Local cartoons culturally rich but lack original character

By Yusuf Susilo

JAKARTA (JP): Japanese, American and European cartoons have their own characteristics. It is, therefore, only natural that observers, animators and cartoonists are eager to see Indonesian cartoons with Indonesian character.

We used to have Si Unyil, produced by the state-owned Film Production Company and aired by the state-owned television station TVRI between 1981 and 1992.

Today, while we the country is becoming culturally richer, it is impoverished in terms of genuinely Indonesian fantasies in the form of cartoons. Many of cartoons here have a Japanese or American flair.

"Our animated cartoons and comic strips have something in common with our architecture. We are culturally rich, so it is increasingly more difficult for us to create uniquely Indonesian characters," said Indrasari Satyowati, president director of PT Asiana Wang Animation, a company that produces cartoons for the international market.

It is the task of cartoonists and animators to create their own characteristics and styles. Still, in the opinion of Rahayu S. Hidayat, the chairwoman of the Indonesian Comic Society, it is necessary for each cartoonist and animator to realize the significance of including Indonesian characteristics in their work. Her example is the cartoon Dongeng untuk Aku dan Kau (Tale for You and Me), a Red Rocket production.

Drawing on his rich experience working on the cartoon Serial Satria Indonesia (Series of Indonesian Heroes) in 1995 and a number of other titles and television commercials, animator Partono emphasized that creating a figure with regional character traits was easier than creating an entirely new figure with genuinely Indonesian character traits. He was speaking during a discussion held as part of the Third National Comic and Animated Cartoon Week (PKAN III).

Partono, who once studied in Japan, also said that long before the emergence of animation, there were already such cartoon-like figures as the giant and royal servants in the shadow plays.

He said that in the future, animators should graphically redesign the shadow play figures to inject into them more cartoony elements.

It was in this effort to find true Indonesian characters that the then director general of culture, Edi Sedyawati, initiated in 1994 a comic strip contest. This annual contest has in the past three years been accompanied by a National Comic Strip and Animated Cartoon Week. These two events are still held, now under the auspices the present director general of culture, IGN Anom.

Many prominent figures in the world of comic strips and cartoons, from famed cartoonist Dwi Koen to university lecturer Rahayu Hidayat, have served on the jury for the contest. Unfortunately, as Anom has lamented, the choices made by the jury are not to the liking of large publishers. Even when the comic strips were later published by state publisher Balai Pustaka, the characters in the cartoons could no compete with the popularity of Crayon Sinchan or Superman.

Cartoonist Dwi Koen cited an example of this Crayon Sinchan phenomenon. The controversial comic featuring a five-year old naughty boy named Sinchan which is actually adult rated but most loved by children.

"Crayon Sinchan is one of Japanese animations which have been dominating local children films. To certain degrees, this animated product is quite funny, but if we watch it very carefully, the content of the story is quite vulgar and improper to underage viewers," explained Dwi.

Dwi continued that such product is very popular among children because the producers are very clever in the marketing strategy. Sinchan cartoon has been supported with the publication of its comic version, toys and other merchandise.

One reason why Indonesian animation fails in the market is a lack of promotion and marketing strategy. The reality is that every product must be intensively promoted or, regardless of its quality, it will fail to sell or favorably impress prospective buyers.

On a number of occasions, Edi emphasized the need to boost promotional activities and professionally handle the marketing of our cultural products.

Poppy Palele, Red Rocket Animation executive producer, agrees, stressing that character will gain greater popularity if it is more intensively promoted.

That is why large studios with the financial wherewithal are constantly engaged in large-scale promotional activities, with the support of their international networks and merchandising capabilities. This allows them to create a buzz about their products (a cartoon character, in this case) within a short span of time, even if the product itself is not necessarily good.

Investors and partners are key to marketing a product (a cartoon character). In this context, Indrasari said her firm was working out partnerships with British and Malaysian investors for the production of cartoons about orangutans, which will be sold on the international market.

Meanwhile, Gotot Prakosa of the Jakarta Arts Institute, is deeply concerned by the great number of Indonesian cartoons that will not gain access to the international market. Many of them, made with only a small budget, are produced with pirated software purchased in Glodok.

As a result, regardless of the fine characters in the films, the international market is sure to reject them. The standing regulation in the international animated cartoon market is only products made with legal software can be accepted.

"Many of the animated cartoons aired on television here as commercials have been produced with pirated software, as are the animated cartoons entered in the contest in PKAN 2001," said Gotot, who is a well-known filmmaker and animator.

While there are still many problems in the creation of uniquely Indonesian characters in cartoons, legal offenses resulting from the use of illegal software in the production of cartoons are looming large in the country's animated cartoon world.