Ore Struck Media today
did the first screening of the animated short,
Walinong Sari, at
Multipurpose Hall (MPH), Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) Sungai Long Campus on 6 July 2022. The short film supported by MDEC’s DC3+
fund took a little over
9 months
to complete in its entirety.
"A large number of the concept artists, animators, and riggers were UTAR students. I harnessed all the young and new talent out there and really made this film a collaborative effort between working professionals and up-and-coming industry players," said Mr Eugene Foo, the director of Walinong Sari and UTAR Faculty of Creative Industries (FCI) Department of Multimedia Design and Animation Specialist I Eugene Foo Shyang Eu.
Prof Goi hoping more
students will partake in projects to acquire the much-needed
skills from
industry experts
UTAR Vice President
for Internationalisation and Academic Development Ir Prof Dr
Goi Bok Min said, “I am glad that the Faculty of Creative
Industries (FCI) and Ore
Struck Media Sdn Bhd collaborated to organise this amazing screening of
Walinong
Sari for our students.
Collaboration between academia
and industry
is key
to catalyse
innovation and growth in technology. The combination of expertise
from both parties can
yield the
development of new breakthroughs
in many areas.”
He added, “I am
proud that our students from the Faculty of Creative Industries
particularly under the
Digital Animation
and Games
Design programme participated in
this project. I applaud the students for your effort and
dedication in creating this
wonderful animated
short film.
I hope
more students
will partake
in projects
like this
to acquire the
much-needed skills from industry experts and to further develop the
animation industry
to create
animations that
are better in
quality and hyperrealistic.”
"We
were so
lucky to
get really
great people
on the
project, who
really went
above and
beyond the job scope. It was our little pandemic project (90% of
the work was done remotely
online) and it kept all of us going through those long days of
isolation, " explained Honey Ahmad,
the scriptwriter
Walinong
Sari."
The script was
reimagined and adapted from heritage consultant Ninot Aziz’s book,
Lipur Lara Nusantara. The anak Pahang herself,
Walinong Sari, was the
opening tale in her collection
of short stories and folklore. Ninot wrote, "it is so important that we, as writers, continue to retell, rewrite, and curate our folklore
so that the best in our creative
industries can bring them to another level." She hopes that her books will
inspire a future
generation of
filmmakers, theatre
enthusiasts, and
educators.
The production stars
popular Malaysian actors and singers such as Nadia Aqilah, Junji Delfino,
Ghafir Akbar,
Bront Palarae
and Tony
Eusoff. It
even features Fatimah
Abu Bakar
as the
voice of
the narrator/penglipur
lara. The
bulk of
the production
crew is
made up
primarily of
UTAR staff
and students
as well
as a
few other
external freelancers
and independent artists.
Ore
Struck
Media
is
a
collective formed by
creatives from
multiple disciplines who want
to tell great local stories. They explore independent projects and
support up and coming directors,
writers, and other people in the creative line who want to get their
narratives out to a larger audience. They do this by filling in
professional gaps and putting
great people together. "We always wanted to work with Eugene Foo to see
what his vision would be for a local 2D animation. It has been an
absolute pleasure seeing
Walinong Sari come to life
and the unconventional way he has harnessed a
‘work
from
home’
studio
set-up," said Adam
Firsham Aqil,
director of
Ore Struck
Media.
UTAR students and
alumni who participated in the project came predominantly from
FCI under the BA (Honours) Digital Animation course, and one alumnus
from BA (Hons)
Games Design.
Present
at the
Walinong
Sari screening
were UTAR
Vice President
of Internationalisation and
Academic Development Ir Prof Dr Goi Bok Min, UTAR Acting
Dean for Faculty of Creative Industries cum Deputy Dean for R&D and
Postgraduate Programmes Dr Cynthia
Lau Pui-Shan, Film Director for
Walinong Sari and
UTAR Specialist I from
Department for Department of Multimedia Design and Animation (DMDA) Mr Eugene Foo Shyang Eu, UTAR Head of Department for
Department of Multimedia
Design and
Animation (DMDA)
Puan Wan
Irma Sabrina
binti Idris,
Scriptwriter for
Walinong Sari Ms Honey
Ahmad, Folklorist & Heritage Consultant for
Walinong Sari Ms Ninot Aziz, Music Composer for
Walinong Sari Ms Irena
Taib, Colourist for
Walinong Sari Mr Setyo
Wibowo, Line Producer for
Walinong Sari Ms Vini
Balan,
Walinong Sari
production team
and guests
from animation
and art
industry.
Full
house during
the screening
During
the Q&A
session
Prof Goi (back row, sixth from right) with guests, animations production students and
independent artists
The posters of
Walinong Sari
About
Walinong Sari
Walinong Sari, a fierce warrior princess is groomed to rule the kingdom of Inderapura. When her father accepted a proposal of marriage she did not agree to, Walinong Sari set off on a journey down the Pahang River to say goodbye to the land she loved. But fate had something else in store for her in the shape of Raja Mambang Segara, a celestial prince. Walinong Sari now faces a choice, to be the dutiful daughter or to follow her heart.
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