Studio Penguino

Studio Penguino šŸ“ MNL, PI ↠ SD, CA
🌟 1/3 of
šŸ“ø Creative Director via

Edrian Pangilinan is an aspiring Filipino-American content creator/filmmaker/photographer + dance artist based in San Diego, CA. His work is greatly inspired by his press for representation as a brown, filipino and lgbt human. He intends on pursuing his dream of becoming a filmmaker focusing on LGBT+ related themes that challenge the status quo AND initiate dialogues necessary for change.

2026 test shots by .skillet šŸ˜
03/09/2026

2026 test shots by .skillet šŸ˜

Entering chapter ###IV very soonā€¦šŸ“ø .skillet
03/09/2026

Entering chapter ###IV very soon…
šŸ“ø .skillet

That’s a wrap on  šŸ’›a year ago, I was grieving having to pack up my bags and ultimately leaving San Diego, I was struggli...
02/17/2026

That’s a wrap on šŸ’›
a year ago, I was grieving having to pack up my bags and ultimately leaving San Diego, I was struggling financially, living in a hostel (which I love) and uncertain about moving forward (career, personal and etc) & packing in the lbs!

today: finally have my own room, booked and blessed doing wardrobe coordinating for NTD, I’m paying half the price for what I paid for the hostel, and finally settling into my new chapter in LA.

hard work,
prayers and action did it!
& now many lbs shedded.ļæ¼

That’s a wrap on !!!
02/17/2026

That’s a wrap on !!!

a different kind of 10 year challenge.2006 me was tender, young, and impressionable. that year held so much — but it’s a...
01/21/2026

a different kind of 10 year challenge.
2006 me was tender, young, and impressionable. that year held so much — but it’s also when i fell in love with dance and cinema, thanks to kenny ortega. a spark that eventually led me to pursue my bfa in dance with a minor in tv/film in 2016.
somehow, some way, i’m still here. still dreaming. still creating. still carving my own path.

i’ve been through so much to get here. and i know these two versions of me would be so damn proud

01/09/2026

2025 was not the year I imagined, but it was the year I needed.

It asked me to slow down in ways I resisted. To sit with uncertainty. To face loss, displacement, and the uncomfortable truth of starting over without a clear map. There were many moments I felt stripped down to my most human parts, learning how to survive one day at a time.

And yet, within all of that, something steady began to form.

I found myself again. Not through big wins alone, but through small, consistent choices. Choosing integrity when things were tight. Choosing rest when my body asked for it. Choosing to believe in myself even when nothing around me looked certain.

Creatively, I kept going. I stepped back into filmmaking, explored new storytelling through music videos, returned to q***r cinema, and found myself trusted with new responsibility as head of wardrobe for a television pilot. Even in the quietest seasons, the work kept calling me forward.

I also learned how to make a home. Not just a place to sleep, but a space that holds my softness, my memories, my growth. A reminder that safety and beauty are things I’m allowed to have.

This year taught me that healing isn’t loud. It doesn’t arrive all at once. Sometimes it looks like patience. Sometimes it looks like asking for help. Sometimes it looks like choosing to stay.

As I close out 2025, I do so with gratitude, humility, and a deeper trust in my own resilience. I don’t have everything figured out, but I finally know I’ll be okay.

And that feels like enough.

šŸ¤

12/10/2025

LIFE LATELY: Thankful for the journey of what 2025 was - a challenging yet very transformative year. Looking at how my year was for me through these TikTok’s makes me realize, I really crawled my way out of many dark moments and fought to find the light. ✨

After almost 5 years, my Uber Eats account was suddenly deactivated out of nowhere. I don’t agree with their reasoning a...
12/05/2025

After almost 5 years, my Uber Eats account was suddenly deactivated out of nowhere. I don’t agree with their reasoning at all — especially after weeks of app glitches and even getting locked out of cashing out my earnings. No ill feelings, but I *am* keeping track and fighting back.

What’s wild is that instead of panicking, I’m actually calm and grateful. Delivering helped me survive some very dark seasons, kept me moving, and quite literally carried me into this next chapter. I’ll always honor that.

And in the middle of all this… my Threads suddenly found some momentum and boom — so much love and support came in at once. Thank you. Truly.

I still have one more courier gig to hold me down, and new creative opportunities already opening up. Please keep me in your prayers as I step into whatever’s next. I’m choosing trust, gratitude, and growth. ✨

11/08/2025

SOUL SUPREMACY 50TH EPISODE IS NOW OUT!
I am absolutely excited to share this episode with yall where I finally got to open up about the crossroads and changes in my life. The last 5 years has been a rollercoaster, and I think I am finally coming out alive (really)

Please check out this new episode celebrating 50 episodes after 5 years of doing the show where I’ve interviewed that much individuals about their life’s journey, success, greatest pains and victory. What a joy it has been connecting with my guests and becoming closer in the end.

Please join us in celebrating officially hitting this very special milestone!

LINK IN BIO.

Before this month ends, and as we close out Filipino American History Month, I want to shout out the organization that n...
10/31/2025

Before this month ends, and as we close out Filipino American History Month, I want to shout out the organization that not only gave me permission to believe my dreams were real but also the wings to truly fly.

Being part of San Diego Filipino Cinema since serendipitously meeting them in 2019 has been nothing short of life changing. Under their guidance, The FilAm Film Collective was born, supported by Emma and Benito, surviving the pandemic under their wings, and connecting me with collaborators who became lifelong friends.

To every single person I’ve met through this festival and community, thank you for your kindness and belief. And to this family, thank you for accepting me through all of my imperfections, especially during years that were anything but easy. As I continue to go through the road of healing, I hope one day I can return to you as myself, whole, healed, and present.

This post is dedicated to San Diego Filipino Cinema, celebrating 5 years of the San Diego Filipino Film Festival. Congratulations to the entire team, thank you for your vision, your care, and for reminding us that our stories matter.

These are the only photos I could find online, all captured by the legendary Khoi Ly, whom I’ve been so lucky to collaborate with over the past five years.

No matter where life takes me, a part of me will always walk beside you in spirit, in gratitude, and in love. šŸ’›šŸŽ¬šŸ‡µšŸ‡­

surprise + a little full-circle moment: i was invited to share my story with sdvoyager again (part two!!) and i’m honest...
08/14/2025

surprise + a little full-circle moment: i was invited to share my story with sdvoyager again (part two!!) and i’m honestly so, so grateful. huge love to xavier ray (from my youtube fam) for the nudge and for always believing in me. šŸ«¶šŸ½

this piece is more reflective than anything i’ve shared publicly. i talk about where i am right now as a filmmaker and how i actually got here—the ordinary, unglam parts too. the hostel nights. the car naps to save money. the library-as-office days. delivering food between meetings. the burnout, the heartbreak, the choice to keep choosing the work anyway. i say things i haven’t really said out loud before, and it feels both scary and freeing.

i also share the process behind colorette—from notes-app brain dumps and late-night voice memos to a jam-packed, community-powered weekend where friends became family and a story found its shape. and because this year marks ten years since my first short (hey man, 2015), i look back at the work that carried me here: flight, uhaw, ang huling sayaw (the late checkout)—each one a different version of me, each one a step toward being braver and more honest.

and there’s a little exclusive in there too: a sneak peek at my first-ever proof-of-concept for my debut feature— a coming-of-age, q***r story set in the early 2000s, where private catholic school collides with the competitive world of swimming. it’s tender, it’s personal, and it’s the story i’ve been circling for years.

if you take the time to read it, i hope it makes you feel a little less alone and a little more certain that your pace is enough. live your life on your own terms—even when it’s hard. especially when it’s hard.

read here: https://sdvoyager.com/interview/meet-edrian-of-san-diego-los-angeles
(also linked in bio)

photos by my muse šŸ“ø
wearing šŸ¤

thank you for seeing me, for rooting for me, and for letting my story sit with you for a moment.

Mahal kong Izzy,Salamat.Salamat sa pagbibigay ng pahintulot na hindi lang kita likhain mula sa pinakamalalim na bahagi n...
08/02/2025

Mahal kong Izzy,

Salamat.
Salamat sa pagbibigay ng pahintulot na hindi lang kita likhain mula sa pinakamalalim na bahagi ng puso ko, kundi pati na rin maging ikaw — sa pinaka-final na anyo mo.

Sa totoo lang, natakot ako.
Sa pagpasok sa sapatos mo.
Sa pagdama ng pag-ibig mo.
Sa pagtanggap nito.

Pero tinanggap mo ako — buong-buo.
At sa pagiging ikaw, parang ikaw din ang naging tahanan ko.

Pinaramdam mo sa akin kung anong klaseng pagmamahal ang akala ko hindi ko na mararamdaman muli.
Pinaalala mo sa akin ang mga bahagi ng sarili kong gusto ko nang takasan, pero kailangan kong harapin — para sa iyo. Para sa akin.

Salamat din sa mga Santi — mga taong marunong magmahal nang tahimik pero totoo.
At para sa mga Ernie — na kahit sarado, ay may puso ring naghahanap ng pag-unawa at pagkalinga.

Maraming nagmamahal sa’yo, Izzy.
At isa na ako ro’n.

šŸŽ¬šŸ’–

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Los Angeles, CA

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About Me

Edrian Melchor F. Pangilinan or ā€œE!ā€ was born in Mandaluyong City, Philippines in 1992. He currently lives in San Diego, CA where his entire family immigrated in 2001. Growing up with a strong liking for the arts, his training included dance, music, voice and art.

He graduated from San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts in 2011 where he discovered his potential for developing creative expression through dance and video. Edrian has performed and showcased choreographic works for numerous companies/institutions including Visionary Dance Theatre, San Diego Dance Theater, San Diego State University and most recently Samahan Philippine Dance Company to name a few.

On his journey to cultivating his artistic voice, he realized in addition to movement, the realm of television and film was something he really wanted to pursue seriously. He is currently pursuing an education in Television, Film and New Media while finishing his B.F.A in Dance at San Diego State University. His first professional film captured the transformation of incoming college students in Grossmont College’s ā€œEOPS: Summer Institute Program 2015ā€. In 2016, his short film, ā€œLei Ć© Bellaā€ was featured in 40 North Dance Film Festival where his work was one of the top 36 films chosen amongst 106 submissions from 19 different countries. This year, he finally completed his LGBT short of three years, ā€œHey Manā€ a romantic comedy film about one’s discovery of self-love. While recently completing, ā€œFlightā€ for the Campus Movie Festival in October. Another LGBT film greatly inspired by a deep-rooted place of loneliness and his yearning for companionship and connection.

Edrian’s current aesthetics involves working with the idea of functionality versus aesthetics, experiencing state changes in the process while also finding pleasure and indulgence in the making and doing. As he reaches the end of his undergraduate years at SDSU, he finds great comfort in going out to the world with his approach to dance as a way of problem solving while cultivating a greater sense of understanding, compassion and empathy. He is truly grateful for his time that became experiences, friends that became family and faculties that became mentors.