The Soft Power of Gen Z Women
Growing up online means growing up visible. Shuvee Etrata and Ashley Ortega on social media, self-discovery, and owning their power.
By: Real Florido
Published: March 18, 2026
For years, I’ve watched the industry evolve from an era where actors existed almost entirely inside the frame of the television or the silver screen to a time when their voices extend far beyond it. Back then, the relationship between artists and audiences was distant. Fans saw their idols on primetime, in magazine covers, or during rare press interviews. That was the extent of access.
That was the rhythm of the industry. Visibility existed, but it was controlled, measured, and largely one-way. Today that distance has dissolved. A new generation of women is growing up in full view, navigating careers and identities in real time, where audiences witness not just their work but their evolution. I feel that shift immediately when listening to Shuvee Etrata and Ashley Ortega during their Zeen cover shoot. What they represent isn’t simply a younger wave of actresses entering the industry. It’s a different kind of presence altogether. Their influence is quieter but more immediate, rooted in honesty rather than distance. In many ways, it captures the soft power of Gen Z women: visible, self-aware, and increasingly unwilling to wait for permission.
Girls Don’t Need Permission
For Shuvee, social media was never something she had to learn. It was simply the environment she grew up in.
Before acting, before television, she was already creating content and documenting everyday life the way many Gen Z creators instinctively do.
“Feeling ko hindi
ako buo pag hindi ako
nakakapag-post.
Ganun yung kinalakihan ko
sa social media.
It’s a norm for me.”
— Shuvee Etrata
Posting every day once felt instinctive. But over time, it evolved into something more meaningful. What used to be an expression became responsibility.
“Given the platform that I have, I feel like it’s more of a responsibility right now. Kasi I- I’m aware now na medyo maraming nang nanonood. Dati kasi siguro feeling ko, oh wala naman yan. Ano lang, just for fun but right now, you’re more aware and more, uhm, fully equipped with knowledge na what to post, how to- how to view yourself in social media.“ Ashley’s journey into the digital world was different. When she first entered show business, the industry still revolved around television appearances and press interviews. Social media had not yet become the center of celebrity culture. Today, the rules are completely different.
“There’s a little
pressure to be visible online.
Not because it’s competition
— but because there are so
many creative people now.
You have to be present for you
to be visible.” — Ashley Ortega
But the most important shift isn’t just visibility, it’s agency. For the first time, young women have platforms where they can speak directly, create freely, and define themselves without waiting for gatekeepers to tell them who they should be. And that freedom is changing everything. The Myth of the Perfect Woman Online Social media thrives on curated identities. Perfect photos. Perfect captions. Perfect lives. But both women are clear: perfection is not only unrealistic, it’s uninteresting.
“And even though
you try so hard to be
perfect online or
in front of a lot of people,
they will still judge you.”
— Ashley Ortega
Instead of perfection, what audiences respond to today is something far more powerful: authenticity. Both women emerged into the public eye through the reality show Pinoy Big Brother, where cameras captured their personalities without filters. Millions of viewers watched them laugh, cry, make mistakes, and grow. After that experience, curating a flawless digital persona felt almost impossible.
“People already saw
our real lives.
Our insecurities,
our mistakes.
So for us, it’s about
being honest with
what we show.”
— Shuvee Etrata
And honesty, it turns out, is exactly what resonates.
Visibility as Self-Discovery
For a generation growing up online, identity doesn’t just develop privately. It unfolds publicly. Ashley experienced this realization while revisiting her own old social media posts.
“When I looked back at my 2016 photos, I realized — wow, ang layo na pala ng narating ko. I saw how much I grew as the woman I am right now.” — Ashley Ortega
For Shuvee, watching herself on television offered a similar moment of self-discovery.
“Napapanood ko yung sarili ko. ‘Ah, ganito pala ako.’ How I react, how I feel, how I love. Visibility made me more aware of who I really am.” — Shuvee Etrata
Social media, in this sense, becomes more than a stage. It becomes a mirror.
When Sharing Your Story Becomes Community
One moment in our conversation stayed with me. Shuvee began talking about the messages she receives from people who follow her online with long letters, deeply personal DMs, stories from strangers who saw parts of their own lives reflected in hers. Some told her that her honesty helped them through moments when they felt completely alone. That was when the weight of her platform became real to her. “I realized this isn’t just about being an artist,” she said. “Behind the glamour, you’re actually making people happy. Sometimes you’re even saving lives.”
For someone who once carried her own struggles quietly, that realization changed the way she sees influence. The platform stopped being just about being seen. It became about reaching people and reminding them they’re not alone.
Women Who Expand Possibility
No woman rises alone. Every generation builds its strength from the women who came before. Ashley names Princess Diana as one of the women who shaped her understanding of compassion and courage. She also admires modern Filipina voices like Anne Curtis and Marian Rivera.
“Seeing women use
their voice inspires me.
It reminds me that we
can do so much more.”
— Ashley Ortega
For Shuvee, the turning point came when she watched Catriona Gray use her global platform to speak about advocacy.
“When I saw Catriona, I thought — maybe I can be like her. Maybe I can also use my voice.” — Shuvee Etrata
Representation doesn’t just inspire admiration. It expands imagination.
Rewriting the Timeline for Women
For many young women today, the traditional timelines of success are shifting. Shuvee laughs when she remembers the life plan she had as a teenager: finish medical school, marry early, start a family before 28. That plan has since transformed.
“Now I have
so many dreams.
I realized I can
be so much more
than the life I
imagined before.”
— Shuvee Etrata
Ashley discovered something similar when she unexpectedly became a business owner last year, launching her own candle brand.
“I thought before showbiz lang ako forever. But life changes. Women are capable of doing so many things.” — Ashley Ortega
The Gen Z woman, it seems, refuses to be limited to one identity. She is allowed to evolve.
Speak Up, Even When It’s Scary
Social media offers women unprecedented platforms. But it also exposes them to criticism, judgment, and sometimes outright disrespect. So what advice do they give to young women navigating that reality? Ashley’s answer is immediate.
“Speak up.
I know it’s scary,
but speaking up is bravery.
And you have no idea
how many women
will support you.”
— Ashley Ortega
Shuvee adds something equally powerful.
“Respect is a bare minimum.
It shouldn’t have to
be taught or imposed.
It should be natural.”
— Shuvee Etrata
Strength, But Also Softness
Toward the end of our conversation, I asked them a question that felt simple on the surface but is actually difficult to answer: how do you define womanhood today?
Ashley responded almost immediately, with the kind of clarity that comes from someone who has been quietly observing the world around her. “Women today are ambitious, confident, smart, and powerful,” she said. “We’re capable of choosing our own path.” There was something reassuring in the way she said it. Not as a slogan, but as a fact. For her, modern womanhood isn’t about fitting into a single role. It’s about recognizing that women can move through many roles in a lifetime and still remain whole. Shuvee paused longer before answering. She thought about it carefully, as if weighing the words in her head before letting them out. Then she said something that stayed with me.
“Womanhood is
strength but it’s
also softness.”
– Shuvee Etrata
And maybe that is where the real shift is happening. For a long time, strength and softness were treated as opposites, as if women had to choose between being powerful or being gentle, assertive or compassionate. But the women of this generation seem to understand that the two can exist together. Strength is not diminished by empathy and softness is not the absence of power.
If anything, it might be the source of it. Because what makes women remarkable is not just their ability to endure. It’s their ability to nurture, to listen, to build communities, and to lead with a kind of emotional intelligence that the world often undervalues. In a culture that still sometimes mistakes kindness for weakness, choosing softness can be its own form of courage. And perhaps that is the quiet secret behind the soft power of Gen Z women. They are strong enough to take up space. Soft enough to care deeply about others. And brave enough to show the world who they truly are with flaws, growth, and all. This generation isn’t asking for permission anymore. They’re simply living their best life, on their own terms.
Interviewed by | Real Florido
Photography | John Lim
Photography Assistant | Genio Frondoza
Cover Art | Murielle Tanchanco
Styled by | Cathy Sobrevega
Shuvee’s Glam Team
Make Up Artist | Thazzia Falek
Hairstylist | Dale Mallari
Ashley’s Glam Team
Make Up Artist | Gwenn De Lara
Hairstylist | Joben Dinglasan
Editor-In-Chief | Real Florido
Content Producer | Murielle Tanchanco, Currie Cator
Multimedia Artist | Melbourne Erno
IT Officer | Franz Josef Dela Cruz
Features Writer | Esca Bacordo
Interns | Jane Andes, Emlan Implica, Elisha Dejapin, Jesse Dela Cruz, Emlan Implica
Location | Suha Studios
Special thanks to Sparkle GMA Artist Center
Real Florido is a filmmaker, comic book author and the Chief Content Officer of CreaZion Studios, a multi-media company. His award-winning films can be streamed on Netflix, Amazon Prime and Vivaone. Follow him on Instagram and X @realflorido.
