The film is Hollywood's first major feature-length animated film focused entirely on Filipinos
Filipino Canadian Tricia Serdon grew up watching Disney movies and searching for a princess who looked like her.
asserted
who → animate → her
She never quite found one.
asserted
She → find → one
That changed with Forgotten Island.
asserted
That → change → Island
"I think it’s such a great love letter to Filipinos," says Serdon, a marketing co-ordinator in Toronto.
asserted
Serdon → think → Toronto
The film, produced by Dreamworks Animation and released on Sept. 25, is the first major Hollywood animated feature to place Filipino culture and mythology at its centre.
asserted
film → produce → centre
It follows Jo and Raissa, two childhood friends whose paths diverge when Raissa leaves the Philippines to attend college in the U.S., while Jo stays behind.
asserted
Jo → follow → U.S.
As the two friends navigate the pain of separation, they are eventually drawn into Nakali, a fantasy world populated by supernatural figures, adapted from folklore told in the Philippines for centuries.
asserted
they → navigate → centuries
The name "Nakali" is a play on nakalimutan, or Tagalog for "forgotten."
asserted
name → forget → nakalimutan
Though inspired by ancient tales, the setting is a creative reimagining rather than a direct adaptation.
asserted
setting → inspire → tales
How the South Korean film Hope is making us think about the future
He’s won one of Canada’s top honours, but this Inuk filmmaker says his work is for his culture
A rich, lesser-known mythology
Nakali is not a traditional place from Filipino folklore.
asserted
Nakali → make → folklore
In the film, it is an imagined portal into the mythology itself — a place where Jo and Raissa encounter stories, creatures and memories carried across generations.
asserted
Jo → imagine → generations
Among them are the manananggal, a vampiric creature whose upper body separates from its lower half and flies through the night, and the kapre, a dark, bearded giant that dwells in the forest.
asserted
that → separate → forest
Serdon, who was born in the Philippines, grew up hearing stories about these creatures.
asserted
who → bear → creatures
She says seeing them brought to life on the big screen was thrilling and deeply personal.
asserted
them → say → screen
"The accuracy — I was very impressed," she told CBC News.
asserted
she → tell → News
"Sometimes it gets lost in translation, or even the pronunciation is never truly ... accurate.
asserted
pronunciation → lose → translation
But this film I think did a really great job."
asserted
I → think → job
The co-directors — Januel Mercado, who is Filipino American, and Joel Crawford — have wanted to tell a story about Filipino culture for years.
asserted
who → want → years
"We wanted to tell a Filipino story or make a movie set in the Philippines.
asserted
We → want → Philippines
We're like, 'Wow, they have this rich mythology,'" Mercado said.
asserted
Mercado → have → mythology
"And that's something we don't see that much."
asserted
we → see → ?
Crawford says the creatures in the film are also metaphors for the characters’ emotional struggles, pointing to the weredog as an example.
asserted
creatures → say → example
A Filipino weredog is a mythical creature that transforms from a human into a giant, fierce dog at night.
asserted
that → transform → night
It is considered a type of aswang, a predatory monster.
asserted
It → consider → aswang
The creature's involuntary transformation reflects the uncertainty of adolescence and the search for identity, Crawford says.
asserted
Crawford → reflect → identity
"In this coming-of-age story, we kind of treat it like puberty in a way," he said.
asserted
he → come → way
"You can use this amazingly specific creature, the weredog, to go, 'Is he a human? Is he a dog? Is he a weredog?'"
asserted
he → use → creature
With the support of his friends, the character eventually begins to understand who he is.
asserted
he → begin → friends
Mercado admits the film only scratches the surface of the Philippines' vast lore.
asserted
film → admit → lore
He recalls earlier drafts that were "overstuffed" with creatures, eventually prioritizing story over spectacle.
asserted
that → recall → spectacle
The filmmakers hope the movie will inspire audiences to seek out more Filipino stories and encourage other Filipino creators to bring their interpretations to global audiences.
asserted
movie → hope → audiences
Beyond the magic, the film captures the familiar rhythms of Filipino family life.
asserted
film → capture → life
One scene depicts a party where young children run around while relatives make sure everyone has enough food.
asserted
everyone → depict → food
Karaoke plays in the background, and titas and titos — aunts and uncles — trade jokes and observations.
asserted
titas → play → jokes
For many viewers, this offers a rare portrayal of Filipino culture that isn't defined by hardship, but by humour, music and food.
asserted
that → offer → humour
Serdon says she was moved to tears by a sharp sense of recognition within the first 15 minutes, particularly struck by a scene where Jo’s lola, or grandmother, comforts her after she receives bad news.
asserted
she → say → news
She says she could also connect to the friendship at the heart of the film.
uncertain
she → say → film
Like Raissa, many Filipinos leave their home country to go abroad for new opportunities, often leaving behind loved ones.
asserted
Filipinos → leave → ones
"In the Philippines, you grow up being in the same class as everyone until you graduate," she said.
asserted
she → grow → everyone
"I miss my friends who I grew up with in the Philippines, and I just relate to the friendship [in the film] so much that I wish I could have watched it with my childhood friends that are back home."
uncertain
that → miss → friends
…and 12 more, not listed.
The Aporia
