Animation in Malaysia (Malay: , or dalangan ) has origins in the puppetry style of wayang kulit, wherein the characters are controlled by the puppeteer or dalang; animators are sometimes termed as such. The art of shadow play inspired German filmmaker Lotte Reiniger to create the animated The Adventures of Prince Achmed in 1926 that was based on one of the stories in the 1001 Nights. Many of the world's animators have credited Prince Achmed's recognisable style for generating their initial interest in animation as well as in their works.
Early developments
Filem Negara Malaysia (Malayan Film Unit) The Malayan Film Unit was created by the British colonialists in 1946 with the intent to produce documentaries and public service announcements of the government and later renamed Filem Negara Malaysia. A set designer working for the Unit named Anandam Xavier was asked to handle an animation project in 1961. Xavier set to work on the first in-country animation short subject "Hikayat Sang Kancil" (The Adventures of the Mousedeer) until 1978, although the short would not see a release until 1983.
Animated shorts The coming years would see additional hand-drawn animated shorts: 1984's Sang Kancil dan Monyet (The Mousedeer and the Monkey) and a 1987 follow-up, Sang Kancil dan Buaya (The Mousedeer and the Crocodile); 1985's Gagak Yang Bijak (The Clever Crow); and Arnab Yang Sombong (The Proud Rabbit) and Singa Yang Haloba (The Greedy Lion) both released in 1986, all written and directed by Hassan Abd. Muthalib. Live action films produced in Malaysia in the 1980s and 1990s began to feature animated sequences, particularly in the opening credit sequence of films like Mekanik, Mat Gelap and Yes, Tuan, all made by Hassan Muthalib.
Animation houses The surge in Malaysian animation products resulted in the founding of two animation studios: FilmArt, established in 1984 and Lensamation, which opened its doors in 1987. Having these production companies in the country led to the legitimisation of animation as an art form and career path, and training schools and programs were instituted. The year 1995 saw the debut of the first animated television series, Usop Sontorian.
Modernisation and globalisation The animation industry in Malaysia received some attention from Tun Mahathir bin Mohamad, the fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia with plans for rapidly modernising the country. This extended to the use of digital technology in production houses, predominantly the direct-to-system method of drawing into the computer pioneered by Kamn Ismail. The first computer animation efforts in Malaysia were the 2000 film "Nien Resurrection" and an episode of the series "Skyland" conceived and produce by Young Jump Animation Sdn. Bhd. However, in the late 1990s, Kamn Ismail had already included 3D elements in his Keluang Man animation series.
This era also saw an increase in efforts to aggressively promote locally produced animation efforts. Since 2000, the Malaysian animation industry has gone far globally when Multimedia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) produced Saladin: The Animated Series for Al Jazeera Children's Channel. Since then, many Malaysian animation companies marketed their works to globally. Their animation has succeeded in promoting Malaysia globally by creating content that was based on Malaysian culture but having universal values.
Several Malaysian animation films and series that have hit global market are: Geng: The Adventure Begins animated film Upin & Ipin animated series Bola Kampung animated series Satria The Warriors of 7 Elements animated series Synostone animated series BoBoiBoy animated series Ejen Ali animated series Ejen Ali: The Movie animated film Mechamato The Animated Series animated series Mechamato Movie animated film Currently, Malaysian animation is dominant and the largest one in the ASEAN market, alongside Japanese and Western animation. Malaysia is regarded as the ASEAN hub for animation industry. Also, Malaysia became the first and only ASEAN country for its animated film to make it through the Academy Award nominations via Upin & Ipin: Keris Siamang Tunggal in 2020. This proved that Malaysia is now ready to compete with other dominant countries in animation such as Japan and the United States.
Malaysian animation also have their own brand, called #AniMY to representing Animasi Malaysia and Kontinjen Animasi, special for National Day.
The role of Government The Government of Malaysia, through its agencies, Multimedia Development Corporation and Malaysia Animation Creative Content Centre (MAC3) supports the industry by giving funding through grant scheme and providing world-class facilities to some key-players. The grants include Start-up Funds, Intellectual Property Grant Scheme and MAC3 Co-Production Fund.
Malaysia is one of the two countries in ASEAN where its animation industry is funded by the government, the other one being Singapore.
MAC3 Co-Production Fund This grant was launched in 2009 to support the creation and development or co-development of Intellectual Properties under the Animation, Games & Computer Graphics sectors of the creative cluster.
The grant is designed to help local companies to co-produce animation and game development projects with partners that will contribute to the overall development of the industry in Malaysia.MAC3 Co-Pro Fund , Background, MSC Malaysia Official Website.
Foreign influence on Malaysian animation Some local animations tend to include foreign elements, especially anime. This can be seen in the design of TV animation series such as Anak-anak Sidek, Edi & Cici and Sang Wira. This is because most of the animators were once trained by Japanese animators.
However, Kampung Boy, based on the characters of internationally known cartoonist, Lat has its own identity. It is seen as the best animation that portrays Malaysian cultures in the eyes of its creator. In the making of Kampung Boy, Lat was actively involved in the project.From Mousedeer to Mouse: Malaysian Animation at the Crossroads, Hassan (2004).
Persatuan Animasi Malaysia (Animation Society of Malaysia) Animation Society of Malaysia, ANIMAS is a non-profit government organisation that promotes animation in Malaysia.
History ANIMAS was officially registered as an organisation on 29 May 2007.Animation Society of Malaysia , About Us.
The idea towards the foundation of ANIMAS was first discussed at the Hiroshima Animation Film Festival in 1997. Hassan Abd Muthalib, the director of Silat Legenda, the first feature animation film in Malaysia in 1998; Hisham Harun Hashim, producer and executive producer of the first Malaysian animated film, Silat Legenda and Kamn Ismail, director of Usop Sontorian, agreed to form ANIMAS.
The idea was later discussed in 2001 during a meeting with Hassan Abd Muthalib, James Ooi and Richard Ung Kok Kee at the office of James Ooi. A series of meetings to form ANIMAS began in April 2001 and the 1st pro-tem committee met at Cempaka Sari Room, FINAS (the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia), Ampang, Selangor on 17 May 2001.
Activities ANIMAS was finally officially registered only on 29 May 2007. However, even before registration, ANIMAS began to play an active role in the industry. ANIMAS was part of the main committee organising the Malaysia Film Festival and many other events. Hassan Abd Muthalib has been invited to Japan and China to present papers on the Malaysian animation industry a number of times.
In 2004, a seminar was organised with the collaboration of the French Embassy, Goethe-Institut Malaysia and FINAS at Balai Senilukis Negara (National Visual Arts Gallery). This seminar - Animation Industry in Malaysia: Current Situation & New Challenges - brought together for the first time most of the animation companies and training institutions in Malaysia. Among the foreign speakers were Ms Tiziana Loschi, Director of the Annecy International Animation Film Festival (France); Gilbert Hus, a producer and Regis Ghezalbash, a producer/director (both from France); Georges LaCroix, the director of the animation series, Insektors (France) and Ulrich Wegenast, an animation academic and director (Germany).
Collaboration In 2008, ANIMAS collaborated with The One Academy of Communication Design in Sunway to present Animation Veteran awards to two pioneers of animation in Malaysia – Goh Meng Huat (the first animator in Malaysia who had been with Filem Negara Malaysia) and also to actor/director, Mat Sentol (the first feature film animator). The presentation was part of the Digital Art Competition & Convention held at Mid Valley Megamall. Hassan also gave a Powerpoint presentation of the history and development of the Malaysian animation industry during the event.
Malaysian animation chronology 1972: Selamat Hari Natal 1979: Hapuskan Nyamuk Aedes 1985: Sang Kancil & Buaya 1986: Gagak Yang Bijak 1986: Arnab Yang Sombong 1987: Singa Yang Haloba 1996: Usop Sontorian 1996: Keluang Man 1998: Frootees 1999: Kampong Boy 1999: Anak- Anak Sidek 1999: Sang Wira 2006: Bola Kampung 2007: Upin & Ipin 2008: Supa Strikas 2009: Geng: The Adventure Begins 2009: Boo & Me 2009: CJ the DJ 2010: Ibn Battuta: The Animated Series 2010: Chuck Chicken 2011: Pada Zaman Dahulu 2011: BoBoiBoy 2012: Satria The Warriors of 7 Elements 2012: Akis 2012: SheZow 2014: The Amazing Awang Khenit 2014: Puteri 2015: Didi & Friends 2015: ABC Monsters 2015: Kuu Kuu Harajuku 2016: Hogie the Globehopper 2016: BoBoiBoy The Movie 2016: Ejen Ali 2016: Harry & Bunnie 2016: Kazoops! 2016: BoBoiBoy Galaxy 2017: Omar & Hana 2017: The King of Fighters: Destiny 2019: Upin & Ipin: Keris Siamang Tunggal 2019: BoBoiBoy Movie 2 2019: Ejen Ali The Movie 2021: Mechamato 2022: Mechamato Movie 2023: Didi & Friends The Movie 2024: Dongeng Sang Kancil 2025: Ejen Ali The Movie 2 2025: Papa Zola The Movie 2026: Kisah Bawah Tanah 2026: Legasi Kuasa 2026: Gelecek 2026: Papa Pipi Series 2027: BoBoiBoy Movie 3: Ghost of Gur'latan 2027: Robozeta The Movie
Holidays Due to Malaysia being a Muslim-majority country, most animated shows have Ramadan / Eid al-Fitr specials instead of Christmas. MONSTA often produces short films about Eid al-Fitr specials every year and some of them hit the trending charts in YouTube Malaysia and Indonesia. There are also short animated videos produced by companies to promote other holidays in Malaysia such Chinese New Year.
Major events in Malaysian animation These are the major events in the Malaysian Animation.Kronologi Sejarah Animasi Malaysia , Hassan Abd Muthalib