‘Lisik: Origin Point’ is different from ‘All of Us Are Dead,’ director says

The cast of the zombie movie “Lisik: Origin Point” with director John Renz Cahilig (second from left) and executive producer Dominic Orjalo (center). Image: Hannah Mallorca/INQUIRER.net

While “Lisik: Origin Point” takes place during the height of a zombie outbreak in school, director and co-writer John Renz Cahilig said it is different from the storyline of the hit South Korean series “All of Us Are Dead.”

The upcoming film takes place in a school where a professor’s accidental experiment became the cause of a zombie outbreak. This led to the unraveling of the students’ and faculty members’ normal lives as the survivors fought to stay alive amid the tragedy.

“All of Us Are Dead,” on the other hand, tells the story of trapped students determined to flee Hyosan High School after it became ground zero of a zombie outbreak. It also introduced hambies, a half-human and half-zombie hybrid, although its cause behind turning into such remains unknown.

“Actually, coincidences lang ‘yun (those are just coincidences),” Cahilig said during a press conference when asked about the comparisons of “Lisik: Origin Point” and “All of Us Are Dead.”

“Sa ‘All of Us Are Dead’ kasi, ‘yung teacher d’un is galit. His experiment is for revenge. Sa amin naman, it’s for the greater good. It just went south. I’ve been hearing that comparison for quite a while and I don’t blame the people. ‘Yung setting kasi namin and story about zombies is set sa school. Pero talagang plano na namin siya even before nag-pop ‘yung All of Us Are Dead,’” he continued.

(In “All of Us Are Dead,” the teacher’s experiment is for revenge. Ours is about the greater good. It just went south. I’ve been hearing that comparison for quite a while and I don’t blame the people. The setting of our zombie film is in school, but it’s been our plan before “All of Us Are Dead” came out.)

Cahilig reiterated that while the film’s setting is “similar” to the hit series, one of the qualities that sets it apart is that its have their “own stories to tell.”

“Very unique ang characters namin (Our characters are very unique). It’s not like ‘All of Us Are Dead,’ because the characters are very chaotic although they have their own stories,” he said. “It’s a similar setting, but it’s not the same. It’s not a copycat. It’s not really inspired because I’m inspired from different movies [with] apocalyptic themes.”

The cast of “Lisik: Origin Point” with executive producer Dominic Orjalo and director and co-writer John Renz Cahilig. Image: Handout photo

The filmmaker also explained that the experiment that became the cause of the school’s zombie outbreak was made by accident, and how the students’ relationships will change due to the tragedy.

“Tungkol siya sa mga estudyante and how their normal lives were disrupted. You can see ‘yung relationships nila sa isa’t isa, and paano sila nabubuhay. Sino-sino ang magkakaibigan, sino ang magkagrupo, and the story suddenly the world goes upside down,” he said.

(It’s about the students and how their normal lives were disrupted. You can see their relationships, how they live, who are their friends, and who are their friend groups, until the world suddenly goes upside down.)

Creating the film

According to executive producer Dominic Orjalo, “Lisik: Origin Point” — which was filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic — includes elements of artificial intelligence (AI), CGI, and visual effects that were “never-before-seen” in Philippine cinema.

Touching on the purpose of “Lisik: Origin Point,” Orjalo pointed out that the film’s storyline is what “millennials and the young at heart” wanted to see while saying that it’s meant to boost the theme.

“Unang-una, ‘yun ang gusto ng mga kabataan, ang mga milennials, mga young at heart, mga zombie[-themed movies and series] sa Pilipinas, predictable eh. Parang normal lang siya,” he said. “Unlike rito, gumamit kami ng artificial intelligence, CGI, visual effects, at kakaiba ang aming stunts,” he said.

(First of all, this is what the younger generation, millennials, and young-at-heart want — zombie-themed movies and series in the Philippines. Because it’s normal and usually predictable. Unlike in this one, we used artificial intelligence, CGI, and visual effects, and our stunts are different.)

When asked how the film will “stay human” despite the use of AI, Cahilig clarified that AI was only used to help boost its quality.

“Hindi siya very extensive (It’s not extensive). We just use the help of AI to make the quality better. The movie is very human in itself. For me, creating films with AI is not usable, and [this film] still has a very human element to it. It was used to enhance not to create,” he said.

“The film is very exciting. I’m very confident that if people will give it a chance to see it, they will definitely enjoy it. Our scenes are very emotional. They are not mediocre. Our scenes are emotional, action-packed, and intense,” he further added.

The cast of “Lisik: Origin Point” is made of up-and-coming and veteran actors, with Nika De Guzman, Grace Rosas Tayo, Jeremiah Allera, and Rosemarie Smith as the leads. It will be released on February 19.