‘It was great to see Aspins watching intently and it amused us to hear some dogs bark – as if in agreement – at that point in the film where Runo also barked and tilted his head.’
For the love of Aspins: Runo student filmmakers Lysa Catolico (left) and Jazmine Pateña with Aspin Burrito, the inspiration for the movie.
The animated film Runo has no dialogue.
The film actually starts off looking like it was going to be a run-of-the-mill film about a dog. But, in a flash, Runo, the Aspin, makes his way out the familiar looking living room and out of the house.
The film takes the viewer to an apocalyptic landscape of deserted streets and monstrous shadows eating the carcass of the dead. The audience realizes at this point that this is not a regular film about a dog that was abandoned.
An extraordinary disaster has happened and the next few minutes of the film give us a sense that everything in the very Filipino city landscape – the empty flyovers, signages hanging awry — so it makes us very invested in what happens to this little dog who constantly has flashbacks of happy memories of the person who took care of her.
Although Runo is hungry, it is not just her rumbling stomach that bothers her — she wants to know what happened to her owner. There are no spoilers in this article, but the unconventional ending validates what dog owners (pet parents) have always known: Dogs even in a future world where all hope may be lost, show us that they will be our constant companions because they represent the link that cannot be destroyed.
Movie day!
Student filmmakers Lysa Catolico and Jazmine Pateña deserve the Cinemalaya Best Screenplay award and the 49th Gawad Urian Best Short Film nomination that they received. The two fourth year students of BS Animation course in iAcademy Yakal Campus created the film based on their love of dogs. They were already working on Runo for a pitching workshop when they got selected as a grantee for the QCShorts Program in 2025. From there, they were able to gather a team of Filipino artists and animators to help bring the film to life.
In celebration of the National Aspin Day (NAD), The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) sought permission to have a special screening last 23 August at Cinema 1. “We were intrigued that the main character in this animated film was an Aspin,” said PAWS director Rich Ilustre. “It was a perfect film for Aspins and their owners to watch.”
The day became another historic first – the first animated film with an Aspin main character, created by Filipino filmmakers who loved dogs was shown in Ayala Veris North cinema with an all-Aspin and human audience.
“It was great to see Aspins watching intently and it amused us to hear some dogs bark — as if in agreement — at that point in the film where Runo also barked and tilted his head,” said Anna Cabrera, PAWS executive director.
Aspin owners enjoyed the experience of watching a movie with their furbabies in tow. Usually, they are not welcome in pet-friendly spaces, but that day proved that Aspins are well-behaved and deserve to be in pet-friendly screenings as well. Making it more special was that humans got popcorn and Aspins had doggie treats made by PAWS volunteer Rona Albarillo.
