Bangkitnya Animasi Indonesia

 

 

Songgo Rubuh dan Kuku Rock You, animasi Indonesia

 

 

Astu Prasidya, Head of Visual & Concept Development PT Digital Global Maxinema, menjelaskan alasan mengapa memilih untuk bergerak di dunia animasi. “Kenapa dunia animasi? Karena di Indonesia belum ada industri dunia animasi,” jelas Astu saat ditemui Oktomagazine di Balai Kartini pada Hellofest 8 beberapa waktu lalu. “Karena itu, saya bersama tim sepakat untuk  membuat film-film animasi yang berkualitas, untuk membangun industri animasi di Indonesia,”tambahnya. Astu juga mengatakan beberapa kelebihan yang diproduksi, bila dibandingkan dengan karya-karya animasi produksi luar negeri. Ia menjelaskan bahwa karya animasinya tersebut lebih menjelaskan dan menggambarkan tentang kebudayaan Indonesia. “Contohnya adalah animasi yang berjudul Songgo-Rubuh. Animasi tersebut menjelaskan tentang budaya Jawa yang merepresentasikan budaya Indonesia,” jelasnya lebih lanjut.

“Songgo-Rubuh itu sendiri bercerita tentang dua orang penjaga gerbang Kerajaan di Jawa,” Astu coba mengungkapkan isi cerita dari salah satu animasinya. “Mereka berdua adalah dua tokoh yang punya perbedaan karakter yang sangat mencolok.”
“Songgo, tokoh pertama, itu seorang yang polos dan baik kepada semua orang. Sedangkan Rubuh, mempunyai karakter yang bisa dibilang buruk. Dia adalah tokoh yang suka marah-marah, sering merasa iri. Pokoknya mereka berdua sangat berbeda 180 derajat. Tapi saling berteman,” jelasnya.
Dalam karya animasinya tersebut, Astu mengatakan bahwa konsep cerita Songgo-Rubuh mirip dengan lakon Ketoprak. “Saya dan teman-teman punya konsep bahwa animasi ini berlatarbelakang seperti panggung ketoprak. Mereka berdua, Songgo dan Rubuh, harus memainkan sebuah peran dalam lakon tersebut,” jelas Astu. “Lakon tersebut mereka mainkan dengan latar belakang mirip ketoprak, dengan papan-papan triplek yang membentuk gerbang yang mereka harus jaga.”
Serial animasi yang akan segera dapat ditonton oleh pecinta animasi Indonesia di sebuah stasiun televisi nasional pada pertengahan 2012 mendatang. Songgo-Rubuh juga berhasil mendapatkan penghargaan sebagai The Best Animation di Hellofest 8. Dalam produksi Songgo-rubuh dan Kuku Rock You, Astu bersama Wiryadi Dharmawan berperan menjadi Sutradara.

Di kesempatan tersebut, Astu yang ditemui di Balai Kartini juga menjelaskan salah satu karyanya yang berjudul “Kuku Rock You”. Astu mengatakan bahwa ada perbedaan di antara kedua serial animasi tersebut. “Kalau Songgo-Rubuh bercerita dan membawa tentang budaya Indonesia, Kuku Rock You membawa kisah tentang kehidupan sekelompok ayam yang hidup di sebuah kampung di pinggiran kota besar.”
Kuku Rock You secara garis besar menceritakan tentang kehidupan para ayam yang dipelihara oleh seseorang di dalam sebuah kandang. Yang membuat kisah ini menjadi unik adalah kehidupan ayam-ayam tersebut yang dipersonifikasi. “Mereka memang tinggal di dalam kandang. Tapi kandang tersebut berbentuk seperti apartemen dan punya kehidupan seperti manusia biasa,” jelas Astu.
Astu lebih lanjut mengatakan bahwa ia percaya bahwa cerita animasi yang ia buat akan mendapatkan sambutan di masyarakat. Ia beralasan bahwa animasi karyanya tersebut, beserta dengan tokoh dan jalan ceritanya, memang belum pernah ada di Indonesia. “Lebih jauh lagi, kami memang benar-benar memikirkan animasi secara detail dan gaya visual,” lanjut Astu.

Kehadiran dua animasi berjudul, Songgo-Rubuh dan Kuku Rock You, memang diharapkan akan membangkitkan dunia animasi di Indonesia sekaligus semakin mewarnai dunia hiburan di tanah air.
PT Digital Global Maxinema yang berlokasi di Malang telah membuktikan prestasinya. Tidak harus ada di pusat Negara untuk memproduksi karya yang bagus dan diterima industri nasional bahkan internasional. “Kami memang berada di Malang tetapi kami berusaha untuk membuka jaringan seluas-luasnya. Semoga apa yang kami lakukan bisa menginspirasi para animator lainnya yang sedang berjuang di kota-kota lainnya,” pesan Astu.
Kita tunggu kehadiran Songgo-Rubuh dan Kuku Rock You sebagai tontonan animasi yang berkualitas asli Indonesia!

http://www.oktomagazine.com/oktotainment/film/1366/bangkitnya.animasi.indonesia#.T0Ny5-PXUng.facebook
(andreas@oktomagazine.com)

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com --

Apa yang dikeluhkan oleh animator di Indonesia? Kekurangan cerita menarik untuk menghidupkan animasi.
Keluhan tersebut sering terdengar dalam forum maupun workshop animasi. Tidak jarang karakter menarik yang dilahirkan oleh animator menjadi tak berarti dan tidak melakukan apa-apa karena belum dihidupkan dengan cerita yang menarik. Ibarat anak wayang, karakter tersebut tergeletak dalam kotak dan tak mampu beraksi.

Seperti diketahui, begitu banyak animator hebat dalam negeri yang telah memproduksi trailer menarik dengan tokoh yang secara visual tidak bisa disebut sebagai karya biasa. Tapi, sangat disayangkan, tokoh itu menjadi kurang memiliki greget karena tak didukung cerita yang menggelitik.
Coba saja Anda tengok situs video internet YouTube atau Vimeo, begitu banyak animasi anak bangsa yang membanggakan dan tidak kalah dari animasi luar negeri. Namun, karya itu hanya menjadi tontonan gratis tanpa mampu bersaing dalam industri animasi. Dengan kata lain, produk animasi tersebut tak bisa dijual hanya gara-gara tidak memiliki cerita atau story yang menggigit. Jika pun ada, cerita yang muncul kurang nendang, tidak memiliki plot yang apik dan nilai dramatik yang kuat. Bahkan, kebanyakan masih berorientasi ke idealisme animator.

Menurut penggiat animasi dan juga pendiri Digital Global Maxinema, Achmad Rofiq, hingga hari ini masih belum ada cerita animasi Indonesia yang menarik untuk dijadikan referensi. Belajar dari serial Upin Ipin--produk animasi Malaysia yang mampu merebut hati anak-anak Indonesia--misalnya, "Kita bisa melihat kekuatan karater yang unik, plot yang kuat, dan kemampuan pencerita mengangkat tema-tema yang sederhana," kata Rofiq.
Lalu apa yang harus dilakukan untuk mengatasi kelemahan itu? Masih menurut Rofiq, "Jawabannya tentu saja mencari penulis cerita atau story teller yang mampu bersinergi dengan animator. Sebab, animator kita kadang asyik bermain dengan dirinya sendiri tanpa mau belajar untuk membuat cerita menarik yang mampu merebut hati dunia industri. Padahal, dengan kelemahan bakat animator membuat cerita, sang animator sebenarnya dapat bergandengan tangan dengan penulis cerita. Dengan begitu, tidak ada lagi tokoh atau karakter yang dilahirkan oleh animator hanya beraksi untuk sekuel pendek karena tidak ada 'penggerak' yang mampu menceritakan perjalanan sang tokoh."

Memang, akan banyak tantangan baru ketika animator bekerja bareng dengan penulis cerita yang merupakan penulis naskah untuk live action. Tapi, dengan belajar bersama, penulis cerita akan memahami prinsip-prinsip animasi yang diperlukannya. Sebaliknya, animator juga akan mengetahui prinsip-prinsip penulisan cerita, dari bagaimana membuat tema, mengatur plot, menguatkan dramatik, sampai memberi unsur-unsur komedi yang muaranya akan memberi daya hidup pada karakter yang dicipta. "Pengalaman kami di studio Digital Global Maxinema (DGM), misalnya, telah mampu melahirkan beberapa produk animasi dengan cerita serial yang sebelumnya tak mampu kami penuhi. Itu semua berkat DGM--yang sebagian awaknya adalah animator--bersinergi dengan pencerita atau penulis naskah yang kami anggap mampu menghidupkan karakter yang sama-sama kami ciptakan," jelas Rofiq.

Rofiq melanjutkan bahwa penulis naskah di Indonesia hampir bisa dikatakan tak ada yang mengkhususkan diri pada penulisan animasi. Tapi, dengan bergandengan tangan dengan, paling tidak animator dan penulis cerita bisa lebih memiliki pilihan dalam membangun dunia khayal secara bersama-sama atas dasar cerita yang mereka bangun bersama. "Tentu saja, sekali lagi saya katakan, penulis live action membutuhkan pembelajaran dari animator untuk tahu paling tidak prinsip-prinsip dasar animasi agar penulis yang bersangkutan lebih paham dan berdaya dalam mengembangkan imajinasinya. Supaya penulis naskah atau pencerita juga tidak asal membuat cerita yang jauh dari nilai dan prinsip-prinsip animasi," papar Rofiq.
Hasilnya, dari beberapa festival animasi, karya kerja bareng antara penulis cerita dengan animator mampu merebut prestasi dan layak untuk menjadi produk komersial. Seperti Songgo Rubuh, yang meraih sebagai The Best Animation di HelloFest 8 di Jakarta beberapa waktu lalu dan diminati oleh produser televisi luar negeri. Bahkan, serial lainnya, Kukurock You, sekarang juga telah memasuki beberapa episode dan memberi kesempatan bagi banyak animator, terutama lulusan SMK animasi.
Sumber : Hellomotion

.http://entertainment.kompas.com/read/2012/03/11/09221876/Agar.Animasi.Hidup.Animator.dan.Penulis.Cerita.Harus.Bekerja.Bareng

Character Designs for Kid-friendly Cartoons

Tue, Apr 14

3D Animation Projects, Animation Business, Licensing and Merchandising, Mediafreaks Articles

 

 

Cartoons always depend on their characters for success. For all the talk about the latest in 3D animation, the saturation of vivid colors, and the rendering of frames, most children will still notice the heroic character over the detailed background. Children will still idolize the funny character over the most realistic of environments. This is why for animators interested in creating their own intellectual properties, they should invest in the characteristics of the lead roles.
Here are some effective character guides which you can use for your characters to appeal to the kids – particularly the demographic of the toddler years. These characteristics can be used to help children identify with your characters:
1. Cute and cuddly. This one never gets old. Of course, children will always prefer huggable characters which they can turn into their pillows and playthings compared to hideous and scary lead characters. The point in creating a lovable cartoon charcter is to let them relate with the children – and we all know how cute and cuddly kids are.
Moreover, to get a maximum impact for the cuddly designs of your lead cartoon characters in mind, have them possess vibrant colors in their clothes. Cartoons, after all, are always about keeping the attention span of children and what better way to do that than attractive colors. Examples of enduring cartoon characters which perfected the cute-and-cuddly template are Winnie the Pooh and the Teletubbies.
Here is an example of a cute and cuddly cartoon animation series for pre-schoolers, Katakune. Created by our team here in the 3D animation studio, Mediafreaks:
2. Perky. This does not have to resort to the realm of slapstick. Characters which are perky and which possess a high energy level are more than likely to get the attention of kids. Dora the Explorer perfected this peg. Characters who are always happy will not only attract children, they can also teach them valuable lessons such as being optimistic.
3. Courageous. Adventure narratives are always a hit with children and a good way to teach them the virtues of self-reliance and perseverance is to come up with characters who glow with courage in such obstacle-ridden situations. Characters who do not fold in times of adversity will help show children that they should do the same. Of course, for toddlers any message is not easily conveyed – but at least it exposes them to the right values.
Our 3D animation studio team here at Mediafreaks tried this character peg with our lovable team of pooches led by the courageous Sedo Dog:
http://blog.media-freaks.com/character-designs-for-kid-friendly-cartoons/http://blog.media-freaks.com/character-designs-for-kid-friendly-cartoons/
4. Friendly. Lead characters who are friendly exhibit plenty of positive social skills which toddlers will eventually need as they first step into pre-school. Simple tasks such as greeting a friend, helping them out during difficult times and having fun with a group of friends will help imbibe to kids the value of interaction. This will help them avoid the pitfalls of being a loner or of being too selfish. This also helps nip the causes of bullying in the bud.
These are just guides to a lovable character. If the characters you create become successful to children worldwide, it can open doors of opportunities for character licensing deals for your intellectual properties. This is how you can assure the longevity of your cartoon animated series.
It surely helps to put one’s self in the shoes of children. After all, children does not know how it feels like to be an adult – but adults have no excuse forgetting the feeling of childhood (except maybe if they are like Benjamin Button).
But in any case, knowing that cartoons can greatly contribute to the growth of a child should be a motivation for animators to give their best to their craft.

Brand Licensing Discusses Character Licensing

Sun, Mar 

Licensing and Merchandising

The Brand licensing and Merchandising Show ’09, Mumbai, had Spacetoon’s Rajiv Sanghari, Graphiti’s Munjal Shroff and Extend Brands Mayuri Pitale discussing animation and character licensing. The session was moderated by LIMA’s Martin Borchstein.
Character licensing galore:
Talking about the licensing industry, Rajiv Sanghari said that entertainment/character licensing is the strongest vertical in the licensing business. “This vertical continues to be the strongest in the licensing business maintaining a 45% share in the market followed by trademarks/brands at 17% and fashion category at 15%.
Fido-the licensing biz hero:
Munjal Shroff, whose company Graphiti Multimedia has tied-up with Joanna Ferrone (creator of Fido Dido, popular as 7UP’s brand mascot) and is creating content around it, said that that the peppy and cool character was still popular with brands and consumers, attracting a lot of licensees.
Sharing a brief background about Fido and how it was created he said, “Fido is known as a huge trademark success throughout the US, Europe and Asia and is present in several categories such as apparel, shoes, stationary, accessories, soft drinks, etc.”
Fido was a case of enormous success for PepsiCo in the 80′s and still being used on the 7UP’s cans and advertisements in Argentina, Chile, Greece, UK, Ireland and India, amongst many other countries.
Key to successful licensing strategy:
Extend Brands’ Mayuri Pitale, whose company represents Popeye and many other characters, highlighted the key to a successful licensing strategy. She highlighted the need to identify the USP of the property and evolve with the target group, to continue building the property over the years and to strategize according to the product life cycle of a certain brand.

http://blog.media-freaks.com/brand-licensing-discusses-character-licensing/

Animation Storylines that Appeal to Kids

Animation Storylines that Appeal to Kids

Sun, Mar 29

3D Animation Projects, Animated Movies, Animation Business, Licensing and Merchandising, Mediafreaks Articles

Cartoons always have a special place in the heart of kids for its captivating colors and lovable characters. However, what separates the classic cartoon shows from all the lame pretenders is the quality of its storylines. This is what defines the cartoon series, whether it is a TV show or an animated movie. Thus, it is important to craft compelling plots with the following characteristics:
Adventure. Children has always been associated with curiosity and a storyline revolving around adventure will definitely satisfy this yearning for kids. Quests and voyages in fantastic worlds will not only excite the curiosity of children, they can be able to capture their vivid imagination.
There are different kinds of adventures which an animation content provider can always choose. Throughout the years, the often used device for adventure episodes are quests wherein the cartoon protagonists will venture out of their comfort zones to search for an important or missing item or person.
To develop the adventure plots, animation writers and even the storyboard artists should seek to develop obstacles which are challenging yet unique and fun nonetheless. Opt for visually-appealing landscape detour challenges for the cartoon characters to meet along the way. As content providers, you should imagine a distinct world for your cartoon show and let the child viewers experience this world. Kids should feel as though they can enter this world and experience the adventures of the characters as well.
Camarederie. The most famous animation characters in the world today such as Mickey Mouse, Pikachu and Garfield, to mention a few, maybe renowned as singular units. But these characters derive most of their value through plots and storylines involving their friends. The most effective way to show the depth of your superstar animation characters is to depict their interactions with their friends.
Craft stories which will be more effective when there are three or four characters helping each other to achieve the goals of the episodes. One of the more lovable parts of a cartoon series is watching its characters interact, help and play with each other. After all, what are memorable movie and TV show quotations but dialogues of well-loved characters with each other?
Camaraderie is an effective device to use in animation storylines as this will help show children that there is a whole world out there which can be shared with friends. Moreover, this will help children learn the virtues of unity and selflessness.
Good Versus Bad. This is one of the classic animation narrative techniques which never gets old for children: a black-and-white battle between good and bad. Create plots which kids can clearly differentiate who the heroic characters are from the antagonists. Once this is in order, organize scenes wherein the child viewers will side with the good guys. Compelling plots wherein the viewers would tune in to find out if the good guys will win is a tried-and-tested formula. Just recall how much you’ve rooted for Spongebob Squarepants for him to remain victorious over Squidward. These are the same dynamics which should be the goal of animation storylines.
It is important to make the antagonists not so evil, as some kids may emulate them. Also, remember to keep violence in check. It is the challenge for animation writers and storyboard artists to capture the attention and imagination of the viewers even without exploding pyrotechniques and violent scenes.
Moreover, since content providers have the opportunity to enrich the animation storyline, make sure that important values such as honesty, truthfulness and kindess become inculcated in the stories as moral values. Remember that cartoons go a long way in the development of a child. If you are behind the production team, simply ask yourself if you would want your child to watch the cartoon shows you are creating. Animated characters from excellent storylines are those that succeed in global character licensing.http://blog.media-freaks.com/animation-storylines-that-appeal-to-kids/