After almost a decade since its official release, Saving Sally is finally available to watch for free on YouTube.  

Director Avid Liongoren shared the excitement of this milestone on Instagram: “Saving Sally is now free on Youtube,” he began.  “This film took our team 12 youth sucking years to make. It had a theatrical run in the Philippines back in 2016 then did international festivals in 2017. Distribution is a tricky thing to manage & it was on Netflix for 5 years but only in selected areas. We are glad that it is now free to be seen by anyone & anywhere. <3” 

The film centers on Marty, a budding comic book artist who secretly harbors feelings for his closest friend, Sally, a gifted gadget designer. However, love is never easy. While Marty spends most of his time daydreaming about heroic escapades he never actually goes on, Sally has monsters for parents and an odd partner. The film creates a visually magnificent comic book universe while incorporating humor, inventiveness, and the awkwardness of first love.

It was not an easy journey to this release. Not only is Saving Sally a ground-breaking Filipino animation that unprecedentedly combines live-action and animation, but it also marks a significant milestone, having taken more than ten years to complete since its first filming in 2005.

Director Avid Liongoren and writers Carlo Ledesma and Charlene Sawit-Esguerra started filming it in 2005. Early production stagnated due to technical and economical obstacles. In order to keep the production going for the next 10 years, the crew had to change the main actress, put off big life goals like starting a business or purchasing a home, and reinvest any extra money they made from other projects back into the movie.

The breakthrough occurred when French film producer Alain de la Mata chose to intervene and sponsor the project after being inspired by Liongoren’s commitment. Years later, the team came back with a new idea that turned the movie into a unique live-action/animation mix.

The team had to locate a replacement partner for the main character since Anna Larrucea, the original Sally in the movie, was no longer accessible. Rhian Ramos, who brought new life to the remade movie, was chosen as the new female protagonist after a long audition process.