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Vahn Pascual wrote and directed The Gossips of Cicadidae, a charming and insightful short film. Shot like an old silent movie, the director made good use of the medium for what was likely a small budget effort about a teen’s life being changed forever when he meets a tikbalang* while working with his father.
Agapito is being trained to be a village healer like his father. His bears the marks on his face of his father’s violence and impatience. While in the jungle, Agapito becomes locked in a circular path around a large tree and catches a glimpse of a horse’s tail when he’s freed. After treating a patient and receiving an ominous message in wax, the father sends Agapito with a machete to cut down the tree. Startled by a tikbalang peeking behind the tree, Agapito runs, falling headlong down a hill. He awakens to a curious examination by the mythical creature.
I knew nothing about tikbalangs so they were new to me. This one was portrayed as linked to the tree, possibly a guardian? When a tree was killed so was the tikbalang attached to it. There was a message of forest conservation woven into the story or at least reverence for nature. But the most powerful message was that of acceptance. After both initially being startled, Agapito (“beloved” / “lovingkindness”) and the tikbalang fell in love**. Something the teen’s father and the villagers for that matter were none too keen about.
I found this romantic fairytale delightful and thoroughly enjoyed the silent film style. Who wouldn’t want someone who could show them the happy butterflies within them?
11 October 2026
*Tikbalang: A human-horse hybrid of sorts in Filipino folklore. In this film, the tikbalang had horse ears and shaggy long hair, and sported a horse’s tail in one scene.
**Spoilery comment below:
* I wondered about the rain falling at the ending. When rain pours out of a sunny sky it means a tikbalang is getting married. ^^
Agapito is being trained to be a village healer like his father. His bears the marks on his face of his father’s violence and impatience. While in the jungle, Agapito becomes locked in a circular path around a large tree and catches a glimpse of a horse’s tail when he’s freed. After treating a patient and receiving an ominous message in wax, the father sends Agapito with a machete to cut down the tree. Startled by a tikbalang peeking behind the tree, Agapito runs, falling headlong down a hill. He awakens to a curious examination by the mythical creature.
I knew nothing about tikbalangs so they were new to me. This one was portrayed as linked to the tree, possibly a guardian? When a tree was killed so was the tikbalang attached to it. There was a message of forest conservation woven into the story or at least reverence for nature. But the most powerful message was that of acceptance. After both initially being startled, Agapito (“beloved” / “lovingkindness”) and the tikbalang fell in love**. Something the teen’s father and the villagers for that matter were none too keen about.
I found this romantic fairytale delightful and thoroughly enjoyed the silent film style. Who wouldn’t want someone who could show them the happy butterflies within them?
11 October 2026
*Tikbalang: A human-horse hybrid of sorts in Filipino folklore. In this film, the tikbalang had horse ears and shaggy long hair, and sported a horse’s tail in one scene.
**Spoilery comment below:
* I wondered about the rain falling at the ending. When rain pours out of a sunny sky it means a tikbalang is getting married. ^^
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