa rin sa pandinig namin,” he said.
Chris is looking forward to having more true crime entries. While they've explored cases of creepy stalkers or killers, they pale in comparison with their patent supernatural stories.
“Minsan, mas nakakatakot ang tao kaysa multo,” he said.
While Chris didn't go into detail about their plans for his podcasts, he teased listeners that more and more horror is in the offing.
“We like to surprise people,” he said. “Abangan na lang nila.”