The Missing (Ilocano: Iti Mapukpukaw) is a 2023 Philippine adult animatedscience fictionpsychological drama film co-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).[1][2]
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.[3][4] It was also the highest-grossing film among that year's Cinemalaya entries.[5]
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. He later finds 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.
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.[8][10]
The film currently has 100% positive review from 11 critics, with an average of 7.80/10, on the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes. Paul Enicola of The Asian Cut praised The Missing for highlighting "the vital role a healthy dose of support system can play in helping someone to navigate their journey toward vanquishing their personal monsters (or aliens, for that matter)." He also added that the film "speaks volumes to the potential of adult animated storytelling in the country, more so when there are a million more Philippine stories waiting to be told."[15]
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