Rossana Hwang, who wrote, directed and produced the Filipino animated feature Plump Blossom, is answering online posts that dismiss the film as AI slop. The picture, made with AI assistance, was set to open in Philippine cinemas on September 23, and Hwang told Journal News she understands the doubt but thinks people are mixing up machine-generated content with storytelling.
Her case is that every decision that makes the film a story was taken by people. AI did not choose to follow Ruo Hua, a food-loving princess who would rather sneak into the palace kitchen than behave as expected, nor who she loves, what she fights for or what she gives up. Script, characters, dialogue, voices, music, editing and direction all remained human choices, and AI was one of the tools used to put them on screen, mainly on the visual side.
She sees that as good news for Filipino filmmakers, who rarely have Hollywood-scale sets, large animation crews or big effects budgets, and says the tools let local storytellers attempt worlds that were out of reach before. She is also clear that cheaper tools do not make better films: if everyone ends up with the same software, what sets creators apart will still be imagination, taste, culture, humour and having something to say. She is not asking audiences to forgive the film's flaws because of AI, only to watch it and judge it for themselves.
The story is drawn from the Tang Dynasty, including its poetry, and grew out of a 2015 trip to China where seeing plump women set the idea turning in Hwang's head; she began asking about animation in 2022. She admits to deliberate liberties, such as a dog breed from the much later Qing Dynasty, arguing that family, love and goodness belong to no period. She hopes the film, though Chinese-inspired, can open a door to that culture for viewers anywhere.
It is her third film, after The Women of Tonta Club in 2021 and Isang Komedya sa Langit in 2025. Paulina Yu, a Chinese-Filipino singer who has performed in The King and I on several continents, and Paeng Sudayan sing its two love songs; Audie Gemora voices the emperor, two pastors from Hwang's church voice the dog and the bird, and Francis Hermoso was chief animator. Hwang plans screenings around the country and a Filipino dub for schools.
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