Just an update…
I went to canon (philippines) the other day to check the camera they lent to the production team. I shot and I recaptured on my laptop some footage to re-create the problem. It just confirms that the person who borrowed it before us must have swtiched the “Char Rec” feature on. Since I didnt had a manual at the time prior to the shoot, I assumed everything was preset…like I said in my first post I only fiddled with the image control settings since I was “afraid” to touch the system settings. Again, this experience just reiterates the importance of testing.
Anyways, thanks everybody for the replies and the help.
https://www.abgarcia.multiply.com