Google Doodle celebrates Malaysia's animation pioneer Kamn Ismail

By: Patrick Beech

Google's animated Doodle on its search engine page celebrated the late Kamarudin Ismail, a Malaysian cartoonist and pioneer in animation.

Google's Doodle commemorating the birthday of cartoonist Kamarudin Ismail, or better known as Kamn Ismail.

Kamarudin, or better known as Kamn Ismail, was responsible for creating Malaysia's first superhero, Keluang Man.

"From having no experience to studying and experimenting with computer software to create his animation and the successful outcome that we all saw on our TV screen," said Judy Wong, Google Malaysia's product marketing manager at the company's headquarter yesterday.

"Kamn's effort of building a community to uphold local content and giving back to the new generation is a testament to his legacy.

"On what would be his 67th birthday, we celebrate Kamn Ismail and his significant contribution to Malaysia's animation.”

Based on DC Comic's Batman, the Keluang Man cartoon series  gained popularity from its first appearance on RTM1 in 1998.

Kamarudin was born onFeb 8 in 1956 in the small seaside town of Pengkalan Balak, Melaka. He fell in love with drawing as a child and dreamed of becoming a comic artist.

When he was a teenager, his skills attracted the attention of the McMillen Film Company, which hired him to oversee the creative aspects of a movie called Paper Tiger.

Usop Sontorian, the first animated television series produced in Malaysia, launched Kamn's career in digital animation.

It took nearly three years and 94 dedicated employees to produce a total of 49 episodes, which were aired on RTM's TV1. Usop Santorian's success boosted confidence in the local animation industry.

He later became a director at UAS Animation Studios, where he created the hit animation series Keluang Man.

He brought the character to life by blending 2D and 3D animation, which was considered an innovative technique for its time.

His work won numerous prizes such as the Best Animated Film at the Malaysia Film Festival, and he was named a Malaysian Animation Icon.

Kamarudin died on Dec 8, 2019 at the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre.