Chances are, you are probably no stranger to information technology giant Google and have used a number of their services at some point in your daily life. This is especially true of their search engine, with its familiar burst of red, blue, yellow and green. However on occasion to commemorate special events or people, the company has been known to replace their corporate logo on the search engine homepage with a piece of commemorative artwork dubbed a ‘Google Doodle’.
Meet Malaysian animation pioneer Mr Kamn Ismail
And if you’ve been logging onto your computer recently, you’d have noticed that today’s Google Doodle is dedicated to Mr Kamarudin Ismail, otherwise known as Kamn Ismail, the pioneering trailblazer behind Malaysia’s animation industry!
As Google’s profile on the beloved animator documents, Ismail was born on February 8th, 1962 in the town of Pengkalan Balak, Malacca. As a child, he had already displayed an affinity for the arts and fell in love with drawing, eventually hoping that he would one day become a comic book artist.
Upon entering his teenaged years, his talent was quickly recognised by industry players from the McMillen Film Company, where he would work on a film known as Paper Tigers that debuted in 1975.
Unfortunately, his stint with the UK-based company would be short lived. With his father fearing that he would not earn a stable living from his work as a cartoonish and cautioning him against joining the nascent animation industry in Malaysia at the time, Ismail decided to put his milieu on hold and take up various positions within Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) over the course of 17 years instead.
Learning animation in secret led to breakout gig with Usop Sontorian
But far from one to brush aside his dreams without so much as a thought, Ismail continued to pursue his passion in secret and eventually picked up computer animation as a skill in his spare time.
This would finally set him on the right path to join the industry under Kharisma Pictures, where he trained the company’s staff and directed the nation’s first-ever animation series, Usop Sontorian. The 49-episode television show would go on to become a local hit, all of which was made possible by a 94-strong team across the span of three years.
According to The New Straits Times, the series would also receive international airtime at the 6th International Animation Festival in Hiroshima, Japan in 1996, with Ismail leading the Malaysian delegation.
Malaysian superhero, Keluang Man, makes his debut
With the local animation industry finding firm footing off the success of Usop Sontorian, Ismail went on to assume the position of director at UAS Animation Studios in 1997. This would be where he saw even further success by creating one of Malaysia’s most popular animated icons, Keluang Man.
His work on the series was not only a cultural phenomenon for an entire generation of Malaysians, but was also a technical landmark in itself for being the first locally produced animation series to combine two-dimensional animation with a three-dimensional backdrop.
Ismail remained as among one of the most well-regarded figures within local animation and founded his own company, Quest Animations, in 2001. Among some of the company’s most notable productions include Che Nat, which went on to secure third place at the First International Festival of Television Productions of Islamic Countries in Tehran, Iran in 2001, Kumang which won ‘Best Animation’ at the 16th Malaysian Film Festival, as well as the animated series Mat Kilau.
Kamn Ismail has always been well-regarded by the local scene
Given the breadth of his works and his passion for propelling the animation industry forward, his success as one of the most crucial creatives in Malaysia has been widely recognised locally.
Ismail was awarded the 2012 Cartoon Activist Award (Tokoh Penggiat Kartun) that was presented to him by then-Prime Minister Najib Razak, and was jointly named ‘Malaysian Animation Icon’ by the Malaysia Cartoon and Comic House as well as Animas during 2018’s Malaysia Cartoon and Comic House’s Cartoonist Day awards night.
Professional work aside, Ismail went on to establish the Animation Society of Malaysia (Animas) in 2001, together with fellow animators Hassan Abd Muthalib and Hisham Harun Hashim. The society aims to promote and enhance the local field of animation, bolster and encourage education in animation, as well as promote animation’s capacity for storytelling and its expansion into new media.
Ismail passed away in 2019 at the age of 63, but his legacy continues to live evermore through the lively world of animated works that bear his name.
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Also read: Meet pioneering M’sian zoologist Dr Lim Boo Liat, who has been honoured today with a Google Doodle!
