Highlight RED AND WHITE ONE FOR ALL, BINUS Lecturer: "Honesty in Creating is Important"

"If animation generally has a story, we model according to the story. This animation has a story, but the modeling is taken, bought. I do not blame the purchase, because I also do not know the licensing for the assets that were bought. But even though it may be allowed for commercial use, it feels inappropriate. An animation studio... when wanting to tell something, everything visual should come from the production process in that studio itself," he said during an interview with KapanLagi.com, Monday, (11/8).

Victor also reminded that the claim of this film as the first national animated work is not entirely true. "There used to be a film called Battle of Surabaya, made by Amikom, Jogja, and that was also a two-dimensional animation. So it is not the first with a national theme," he asserted.

He believes that improper marketing can trigger negative reactions, especially for the public who are already aware of the history of Indonesian animated films. For Victor, the strength of animation lies in its ability to convey stories that are difficult to realize through live action. "Any medium that is storytelling-driven starts with the story. The story must be interesting first, then from that story it goes down to the technical media," he explained.

Regarding the production funds that are said to reach Rp6.7 billion, Victor considers that amount reasonable if the production process is carried out correctly. However, he expressed surprise because Merah Putih One for All reportedly was completed in just two months. "Based on such results, I think with this budget, we can calculate. The asset price. If we buy everything without animating, it would be around 15-20 million," he stated.

He then explained that ideal animation production generally takes a long time. "Jumbo, if I'm not mistaken, took 5 years to produce. Even up to 10 years. If this uses one PC, it can be parallel, or use a render farm. But the time units can be seen. That's just the technical side. Not including voice over, not including post-pro, not including story developing, not including marketing," he added.

When asked whether the emergence of Merah Putih One for All is a setback for the Indonesian animation industry, Victor disagreed. "Not really. When something big happens, there will always be waves that follow it on the left and right. That's a natural thing in the creative world," he said. He likened this phenomenon to riding the wave that often occurs after the birth of a major work in the film industry.

Nevertheless, Victor believes there is a positive side to the public's buzz about this film. According to him, this can serve as an education for viewers to recognize works created with sincerity. "PR training seems necessary for creative industry players; when they receive feedback, they should know how to respond," he said. He concluded with a message that he considers important: "Honesty in creation. We must be honest with our own work, as we are the ones who know its content."As a teacher and practitioner, Victor hopes Indonesian filmmakers will be bolder in creating animations born from a love for the work, rather than just following trends or pursuing profit. "The best animation, in my opinion, is when the creator truly loves their work. Not rushing, not creating works based on current demands that are popular," he stated. He cited Bumi Langit, which, although not an animation, was adapted from a graphic novel IP with a large budget, but its business aspects were less considered. "I hope animation will be like that too. The more storytellers who dare to take animation as a medium," he concluded.