In 1983, as young Malaysians sat glued to their television sets awaiting their favorite morning cartoons to air, little did they know that they were to witness history.
It was the first time the venerable mouse deer aka the Sang Kancil, was to make its appearance simultaneously on every television screen across the nation as an animated character speaking in the national language.
Malaysia had quietly produced and aired its first ever animated short without much fanfare.
The intelligent mouse deer.
For many of these children who were used to watching Alvin and the Chipmunks, The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Dungeons & Dragon, and more, bringing to life the icon of Malaysian intelligence on screen would prove to be a defining moment in their life.
Till this date, Malaysians who grew during that era can still recollect the time when they had watched Sang Kancil, Kerbau dan Buaya (The Mouse Deer, Buffalo and the Crocodile) on their television screens.
The 12-minute animated film was released by The National Film Department of Malaysia with Rahman B. serving as the director while Anandam Xavier planned the story, animated the film, and created the background with the help of his assistant, Goh Meng Huat.
The short was completed in 1978 but it was only screened five years later. The subsequent years saw five more Sang Kancil titles produced between 1983 to 1986.
While there were no other animations afterwards, the Hikayat Sang Kancil shorts sparked the possibility that Malaysians were capable of producing their own animated heroes.
Breathing life to Malaysian heroes.
Malaysia's foray into animation began through the humble wayang kulit aka shadow puppetry.
Hundreds of years ago, villagers would huddle close to each other before a large canvas as the dalang, the puppeteer, tells the story for the night. The stories told were mostly folk tales with many possessing moral values.
This was among the forms of entertainment way before the time of television, films, and smartphones.
As the nation evolved and progressed, it was necessary to take storytelling to a whole new level. While the mouse deer got things rolling for Malaysian animation, it was only close to 10 years later when Malaysia began taking animation seriously.
The animation industry finally sputtered to a start through its first animated television series, Usop Sontorian, which began screening in 1995.
Three years later, Malaysia's first animated feature film, Silat Lagenda, was released in 1998.
Yet many were unimpressed. A large number of Malaysians weren't convinced. What's more, many felt that the Malaysian animation industry didn't have what it took to rival international entertainment companies famous for their popular films, series, and characters.
Malaysians continued consuming animated content from abroad as the country's animators quietly began tinkering with ways to spur the growth of the industry.
In 2007, during the fasting month of Ramadhan, an unknown Malaysian animation house Les' Copaque Production released Upin & Ipin, two adorable five-year-old twins, who experience numerous adventures together.
The series, which is currently in its 12th season, not only was received well by young Malaysians but it has gone on to have a huge following in Indonesia.
Unlike previous animated features which saw animators drawing the characters directly into the computer, this series was computer-generated in its entirety; a game changer for the Malaysian animation industry.
From then on, a slew of CGI-animation films were released with the popular ones being Boboiboy and Ejen Ali. Both series have had their feature films released and have done remarkably well in cinemas.
Today, cinema-goers usually sit up whenever they catch a trailer of Malaysian animated films.
"What we’ve seen in the past 10 years is that we’ve allowed our children to grow up with our own heroes, our own cultures," Hasnul Hadi Samsudin, the Vice President of Digital Creative Content, at the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) says to Mashable Southeast Asia.
Hasnul, who has played a pivotal role in the local animation industry, is well respected by Malaysian animators with many considering him an "uncle".
The talented creative began his foray in the industry in 1996 but left to work with director Ang Lee for his Oscar winning film, Life of Pi, before returning.
Today, his job at MDEC is simple yet challenging: To market the Malaysian creative content industry.
"I think it’s really important for people to understand that Malaysia has a great animation and games industry but what it lacks is its ability to talk about itself and showcase itself," Hasnul says when met at the recently held Southeast Asia's Creative Conference in Malaysia.
This is where people like Hasnul come in to accelerate this industry to greater heights. Part of his job scope is to get people to see the local content and to understand that the players of the industry have an opportunity to grow.
"This keeps me awake most nights but I do get good sleep when things go well," he quips.
The Malaysian animation industry comes one full circle.
It was Andrea Goh Siau Wei's mother who kickstarted her journey into animation.
"My mum showed me the first Toy Story which started off my entire journey," the Malaysian animator says to Mashable Southeast Asia.
Released in 1995, the animated film was a breakthrough back then for being entirely animated through CGI.
"So working on Toy Story 4 was like coming one full circle," Andrea, who also served as a camera artist and character artist for Cars 3 says.
Andrea is also currently working on the animation giant's upcoming film, Soul, which will be released in 2020.
"Essentially, I decide how the shot should be -- whether it should be high angle, or a close-up and also how the characters should be positioned," she explains on her role with Pixar.
Born and raised in Kuala Lumpur, Andrea has also gone on to serve as the technical supervisor to Sonder, a 15-minute multi-award winning animated short film created entirely through Unity's game engine.
She was instrumental in building the technical departments with Sonder's core team and led the team in bridging the Maya and Unity pipeline.
After her high school, Andrea considered to be a doctor. Yet, in the confines of bedroom, she would be found drawing.
"I felt art is something I love. I'm glad I didn't pursue medicine," she says.
What got her convinced to become an animator was when The One Academy, a Malaysian art and design college, invited nine Pixar artists to talk about Toy Story 3.
"These artists came from different departments. That was when I discovered that making films is a collaborative effort between various departments."
With her heart and mind set on her career choice, Andrea did face slight scepticism from her dad who was worried if she would be able to make a living as an animator.
"It was only until he visited Pixar Animation Studios campus at Steve Job's building when he said, 'Oh Steve Jobs! Good, good!'" she laughs.
A change in mindset.
Today, the stigma of not being able to survive as an artist is gradually diminishing in Malaysia.
"We have moved from the industrial age where the need for engineers and doctors was more in demand then than it is now. Today, in the information age, the arts and animation is seen as having more opportunities," Hasnul explains.
Parents of this era are much more open to the idea of their children pursuing a career in animation and this has somewhat played a factor in the growth of the industry as a whole.
The proliferation of social media platforms has also played key roles in the change of mindset as well.
"Malaysia is already home to numerous talented artists but we lack good business people. I feel artists need to build on their entrepreneurial mindset," Hasnul says.
The animation industry as a whole requires not just skilful animators but also people who understand marketing, accounts, content strategy, and people management.
"Right now we want to make sure our creativity and content we produce is seen. There is so much of creativity and diversity in Malaysia. The question we must answer is: How do we amplify them?"
Hasnul considers these five years a critical moment in the Malaysian animation industry because there are productions and animators who're already going abroad. Yet, there are many others who're looking to do the same.
MDEC is currently in the process of creating a sustainable ecosystem for the animation industry to assist creatives.
"There is a policy we’re working with the ministry called Digital Content Ecosystem Policy (DICE) which is essentially charting a path to grow the industry through investments and collaborations."
These concerted efforts will hopefully create more opportunities for creative Malaysians to take the country's animation industry to the next level.
Going international.
In 2016, Boboiboy: The Movie hit the US$2.5 million mark and became among the top 5 highest grossing Malaysian films.
Upin & Ipin : Keris Siamang Tunggal one upped Boboiboy by collecting US$5.95 million, beating even Pixar's Incredibles 2 in box office collection nationwide in 2019. A few months later, BoBoiBoy Movie 2 garnered US$6.4 million.
Both Malaysian animation brands are set to be marketed overseas with Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, China, and India in sight.
If 10 years ago, critics didn't believe the local animation industry had what it takes to succeed, a decade on, the same naysayers are now doing a double take.
Because Malaysia has finally arrived in the scene.
Cover image sourced from YouTube and New Straits Times.
