‘Upin and Ipin’ reaches new heights
With well-loved folklore to appeal to a wider audience, the Les’ Copaque Production has chalked up a record in ticket sales in the animated film category, writes Tahir Alhamzah
BY now, it is safe to assume that most of us know who Upin and Ipin are. For the uninitiated, they are the eponymous twin brothers who were first created as part of the cute cast of characters for the 2007 animated movie, Geng: Pengembaraan Bermula.
It was also during that time when the short animated series Upin & Ipin was aired specially for Ramadan that year.
The Les’ Copaque Production has been well-received by not just Malaysian children, but also those in the region such as in Singapore, Brunei and Indonesia.
Fun fact: Since the fourth season of the series, its opening theme song is Sahabat Selamanya by popular Indonesian band Padi.
Adding to the appeal is Upin & Ipin: Keris Siamang Tunggal, Les’ Copaque’s second full-length animated film which premiered in cinemas on March 21.
After three weeks of screening, the animation movie, which took five years and RM20 million to make, raked in RM25 million.
This represents the highest record of all time in the animated film category here, surpassing international movies like The Incredibles 2, which previously held that record.
“It took Upin & Ipin: Keris Siamang Tunggal three weeks, while The Incredibles 2 took three months to achieve that figure,” says Les’ Copaque Production producer and managing director Burhanuddin Md Radzi.
ENGAGE ADULT AUDIENCES
Upin & Ipin: Keris Siamang Tunggal at a wider audience.
The risk paid off handsomely, as some watched it many times, which enabled the movie to sell over two million tickets. Interestingly, many viewers were not children,” says Burhanuddin.
“The positive comments on social media have been very encouraging. They confirmed our suspicions that it was the right decision to make the movie more accessible and relatable to a wider audience.
“Another winning element was the inclusion of the country’s well-loved folklore. This is a great way to engage adult audiences who grew up hearing their elders tell such stories.
“Some watched the movie again later, without their children in tow!
“What’s more flattering to us is that the movie has drawn many adults who are not necessarily moviegoers.
AROUND THE WORLD
“I intend to take the movie on a world tour,” jokes Burhanuddin.
Quips aside, Upin & Ipin: The Lone Gibbon Kris (the movie title in English) will be screened in cinemas in Vietnam (April 26) and Indonesia (May 9).
For the markets where Malay is a foreign language, the dubbing process is handled by the distributors.
“However, for Vietnam, we have a deal where we work together with the distributor to dub into Vietnamese,” says co-director Ahmad Razuri Roseli.
While Upin & Ipin the series has long been well-received by Indonesian TV viewers, signing a deal with Cinema 21, the republic’s biggest cinema operator, is a milestone.
“Cinema 21 only distributes and screens Indonesian movies as well as those from Hollywood. Except for Polis Evo 2 (which premiered in Indonesian cinemas yesterday and is titled Police Evo), ours will be among the very few Malaysian-made films distributed by the cinema operator,” adds Burhanuddin.
Les’ Copaque is working to close deals with distributors from China, India and United States.
“We’ve also received very good response from a distributor in Uzbekistan.”
Les’ Copaque Production subsidiary Les’ Copaque Games Development Inc has released a game app based on the movie.
“So far we’ve released the first chapter, based on this movie and content which is a prequel to it,” says Ahmad Razuri.
The app will have six chapters available on Android and iOS platforms.
It took Upin & Ipin: Keris Siamang Tunggal three weeks, while The Incredibles 2 took three months to achieve that figure.
Burhanuddin Md Radzi