18 Jun – The newly formed Malaysian Enigmar Studio is set to bring high-level tech to provide quality visual effects and more into local creative and film industries.
Speaking in an interview with NST recently, co-founder Joanne Goh, known most as a film producer and founder of the Malaysian International Film Festival and Golden Global Awards, stated, “My mission is to promote Malaysia internationally, especially to the talented people around the world. I hope to bring them to Malaysia to do work here. We need more talent to grow the local industry and for the international markets to come here.”
The studio is co-founded with US-based Korean VF expert Jae Cheol Hong, who has over 25 years of experience in the field having worked in Hollywood for the likes of Lucasfilm’s Industrial Light & Magic and Disney Animation Studios, and supervised the visual effects for movies like “Battleship” and “Iron Man”.
Said Jae, “Malaysia has so many talented young people. To grow in the VFX industry, they just need dedication and hard work. It requires teamwork and the setting up of a working pipeline to bring in a group of really experienced personnel that will be supplemented by the hiring of people from here who will be trained.”
Through the studio, the two plan to open a training facility as well as equip college and university students.
“I will try to expand the industry here with high-end tech related to XR (Extended Reality). The tech will save a lot of time and money, and allow more creative flexibility for projects and productions which is why more people are starting to utilise it,” Jae said.
Goh, meanwhile, revealed that they would be working closely with the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (FINAS) and the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), adding that Hollywood filmmakers are always looking for new VFX companies for cost-effective work.
“We’re grooming local talent, utilising our own resources, and providing opportunities. It’s an exciting time. We are planning to make Malaysia creative and film industry tech hub for Southeast Asia before expanding to other regions like China, South Korea, and Japan,” she added.
