Ensemble Worldwide Malaysia releases animated Raya film for PETRONAS giving thanks to neighbourly kindness
Ensemble Worldwide Malaysia and PETRONAS have released a fully animated festive film, to celebrate Raya in line with the PETRONAS festive films theme of 2020-2021, ‘Our Unique Family’.
Titled ‘Syukur Raya’, the film explores themes of compassion and kindness through a fun and cheeky ‘seloka’ – Malay poetry put to music that carries life lessons. The narrator, a spotted dove named Syuk-kur – a wordplay of ‘syukur’ (thankfulness) and ‘tekukur’ (the Malay word for dove) –acts as witness to the goings-on in a local neighbourhood. The main character Poji, a delivery rider, misses his hometown to the point he envisions his fierce next-door neighbour, Mak Jah, as his own mother.
Ahmad Nazril Ibrahim, Creative Director of Ensemble Worldwide, said: “The film celebrates the spirit of ‘semangat kejiranan’ (neighbourly kindness), inspiring selflessness in tough times and helping us discover the meaning of family even when we’re apart from our own. When creating the storyline, we looked at the multiple layers of what family means, to really dig deep into the true spirit of togetherness and generosity of Aidilfitri.”
The film sees the charismatic bird narrate the feelings of Poji and his friends alongside Mak Jemah and their neighbours. Initially disheartened about the aloofness of Mak Jah, and being unable to go home to family, they finally revive their festive spirit by a gift of ‘rendang’ (traditional festive dish) by her.
PETRONAS Senior General Manager of Group Strategic Communications, Datin Anita Azrina Abdul Aziz, said: “In light of the ongoing pandemic, we embarked on a journey to produce fully animated webfilms to expand on PETRONAS’ festive theme of ‘Our unique family’. We place a very high importance in following SOPs, and in doing an animated spot, we avoided face-to-face film shoots which may have compromised the parties involved in the production. This also gave us a chance to showcase the great talent pool in Malaysia’s animation industry. As they say, with great change comes even greater opportunities, and we at PETRONAS are extremely glad to embrace new ways of working for transformation and progress.”
Ibrahim says: “As creatives, we need to firstly resonate with the brand and what it stands for. We are honoured to be working with PETRONAS, a renowned global brand yet very much homegrown and loved by Malaysians. We were empowered to push boundaries, bring in fresh perspectives, and make a difference in our craft. Creating animated webfilms for PETRONAS has given us the opportunity to do so as the changes around us continue to stimulate new ways of thinking. For Syukur Raya, we were inspired by the many stories of people coming together to bring joy to others. It also pays tribute to our delivery partners, the unspoken heroes who have been working tirelessly as front liners to support our daily lives.”
“The culmination of this film was a true demonstration of neighbourly spirit from start to finish, with all parties working in sync to get it off the ground, and for that, we are truly thankful. There were also several cheeky “easter eggs” included, as we always do within our festive films, and we hope everyone has fun finding them.”
The production team includes Reserve Tank as the production house, Fly Studio, Kodokawa Gempak Starz as animation studio and Real Time Studios as audio house. Music composed by Mohd Rizdzuwan Bin Mohd Jusoh, and Hyrul & Ensemble Worldwide as lyricists, with music arrangement by Mohd Rizdzuwan Bin MD Jusoh and Real Time Studios.
The film also features well-known Malaysian musican and composer Datuk M. Nasir and his wife Datin Marlia Musa.
The PETRONAS festive films’ theme of 2021 extends the theme of ‘Our Unique Family’ from 2020, for PETRONAS to continue to bring and spread joy to all Malaysians. This effort is amplified in 2021 to encompass family in a larger sense – from the family you know to the family you discover, and to the communities you serve.
‘Syukur Raya’ released on 6th May on PETRONAS’ official YouTube channel and Facebook page, and has over 5 million views in total thus far.
Alongside this, a ‘Raya Joy Pack’ comprising ‘Syukur Raya’ stickers and backdrop scenes to be used via WhatsApp and social media can be downloaded via the PETRONAS Facebook page.
