FORGOTTEN ISLAND: A FANTASTIC JOURNEY!

                                                                         FORGOTTEN ISLAND: A MUST SEE ANNIMATED FEATURE!

With: Joel Crawford (Writer/Director) Januel P. Mercado (Writer/Director) H.E.R. (Jo), Liza Soberano (Raissa), Dave Franco (Raww), Jenny Slate (Batiba) and Manny Jacinto (Bungi) 

Go and catch this amazing, breathtaking, charming movie, now!

Official trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8RHqN93qfo

What a press conference this was! Check this out!

DREW TAYLOR: My name is Drew Taylor, and I write about animation for The Wrap, and I just wanted to introduce our amazing group here. We have Januel Mercado. How are, how are you, sir? 

JANUEL MERCADO: Shooting guard. 

DREW TAYLOR: Good. Shooting guard. Our forward, Joel Crawford. How you doing? 

JOEL CRAWFORD: I was... I'm towel boy. 

DREW TAYLOR: Okay. What, what position do you wanna play? 

H.E.R.: I don't know. Just, just pass me the ball, I’ll shoot [INAUDIBLE]. 

DREW TAYLOR: Liza Soberano, Dave Franco, Jenny Slate, Manny Jacinto, how you guys doing? 

MANNY JACINTO: Good. 

DREW TAYLOR: Um, we're gonna get questions from them. We've got questions coming in from around the world. But, I thought maybe you could start off, maybe the gentlemen could start off with talking about where this project came from, and then how you cast these amazing performers. 

JANUEL MERCADO: Oh, yeah, we have the best cast. But... yeah, this project you know, we... it's easiest for you to talk about because this is our, our love letter to the Philippines, to our families, and to friendship, and the value of memories. So, those are kind of the key ingredients that, that we were just... We joke around, it's like, that we threw together in a pot, like a pot of adobo, to create this amazing stew of a movie, you know, that, that's very personal to us. And yeah, Joel, like, talk about the, the best cast in the world that we have! 

JOEL CRAWFORD: Oh, these guys? Yeah, well, this, this movie... every, every character throughout this movie is a, a fantastic exploration of, of friendship, of connections, and memories. And so, for us, it was so important in the casting to make sure just that authentically, beyond just the amazing talent as, as actors and actresses that authentically, I guess, you can all, you guys could all identify something that was special and unique in the performance. And, every single first record we had, we were, like, blown away. And Januel and I have no poker face. So you guys all see it, and we're like, “Yes!” Um, but we are just so, so touched and grateful for all of you guys for just bringing so much of yourselves to this movie. 

JANUEL MERCADO: Yeah, everyone brought it, like... like left everything on the court, to use basketball, sports, sports. 

DREW TAYLOR: Uh, do you guys want to talk about what drew you to the project as performers? 

H.E.R.: Ah, man the fact that it was Filipino. But also, beyond the, the things that are in the movie, just meeting Joel and Januel was enough for me to be like, “I want to be a part of whatever they're making,” because clearly, they put their hearts into it, and they're best friends, and you can just feel their passion and their joy and love for animation, and the culture. So it was, like, two of my, the most important things to me, you know, the, the culture I grew up in and come from, and animation. 

LIZA SOBERANO: Um, for me, the same thing as Gabby, it's the fact that it's a Filipino culture-centered story. Um, but also in particular, just the, the journey that Raissa has to go through is something that I really resonated with, because I was also going through the same thing in my personal life when I got the script. And so, I immediately knew that, like, I had, like, a personal connection to the story. And also, the fact that it's a DreamWorks Animation. 

DAVE FRANCO: Uh, the first time I, I met the guys, they were pitching me this movie by, by referencing, you know, the structure of The Hangover and the, the friendship themes in Superbad, and other themes from the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. And I was like, “These are three of my favorite films ever.” And I just immediately recognized, like, our sensibilities were very similar, and I was just excited to, to dive in and, and just do something that felt, not only just wildly unique, but I, I just like... I don't know, from the beginning it was like, “Oh, this is this is the first big- budget studio film that's focused on Filipino culture.” And, like, that in of itself is, like, a huge, hugely important thing. And so just to be a small part of that feel like, was, was a no-brainer to me. 

JENNY SLATE: Hi. Good morning. Yeah, we did it. [LAUGHS] Oh, it's so nice to say good morning. Don't, don't skimp on it. Well, I remember meeting Joel and Januel a few years ago when our films were nom-, I mean, not to, not to brag, but nominated for Oscars. We did not win, neither one of us won. We did not, no [OVERLAPPING] 

JANUEL MERCADO: But you got the Annie. You got the Annie. 

JENNY SLATE: Oh, that's true... But seeing, seeing these guys around and being like, “Wow, what, what nice people.” And when... It's sort of similar to Dave's experience when they came with the project, I was really excited by the fact that the story was completely relatable in terms of, like, a human experience, but was not reiterative. There was not one thing that was like, “Oh, it's like that.” It was a completely new narrative landscape, and one that also really involves, like, such a, like, high pigment emotion and emotional expression. And that's the kinda thing that really draws me in, and, and if you're a fan of animation the way that I am, just a hardcore fan, love it so much, it's really exciting to be part of truly original stories. And, and also then to have them be like, “And you play kind of a weirdo,” it's like, “Yes, I, I think I can do that for you.” 

MANNY JACINTO: Good morning. Um, yeah, I had my doubts at first. Um, but Joel and Januel, they actually gave a great presentation when they pitched this movie to me. It was, they had taglines and everything, and they were so... it, it's like I was hanging out with my old high school friends, and it wasn't like work whatsoever. Um, yeah, and it was just super fun. It was like the first time I was in a meeting, I didn't feel nervous, and they just welcomed me with open arms. And, I just knew that from that energy that, that it was gonna be a good time. So yeah, that, that's what hooked me in. 

JOEL CRAWFORD: And we asked you to play a giant demon! 

MANNY JACINTO: Giant demon. Yeah, that's, that was the other hook, yeah. Couldn't say no. 

DREW TAYLOR: You looked at them and you say, “Giant demon.” Does anyone have a question? This young, this lady in the front row, and I'll... Hi, how are you? 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Congratulations, amazing movie. And I was so proud, I brought my daughter last night, a animator, and she was... she said, “It is 

the best movie I've ever seen.” (Aw...) So for, for you Januel and Joel, how did you manage to get all the Filipino nuances, the mythology, you know, the little everything, the mythology, the culture, into one film? How, how challenging was that? 

JANUEL MERCADO: Oh, that... thank you for noticing all the detail. And, well, we're, we're aware too, like, that this mythology is, is so rich that we barely scratched the surface of it, so we, we chose, like, our favorites, like the ones that families have told us about, the, the most popular one, the Manananggal, and the, the demon vampire, the Duende, and these are the stories that, like, me and Joel were hearing from, like, our families. And then, with just all the detail of the culture was easy, because it's just coming from our authentic experience and we just knew, it's like, I'm just gonna, you know, write my family and all those parties that I've been through all my life.

 

JANUEL MERCADO: And again, we always say, you know, there's that adage of “write what you know,” but we write who we know. It, it's what you know and, and who you know, so it's our families and, you know, this, this amazing, this cultural experience we've lived. 

JOEL CRAWFORD: And I think, I was very aware [CLEARS THROAT] coming into the project, that I'm like, I am not Filipino, I have had the, the pleasure throughout my life of being welp-, welcomed in by family friends and then marrying into a Filipino family. Um, but in a way, as we were going through the mythology, there was, like, a tone we wanted to make sure we captured that we... although this is a celebration of Filipino culture, we wanted to make sure that the feeling of the movie is how it feels to be at, like, a Filipino party, which is, if you're there, you're family. If you know nothing about the culture, you feel the love, you feel the warmth, and that was a, a big part of the story.

 

JOEL CRAWFORD: We wanted it to feel accessible to everyone and to be... we always called it a, “a coming of all ages story,” a story for everybody that can relate to friendship and, and memories and, and the, kind of the important people in our lives. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Tayana! (Tayana!) Uh, some of the questions, but since we, we have Manny here, this is a question for you. 

MANNY JACINTO: You have so many other people you can pick on, please. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Uh, Manny, hope you have fun with this. Dave said at the ComicCon that he's pleasantly surprised that his character, Raww, has become a sex symbol online. Manny, what about your character? I mean, have you seen Dave in real life? Uh, Bungi or actually, Bungi or Banje, as they say in the film, but actually in Tagalog it's Bungi. (Yeah, Bungi) What about do you think your character will become a sex symbol, too? And, and also explain that Bungi actually means missing a tooth or a teeth in Tagalog. 

MANNY JACINTO: Yeah. Um... 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: And Dave, if you can also comment... 

DAVE FRANCO: Great question. 

MANNY JACINTO: Fantastic question. Uh... 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: This question is for, first for Januel and then to Manny. Um, you've mentioned how the character of Jo was inspired by your sister Jo, who's right here. Um, could you mention the ways in which she inspired you? 

JANUEL MERCADO: Oh, yeah. I mean, I grew up with her, she's one of my closest friends. Um, she... And ac-, actually, like, you know, with Jo's wife Cathy, and then Jo, like there's also, like, traits that both Jo and Raissa, that they both inhabit. So, even though Jo is Jo, she is also, like, the life of the party. She, she also has, like, this integrity and this, like, producer mindset like Raissa as well. But aesthetically, like the overalls, like the hair, the, the scrunchie, that was, that was like my sister Jo, like, quintessential '90s Jo, like going in, like growing up.

 

JANUEL MERCADO: And then there's, like, little, little details as well where it's like she, Jo has a scar on her face, my sister has a scar on her face cause a, a puppy bit her in the face when she lift, lifted it up, like against its will when she was a kid. Uh, there's all kinds of lovely, like, details again where for just, like, homage to our, our family. The, the, the crown that Jo wears with the emerald, that, that's my sister's birthstone cause she's in, she's born in May, she's a Taurus. So, there's all kinds of stuff like that that we put in just to honor, like, our families. Yeah. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Um, and Manny, you know, hello. Tiyanak Bungi is, Bungi is, is a very fun character. Um, you grew up in Canada. I, I wanted to ask you, how did your Pinoy parents, my Facebook friends... how did your parents expose you to the culture? 

MANNY JACINTO: Oh... they, they still talked sp-, spoke in Tagalog at home, and obviously all the, the food that my mom cooked was always Filipino. I'd always come home from school eating adobo or kare kare or sinigang, and it all, it always made me feel connected to the culture that way. Um, but also as I've... Yeah, as I grew up, I, I definitely appreciated it more and more. And, as you know, you talk to them on Facebook, and they, they're big supporters and fans, so just having them by my side has been, has meant the world. Um, but yeah, they've always made sure to, to keep a, a strong connection to the Philippines, especially since I have family still there. But yeah, they always made it feel, still like I'm a part of the Filipino culture at home. Salamat. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Bonjour, Henry. Lisa and Gabby, the question is for you. What do you hope people have been to many countries around the world, have never been to the Philippines. It's not for the kids, it's for the parents who are gonna bring their kids to watch the, the, the movie. What do you hope they're gonna learn from the Philippines culture that seems to be obvious maybe for all of you in the movie, but was not obvious to me? You know, there's probably a part of it when I watch Japanese movie, when I watch Chinese movie, I take something from them. What about from, from this animation? Is there something very specific that you can talk to us about? 

H.E.R.: Oh, that's such a great question. I mean, there's so many specific things in the movie. Um, but as like a parent, hmm... I have to think about this. I mean, honestly, like, I love Lola's relationship with Joe and Raissa, and how like she just encourages them to, like experience adventure and be curious and like, don't go against the grain. Like, be yourself and, and believe in something. And I hope that parents, you know, Filipino or not, will take that from this story and how, yeah, how anybody can be family. Like, I think that's a big part of Filipino culture. And yeah, I mean we... 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: What about the locations? You know, I went to Thailand many times, Bali, Hong Kong, Chi-, Japan, so many places. I've never been to the Philippines. Watching the animation, and I know it's not re-, real movie, it's animation, I'm like, they must have gorgeous locations. I mean, the food looks so interesting. 

H.E.R.: Oh, yeah. Oh my gosh. I mean, the food is amazing. The karaoke, like what else? There's so much. 

LIZA SOBERANO: The islands. Like you had, yeah, Palawan, Siargao, there's so many beautiful tropical islands in the Philippines that are perfect for whatever type of traveler you are, whether you're adventurous or you just want to chill. Um, but I think the biggest thing for me personally that, like parents can take away that I think they can instill in their children is, the Filipino heart and love for hospitality. I think, no matter where Filipinos go in the world, we're able to like bring people in, whether they're family or not, invite them and make them feel at home and feel like they are part of the family. And yeah, the Filipino heart is just so beautiful and so nurturing and hospitable. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Merci. Thank you. 

DREW TAYLOR: Liza, we've got a question from, from online. This is from Israel. And it said that you have talked about how you drew on your own experience of leaving the Philippines. And, what experience, when you were recording some of the more emotional scenes between Raissa and Joe did you draw on? 

LIZA SOBERANO: Oh, well, like I said earlier, my personal life, at the time when I had gotten the audition was very parallel to what Jo was I mean, Raissa was going through at the time. She was about to le-, I mean, she's about to leave the Philippines to go to college in America. And I was, just left the Philippines and migrated back to America to pursue a career over here. So, I think that, like, connection to understanding what it takes to leave home to pursue your dream, but also being scared that you might feel a disconnect with the people that you've left behind. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Hi, I'm Izumi from Hollywood News Wire. It's too early for me, let me read my questions. It's, it's for Gabby Ho. Um, I'm a Shinto priest, and yesterday I performed a purification ceremony for one of my closest friends who has been going through a series of unfortunate things since last year. So, during the ceremony, I found myself remembering how we first met and many of the memories we share over the years. Watching this film at last night such, the timing, I found it deeply moving, and it really resonate with me. So, how did you first meet your close friend, and what memory of your friends come to mind most strongly right now? And what kind of time have you spent together recently? 

H.E.R.: Oh, I love that question. Um, and I love that you thought about your friend, and I hope things get better. Um, but it's so funny because, not to give away the movie, and I'm sure you guys have seen it, but, the way that Jo and Raissa become friends, Raissa kind of defends Jo in her belief in the Manananggal and this magical island. And me and my best friend, actually, I just remembered this recently. When we became best friends, we were in the third grade. I was eight years old, she was eight years old. And we were, like, huge fans of, like, the Cheetah Girls, you know, the Disney group. And we formed our own Cheetah Girls. And one of the girls that I was really good friends with at the time was trying to kick out my then, you know, we were strangers then, was trying to kick out one girl out of the group. And I was like, “Hey, like, she can be a Cheetah Girl, too!”

 

H.E.R.: And we became best friends ever since then. Yeah, so since we were eight years old, I fought for her, and, and she's been fighting for me throughout the years. And similarly to you, she's kind of like my guardian angel. Every time I've gone through something, like, crazy or intense in my life, she just so happens to be there. And it's this really magical, like, oh, we're supposed to be best friends kind of a thing that keeps happening. And yeah, it's been like 20 years, and we've been best friends. And more recently, we both lived in the same city, so we both live in New York, and I get to see her more often, and it's really nice. We're making new memories all the time now. 

DREW TAYLOR: That, that's a great jumping-off point for a question from Poland. So, they say, “The island takes memories away from its characters. Was there a memory from your own life or a friendship that unexpectedly found its way into your performance or into the films?” This is for everyone. Maybe it wasn't a great jumping-off point. Franco, you wanna pass? 

DAVE FRANCO: It's just a very heady, existential question. Um, give me a minute. Give me a minute. 

LIZA SOBERANO: I think for me it's, like, the scene where Lola, like the montage of Lola, Jo, and Raissa. Like, I grew up with my grandparents, they adopted me. And so, like, I just remember growing up and hearing all these stories, them telling me about the manananggal and all these mythological creatures, cause that was the only way that they could share my culture with me, too, growing up. And so I have these very vivid memories of me and my brother at my Lola's house while we were kind of, like, babysitting her, cause she was at a care home at the time. And her scaring us, telling us all these stories of, like, duwende, and aswang, and manananggal. And me and my brother, like, holding flashlights and, like, scaring her, and then her, like, getting her chinelas and throwing it at... her slipper and throwing it at us.Um, but yeah, that's what I would... Like, when we were recording those scenes, or, like, when I got to see it, that's what I remembered. 

DREW TAYLOR: Anybody else? Jenny? 

JENNY SLATE: Well, and again, like not wanting to give too much away, but Batiba being both friendly and a-afraid of the world at large actually is kind of a central experience for me. Like, not at all being perceived as shy or, or you know, trying to feel, feel out the room, like, like, really, maybe a bit socially anxious, but also coming off as like friendly and peppy, both things happening at once. Um, but especially, you know, there's a moment where Batiba receives a BRB sticky note. And like, I remember leaving a, a recording just thinking about like my middle school experiences and like, you know, being the, the girl with, like not just braces, but insane braces, like, weird invented braces just for me that were so embarrassing.

 

JENNY SLATE: And like being the one that like, “You know, just wait there. We'll be right back,” and like people, you know, like kinda like getting ditched as a seventh grader, and just like, oh, like that! It's not just embarrassing. Like, in the moment, you take it as, like a definitive gesture. Like, maybe this is something that will repeatedly happen to me. And, it can also create, I think, behaviors in a person, where like if you believe in the, the worst thing that occurs as a characteristic of your experience, it can also create like maybe your worst behaviors. And, like I really thought a lot about that. 

JENNY SLATE: I, I think about that for my own daughter, watching the movie is, like, like look back at what, at who you are and what you have and like what your memories are and decide how to behave based on like what, what you take in. But anyway, so I think, I think those, those moments of Batiba really feeling her aloneness where, you know, just tiny little spikes of agony for me. No, but... but they, yeah, I'm still connected to those moments and, and I liked being able to add that to the performance because it also helps Batiba be a, a well-rounded creature. 

JOEL CRAWFORD: I actually remember you... we improvise a lot with the whole cast, and it's funny Jenny, hearing you say that because there was, we always had too many options in editorial, where there was one of your replies to being ditched, and you're like, “Oh, not again.” And like, now hearing that, 'cause it was, the read is so funny. But there's so much tragedy underneath that, and that was the gift of [OVERLAPPING] 

JANUEL MERCADO: It's the essence of the character. 

JOEL CRAWFORD: Yes! And it's comedy, but it's character. 

JANUEL MERCADO: For those who saw the movie, it's, when the girls ditch Jenny's characters making leche flan and turns around. And the, the line that you improv-ed, you were like, “This is such a specific humiliation.” And we fought to keep it in. It's like, so much good stuff. 

DREW TAYLOR: Dave, you got something? 

DAVE FRANCO: Yeah, yeah. Jen-, Jenny, Jenny helped kind of trigger something in me. Uh, no, I think... No, no, in a good way. I think whether I like to believe it or not, I, I am very similar to the character of Raww. And I think, I think in certain scenarios, you know, I can maybe come off more confident than I naturally am, like in press. And I, I think, I think, like I, I have this, this hunger of just like, or just this real strong loyalty to the people I love. And, you know, deep down I am an introvert, and what I really wanna do is just be in, be at home in my bed with my wife and my two cats watching a documentary.

 

DAVE FRANCO: Uh, but like I, I've just kind of created this like small circle of like really, really close people in my life. Uh, it's part of the reason why I'm not on social media, is just like, it scares me. I don't want to invite like negativity into my life from strangers on a daily basis. And so, I've like just kind of felt comfortable in my own little bubble, surrounded by people that I love and love me and really care about me. So I think that is very Raww- like. And also, I grew up in northern California where we said “hella” a lot growing up. And we threw that in there a little bit too. 

JANUEL MERCADO: There's a good amount of Bay Area representation (Yes!) in this cast here. Um, that, that was a specific thing that we brought. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER: I'm writing for Australia, and I loved how much INXS music you had in this. Tell me about that. 

JOEL CRAWFORD: Yeah, so, so this movie being this kind of, you know, trip down memory lane with music, '80s and '90s nostalgia, some songs we found in the process over the last couple years of making this, but, in particular the INXS song Never Tear Us Apart, Januel and I found very early on, actually in 2020 we were finishing Croods: A New Age, and I was driving back from the... we were, just finished mixing the movie for Croods at Skywalker Ranch, and I was driving back down. And Jan and I had been working this story out, and specifically, with these things of, like, these two friends separated, and the bond, and, and Raissa having these wings. JOEL CRAWFORD: And, and I was listening to Never Tear Us Apart driving, and I'm like, I know this is a love song, but this song is describing to a T the friendship of the girls. And so we wrote that into the script from, you know, six years ago. And, and even just we, we kept going, we know this will... 

JANUEL MERCADO: It's the heart of the movie. 

JOEL CRAWFORD: It's, yeah. And then, and now to have an INXS version of the song in, in the movie, and then there's a reprisal sung by Sofia Laforteza that is just [OVERLAPPING] is just so beautiful. And so yeah, that's a, that's a special one for us. 

JANUEL MERCADO: And that, that line you're talking about, too, with, like, a, as you, you know, you dive into something and it's becoming more organically, like, like, infused with the movie. That, that specific lyric, “Because we all have wings, but some of us don't know why.” I remember we were like, man, this is so deep, cause, as it relates to friendship because, like, we all have wings, but do we all know, like, who's given you those wings? And that, that is what Jo and Raissa's friendship is, that they've allowed each other to, to, to fly and, and be safe, and to be who they are. So throughout... 

DAVE FRANCO: She literally has wings in the movie. 

JANUEL MERCADO: And she literally has wings in it. Yes. It’s perfect. It's like, you know, it's like poetry, it rhymes. 

DREW TAYLOR: Speaking of songs, I've heard that Liza, you and Gabby's song has, has dropped today. 

DREW TAYLOR: Check it out, guys! Absolute banger. 

JANUEL MERCADO: Absolute banger. 

DREW TAYLOR: Do you wanna talk about it? What can you tell us about it? 

H.E.R.: Oh man, I mean, it’s so exciting, I mean I don't know where to begin. It was, it was a fun prompt, first of all, because it was like, oh, it has to be a celebration of friendship. And, you know, the movie's set in the '90s, so it's gotta have the vibe of, you know, the late '80s, early '90s. And so, we're listening to a lot of Tears for Fears and When in Rome and, you know, INXS and just, like, trying to nail the vibe. And I thought, like, why not write a song that is Jo and Raissa speaking to each other to really just bring it home? And Liza killed it. We had so much fun in the studio recording and shooting the video. And yeah, I, I thought also, like, the video should be an extension of the film and the beauty of the Philippines in the film bringing that to real life through our music video. 

DREW TAYLOR: Liza, you wanna say anything? 

LIZA SOBERANO: I just had a wonderful time being part of this. I mean, Gabby and Ryan Tedder worked on the song together, and then Gabby, I was, like, so touched when Gabby messaged me and asked me if I'd be open to coming onto the song. And the whole time I was recording I was just, like, pinching myself cause I was like, “What am I even doing here? Like, what am I doing witnessing Gabby and Ryan Tedder just make art?” But I was just, I felt very honored and blessed to be part of the song. 

DREW TAYLOR: That is gonna be the last question for this press conference, guys. You did it! You made it through! Thank you all so much!