About Us But Not About Us

Eric (Romnick Sarmenta) and his student, Lancelot (Elijah Canlas) converse over a meal at a restaurant, revealing secrets.^[2]

• Romnick Sarmenta as Ericson; A gay man who worked as a literature professor^[3][2][4]
• Elijah Canlas portrays two roles which are:
  • Lancelot: A student attending the University of the Philippines who has Ericson as his mentor. His character is helped by Ericson after the student was beaten up by his stepfather. Canlas described the character as a survivalist, who was also victimized by a pedophile priest at ten years old.^[4]
  • Marcus: Former husband of Ericson who committed suicide

About Us But Not About Us was produced under The IdeaFirst Company, Octoberian Films, and Quantum Films under the direction of Jun Lana.^[5] Perci Intalan, Lana's ex-partner was the producer. Lana described the film as a "personal" project which he created during a "period of depression". Characterizing the film as "part fiction and part confessional", Lana disclosed writing for three straight days for the story of the film, drawing inspiration from his childhood trauma.^[6]

The film's story is "conversational" featuring just two seated characters talking to each other in a single setting. A significant part of the story was in English.^[3] About Us But Not About Us took five days to shoot, with a script reading taking place a day prior.^[2]

It was shot entirely on location at the "L'Opera Ristorante" Italian Restaurant in Bonifacio Global City, Makati, Manila.

The film premiered in Estonia at the 26th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival in November 2022.^[7][1] It screened in cinemas in the Philippines as one of the eight official entries of the 2023 Metro Manila Summer Film Festival which began on April 8, 2023.^[5]

About Us But Not About Us was recognized as the Best Film in the Critics' Pick competition of the 26th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival.^[1] Film critic Niki Nikitin, as an attendee of the Estonian film festival, praised the film as "masterfully orchestrated" despite having a small budget.^[6] Indonesian film critic Bavner Donaldo praised this film for its stunning acting performances with an unexpected conclusion.^[8]