Re-animating the Philippine cinema: for Filipinos, by Filipinos

Abstract

This study explores the Philippine animation industry in terms of its original, local content and through the eyes of Filipino animators. It is a brief chronicle of the development of animated films throughout the years, and brings to light the animated films from 2007-2016, particularly the animated film entries to the Metro Manila Film Festival and Animahenasyon. These are proudly made by Filipino animators and capture the Filipino essence. With the talent and creativity of Filipino animators, they are constantly pursued to create content for foreign animation studios. This has led to the boom of animation subcontracting which has become a key player in the economy. However, with the flourishing business side of animation comes the breakdown of the local animation industry and the creativity of the Filipino animator. With the preference of working as “in-betweeners,” Filipino animators have devoted their time and talent in the assembly line type of work instead of weaving stories and bringing to life characters that are uniquely their own. To trace the "re-animation" the Philippine animation industry, this study traces the aspects of the film industry, in terms of its production, distribution, and exhibition and how it affects the creation of original, local content. The study also draws attention to quality, Filipino animated films and how they manifest the Filipino culture. Pioneer animators who now work for the academe and for the Animation Council of the Philippines, Inc. have shared their insights on the current issues faced by animators and the status of the original, local content in the Philippine animation industry. Along with this, an analysis of Metro Manila Film Festival and the Animahenasyon as main platforms of animated films and the festivals’ role in the distribution and exhibition of the animated film is presented. The quality of the original, local content in the animation industry was examined through the ten Animahenasyon grand prize winners (2007-2016); three Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) New Wave Category animated film winners (2013-2015); three MMFF main competition full-length animated films (from 2008, 2010, and 2016) and one main competition short film (2016). The study was able to affirm the presence of original, local content as evident in the selected animated films from Animahenasyon and Metro Manila Film Festival. Despite the nuances and challenges faced by Filipino animators such as financial constraints, ideological impositions in content, and skeptical Filipino audience reception, the original and local content of the animation industry is blooming and defying expectations. Filipino animated films no longer live in the shadows of Disney and Pixar. The original, local content of animated films are slowly finding their place and forming an identity in the Philippine cinema. Filipino animated films are reflective of the aspirations of its people, the nation's socio-political issues, values, mythology, and folklore. Indeed, Philippine animation can be distinguished as a distinct and continuously developing cultural art form.