Illumination, the studio behind Despicable Me (2010), Minions (2015), and The Super Mario Bros Movie (2023), recently won the Golden Ticket award from the Annecy International Animation Festival,  where animated works from around the world are highlighted and celebrated with awards.

But how about our local Filipino animations studios? There are a lot of great and successful Filipino animators, but their services are often outsourced for foreign animation. When will they have their names in the history books?

If you grew up watching cartoons, chances are you’ve seen shows that are animated by Filipino artists. Iconic shows like Dexter’s Laboratory, DuckTales, Kim Possible, and so many more were animated by local animation studios. Filipino animators like Nelson Bohol, Ruben Aquino, Armand Serrano, Mars Cabrera, Josie Trinidad, Bobby Pontillas, Virginia Cruz-Santos, Ronnie del Carmen, Anthony Ocampo, and Cesar Velazquez have been responsible for many of our childhoods.

So why aren’t there more Filipino Animated Originals?

While there are many reasons, among them is security and funding. An animation studio is more likely to take a job from a big name company that can pay them well, and if their work turns out amazing, then that company will be inclined to work with them again in the future. That financial security is hard to give up, but it also means that animated films and shows that are truly Filipino, like Hayop Ka (2020), Saving Sally (2016), and Barangay 143 (2018-2021), are few and far between.

Against all odds, Hayop Ka! made a splash. On paper, it doesn’t seem like a film that would do well. It has cartoon animals as its main cast, something which is heavily associated with childrens shows, but it contains sex and violence. Its story is also very Pinoy drama, which isn’t a bad thing by any means, but it’s not the most original idea. But thanks to the perfect blend of two seemingly clashing factors, presented with beautiful animation and production, the film was a hit with Filipino audiences, and was even nominated for an award at Annecy.

But the success of our local animated works remains invisible to most, which is why our support factors a lot into getting more original Filipino animation made. They should be funded, and Pinoy stories, from the classics to our modern komiks, can pave the way to greater heights.

Even the creators of the Hayop Ka! said they wanted more Filipino animation in the limelight, and hoped that their film would go on to inspire studios and producers to make more.

The Filipino talent has been there for many decades, and it’s high time we create an animated project to make waves in festivals and in homes.