Iranian Producers Hopeful Of Good Response For Their TV Series

By Shanti Ayadurai KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 30 (Bernama) -- Iranian film producers, brothers Daryoush and Kianoush Dalvand, are hopeful of a good response from around the world for their 3D animated television series, "Muhammad, The Last Messenger of God". There have been so much of misunderstandings and wrongful portrayals of Islam and Prophet Muhammad, and it is hoped that such Islam-based films, portraying the real struggles and stories of the Prophet, will help create more understanding of Islam and to some extent help dispel misunderstandings, said Daryoush in an interview with Bernama. "The Prophet was kind, loving and just and treated everyone equally during his time, irrespective of their colour, race, creed and belief. Islamic stories are nothing more than about humanity and peace and these aspects are often overlooked or not known," he said. The Last Messenger, which is also available in a movie format, depicts the struggles and victory of the Prophet from the time he was aged 40 to his last days. It is the second 3D animation work directed by Kianoush, who also directed the 3D animated movie, "Battle of the Kings: Rostam and Sohrab", which was introduced on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival in France last year under the banners of Fantastic Films International and Aria Industry of Imagination. The Dalvand brothers, currently in Malaysia to promote their latest work, gave a presentation on the growing animation industry of Iran during a preview of the 26-episode television series at the film faculty of the National Academy of Arts, Culture and Heritage (Aswara) here last week. Daryoush said that unlike the very poor response from Iranians for Iran-made animated movies 10 years ago, there had been a marked improvement in their response for Iran's animated movies. Technology alone is not enough and various changes were made to achieve this level of success in animation, he said. "We have been looking only at the Iran market, but when we made the move to make the production more international, including an English version as well as with more audience research and better story-telling techniques, the response was overwhelming." Rostam and Sohrab, which was made using motion capture technology, not only earned well in the Iranian cinemas but also made an impression when it was screened on the sidelines of the 2012 Cannes Festival in France. More than 20 Los Angeles-based distributors expressed their interest to take up distributorship for the movie, produced at a cost of US$4.1 million (RM13.37 million). Music is also another international attraction factor, Daryoush said. There are great masters of Persian music in Iran but there has not been much updating in keeping with international taste, he said. For "Muhammad, The Last Messenger of God", music from various Islamic cultures, even if minute, have been used. Daryoush said they were also in talks with Malaysian television stations for their series. Profit has already been made in Iran, Turkey and Kurdistan and Iraq for the movie where distributors have already bought it for screening most likely next year, he said. The series would be also translated in various languages including Turkish, Albanian and Urdu. Based on the two episodes that were screened in Aswara's mini auditorium, there can be no denying that the producers have sought to make an animated series that is not only rich in its narration of Prophet Muhammad's life story but also in its use of technology, vibrant colours and music. Meanwhile, for Shakireen Mohd Yunus, 19, a first-year student from Aswara's Faculty of Multimedia and Animation, the talk and preview was a useful learning experience. Shakireen, who grew up on a "diet" of her father's collection of Marvel magazines and DC Comics, said her fascination with the world of comic books started very early. "I started reading my father's collection of Hong Kong comic books, and later on started exploring American and Japanese animation works." There are 30 students currently pursuing a Diploma in Multimedia and Animation at Aswara (the only higher Malaysia's learning institution in performing area), said Rasfan Abu Bakar, a lecturer with the faculty. The first batch of 11 students will be graduating in 2014, Rasfan said, adding that career prospects were good for them in view of the growing demand for such skills in the country. --BERNAMA