Dante Nico Garcia shot this film in Cuyo, Palawan as tribute to his hometown where he lived until he graduated his grade school.
The title Ploning is from a popular Cuyonon folk song.
Ploning (2008) is the Philippine's official entry for Best Foreign Language Film in the 2009 Academy Awards. A special FAP (Film Academy of the Philippines) committee, headed by National Artist for Film Eddie Romero, voted Ploning (2008) over Caregiver (2008), three votes to two. The two movies were part of a six-film shortlist that included the Cinemalaya festival winner Tribe (2007) and Endo (2007). Committee members included Jose N. Carreon, secretary of the Directors Guild of the Philippines, Inc.; William Mayo, president of the Philippine Motion Picture Directors Association; Johnny Delgado, chairman of the Actors' Workshop Foundation; Pablo S. Gomez, president of the Screenwriters' Guild of the Philippines; and Manny Morfe, president of the Productions Designers Guild of the Philippines.