MANILA, Philippines??Ligtas Likas,? an animated feature produced by Creative Media and Film Society of the Philippines, will be aired in three animation satellite TV networks ? Hero, Animax and Knowledge Channel, CreaM president Imee Marcos announced last week.

Volunteers

?These channels volunteered to show the movie because they want to help promote original Filipino content,? said Marcos during the ?Ligtas Likas? premiere recently at the Shangri-La Cineplex in Mandaluyong City.

The 25-minute film is written by Marcos, Peter Mayshle and Ann Angala Shy. It is a collaboration of CreaM and Sen. Loren Legarda, author of the Ecological Waste Management Act.

?Ligtas Likas? is the story of a young girl named Maya and her friends Bobot, the compactor-robot, and Tatang, the nature worshipper. Together they fight enemies of the environment and ultimately preserve the rainforest and protect the ocean against pollution.

The film wants to motivate children to practice recycling and proper waste management, said Marcos. ?Today?s children are very involved in segregation. Whether we admit it or not, children are easier to teach than adults,? she pointed out.

According to Marcos, the Philippines is the first country to come up with an interactive package?an animated movie and a computer game with the same theme?for which China and Thailand have also taken an interest.

Free copies

?We brought this to Hong Kong Filmart [in March 2009]. There were a lot of inquiries,? Marcos told Inquirer Entertainment. ?People can?t believe that computer games, something that parents and teachers have learned to hate, could be used as an educational tool.?

Free copies of ?Ligtas Likas,? the interactive game and workbooks, will be given to 37 public elementary schools, said Legarda. ?It?s a complete educational kit which students can learn in one semester,? the senator explained.

Not easy

Marcos, who has been involved in animation and children?s show production since the 1970s, said making this movie was tough. ?Lack of budget was our first concern. It took a while for Loren to come up with enough funding. The second biggest problem was manpower. Since our art directors and writers are very talented, foreign companies hire them. Nawawalan kami ng tao. What we do now is just keep training young people.?

Animated movies on agriculture and climate change are already in the works, Legarda announced.

E-mail mcruz@inquirer.com.ph