The Missing (2023 film)

The Missing (Iti Mapukpukaw) is a 2023 Philippine adult animated science fiction film written and directed by Carl Joseph Papa. Carlo Aquino portrays Eric, an animator without a mouth prompted by his mother to visit his uncle, which leads to the return of an alien he encountered in childhood intent on taking him away from Earth. It also stars Gio Gahol and Dolly de Leon. Employing rotoscope and traditional animation, The Missing is Papa's third feature-length animated film, after Manang Biring (2015), and Paglisan (2018).

The Missing premiered in competition at the 19th Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival on 5 August 2023, winning Best Film, Best Supporting Actress (de Leon), and the NETPAC award. It is Cinemalaya's first feature-length animated film. It was also the highest-grossing film among that year's Cinemalaya entries.

On 29 September 2023, the Film Development Council of the Philippines and the Film Academy of the Philippines announced The Missing as the Philippine entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 96th Academy Awards, making it the first animated film submitted by the Philippines.

Synopsis
Eric lives a fairly normal life working as an animator in the Philippines. He has a nice but dirty apartment, a well-paying job, and a boy he likes. However, one thing that stands out about Eric is that he literally has no mouth.

One day, he receives a call from his mother Rosalinda, asking him to go see his apparently lost uncle. Only to find out that his uncle has been dead for days. While he is still in shock, a familiar alien arrives who wants to take Eric away from Earth. This event will cause him to remember his past and unravel his memories.

Cast

 * Carlo Aquino as Eric
 * Gio Gahol as Carlo
 * Dolly de Leon as Rosalinda

Production
The production received funding from the Cinemalaya Foundation and was supported by government agencies CreatePH Films, Film Development Council of the Philippines, and the National Commission on Culture and the Arts. It also received grant from Thai financier Purin Pictures. Iti Mapukpukaw is produced by Project 8 Projects, and is co-produced by GMA News and Public Affairs and Terminal Six Post.

Iti Mapukpukaw utilizes rotoscope animation technique. The film was shot with the actors in four days, while the animation works took one year and seven months involving a team of 90 animators. The filming of Carlo Aquino, Gio Gahol, and Dolly de Leon commenced on November 30, 2022.

Release
The Missing was premiered at the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival on 5 August 2023 where it won Best Film and a special NETPAC award. It had its international premiere at the 2024 Palm Springs International Film Festival on 7 January 2024 in California, United States. The film will play at the 28th Fantasia International Film Festival on August 2, 2024.

Reception
The film currently has 100% positive review from 11 critics, with an average of 7.80/10, on the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes.