The sudden appearance of a running ostrich in a private subdivision in Quezon City prompted Filipinos to reference the iconic fantasy-adventure film franchise “Jumanji.”
Videos of the ostrich made its way to social media on Tuesday morning which featured the flightless bird running along the residential street of Mapayapa Village III.
Reports noted that there are two ostriches who went loose in the subdivision. One of them was caught on video running and being chased by a dog while an Angkas biker looked on.
Dino Rivera, one of the Filipinos who caught the bird on video, said he was supposed to buy from a neighborhood store when he suddenly saw the creature along the street.
“I have seen weird things in my life but this one ranks up there. Nakascooter pa naman ako baka asawahin ako hahaha,” he wrote on Facebook.
I have seen weird things in my life but this one ranks up there. 🤣🤣🤣Hindi po yan google app ha.Nakascooter pa naman ako baka asawahin ako hahaha. #OstrichThis video is managed exclusively by ViralPress. For usage email video@viralpress.com
Posted by Dino Rivera on Monday, August 3, 2020
Other versions of the video include an ostrich who “complied” with the subdivision rules when a security guard put down the plank barrier on the subdivision gate and said that it doesn’t have an “ID” or a gate pass.
“Wala kang ID, ‘di ka puwedeng lumabas!” the guard said.
Metro Manila is currently under a modified enhanced community quarantine wherein a strict home quarantine is imposed in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
the “aaAy ostrich!” and the “u dont have a gate pass🤔” and the “it doesnt fly right” hsjdnfbejdndnsjds pic.twitter.com/HDhJm4AJDR
— ˗ˏˋ🍑⁷ˎˊ˗ (@hyyh1s) August 4, 2020
Another video version featured an ostrich being captured while the other one was running free.
However, the uploader who also uttered commentaries while taking the video was chided by online users for using the pejorative term for people with African descent.
The Philippine STAR reported that the creatures were “brought back to their owner shortly after” the incident.
The ostriches are back to safety.
The unusual sight of two escaped ostriches running wildly around a subdivision in Quezon City on Tuesday morning drove the people in the area and netizens crazy. Fortunately, they were brought back to their owner shortly after. pic.twitter.com/dHqGAPEnPt
— The Philippine Star (@PhilippineStar) August 4, 2020
Meanwhile, Pedro Pacis, the homeowners association president of the village, said that the ostriches were owned by a resident whose current house was being renovated.
“Ostrich is owned by one resident/homeowner along Narra St. … House is still for construction, it is just a fenced property, lot only,” he told ABS-CBN News.
Nirali Shah, a senior campaigner for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals-Asia, commented that the ostrich could’ve “longed to be free” from its captivity.
“Even under the best of circumstances, captivity cannot begin to replicate wild animals’ habitats, relationships, or freedom to make choices,” Shah told ABS-CBN.
“Ostriches held in captivity are invariably stressed and deprived of all liberties, and they will employ their intelligence and dexterity to escape if they can,” she added.
Another PETA member, Rochelle Regodon, said that wild animals who are intended to be kept as pets or companion animals needed a permit.
‘Jumanji’ feels
The videos of the ostrich, meanwhile, landed on local Twitter’s top trending list under the hashtag “Jumanji” on Tuesday afternoon.
As of this writing, it is on the seventh spot of the list with over 15,600 tweets under its belt.
Filipinos referenced the Hollywood film franchise which revolves around the story of a supernatural board game that unleashes elements of the jungle to wreak havoc in the player’s urban reality.
The latest film in the series, “Jumanji: The Next Level,” reportedly grossed more than $800 million in the worldwide box office in 2019. It starred Karen Gillan, Kevin Hart, Jack Black and Dwayne Johnson.
Meanwhile, content creator Erwan Heussaff retweeted a news item reporting on the Quezon City ostrich and said: “Welcome to Jumanji.”
Another Twitter user took a screengrab of one of the videos and edited the picture to make it appear as if it was a movie “poster” of the 2019 film.
Jumanji's new poster looks lit 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/mXeFoFLR2m
— JP (@MasterBaetiong) August 4, 2020
Other social media accounts of brands likewise referenced the film franchise shortly after the ostrich videos trended.
Such accounts include the streaming giant Netflix Philippines, motorcycle taxi service Angkas and comic bookstore Filbar’s.
Who’s been playing Jumanji pic.twitter.com/kIHm9SSj4B
— Netflix Philippines (@Netflix_PH) August 4, 2020
Angkas shared a screengrab of the part in the video where an Angkas rider was spotted and also gave out a promo code in honor of the ostrich.
jumanji (2020) pic.twitter.com/8MeNPNIjSV
— Angkas (@angkas) August 4, 2020
Filbar’s couldn’t help but advertise its Jumanji-related products but added in jest that ostriches “are not included.”
Ostrich not included.
Posted by Filbar's Online on Tuesday, August 4, 2020
