The series centers around Heneral Tuna, a soldier and hero of Planet Mingming, who is tasked to visit Earth and observe its inhabitants in preparation for their planned invasion.
Filipino children will now have a new “grumpy cat” to watch on the internet and television as the National Commission for Culture and the Arts launches the animated series, “Heneral Tuna.”
The project is part of NCCA’s Filipino Values Program that seeks to determine the different values upheld across the country.
Their survey identified 19 shared values and focused on seven core values which include family, honesty, love for country, resilience, and faith.
To effectively showcase them, NCCA partnered with the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), Rocketsheep Studios (Saving Sally, Hayop Ka!), and the online platform Kumu to create the mini series Heneral Tuna.
The series centers around Heneral Tuna, a soldier and hero of Planet Mingming, who is tasked to visit Earth and observe its inhabitants in preparation for their planned invasion.
He crash-lands in the Philippines and is taken care of by a family. As he observes the household, his intention to conquer the planet slowly fades.
"The reason why we are utilizing powerful forms of art such as animation is because it's important for us to communicate the values contained in our programs in a subtle yet effective manner," said Marichu Tellano, deputy executive director of the NCCA.
On the side of the animators, Rocketsheep’s Avid Liongoren said that they were initially worried about the project knowing, that it was commissioned by a government agency which can be “very institutional”.
“I was surprised that the reason we were picked is because they wanted the opposite of all that and that was cool,” Liongoren said. He heads the project as the series director.
Other creatives who are part of the project include Rob Cham, Charlene Sawit-Esguerra, Kevin Raymundo of Tarantadong Kalbo, and Carlo Vergara of graphic novel Zsazsa Zaturnnah.
The seven episodes will be three-minute long and are voiced in Filipino with English subtitles.
Heneral Tuna will premiere on its official channels on Facebook, YouTube, Kumu, and the FDCP Channel starting Oct. 15.
The creators are also inviting viewers to interact with Heneral Tuna on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok.
Tags: #NationalCommissionForCultureandArts, #animatedseries, #HeneralTuna, #Filipinovalues