Director’s Statement

With NONO, I hope to tell a story about a little boy who thrives and shines for being different. Toto, our main character, is after all, a boy with a harelip.

Instead of compounding the subject of physical malformation [harelip/cleft lip] in the expected dreary, brooding narrative I hope to provide a bright, whimsical but equally meaningful alternative that celebrates this particular physical condition as a source of someone’s strength and inspiration rather than an antecedent to one’s misery.

I also wish to articulate the essence of communication and language – spoken or otherwise, utilizing the conflict of vernacular incongruity latent in a country of multiple dialect and multi-lingual influences such as the Philippines. To add to this mix is our character’s very particular brand of speech which, though can, easily, be dismissed as mere mal-articulation, can also be cited as a distinct, “foreign language” that requires to be learned and understood.

The much celebrated local Linggo ng Wika celebration [National Language Week Celebration in August] in the Philippines will be on the backdrop of the story – a fitting regional and symbolic accent to the narrative.

More than anything else, Nono will be a story about family – about a community that directly or indirectly molds the life of a little boy who possesses a willful, generous spirit.

I hope to make a colorful tapestry of a film that is brimming with sunshine and has plenty of heart.

- ROMMEL TOLENTINO AKA MILO