First Impressions: Indonesian Animation Film “Jumbo” Weaves a Storybook Tale of Love, Loss, and Growth
There is no warmer feeling than returning to the embrace of childhood, where stories flowed softly from a mother’s or grandmother’s lips. Jumbo, an animated film by director and animator Ryan Adriandhy, distills that feeling into a film. Warm, touching, and nostalgic. Described by Adriandhy as a tribute to Indonesia’s children, EnVi takes you through a first look of how the film also serves as a step toward bolstering the nation’s animation industry.
From Imagination to the Big Screen
Behind the film’s success is a five-year journey of dedication and collaboration. This film is not just the result of Adriandhy’s hard work but also the result of the collaborative effort of 400 Indonesian creative talents who came together to create a high quality and meaningful project.
The journey began in 2019, when Irfan Ramli and Adrian Qalbi first conceptualized the story. Like Flow (2024), Jumbo’s story was brought to life by Blender. As Head of Animation Development at Visinema Studios, Adriandhy stressed the importance of thorough research when building Jumbo’s world, so that it feels authentic and reflects Indonesian culture. He likened the process to making kue lapis, which directly translates to a layer cake: full of patience and requires attention to detail.
Adriandhy explains that each second of animation requires 24 detailed illustrations that must be given color, sound, and put together with great detail. “The main challenge in making animation is creating everything from scratch, unlike live action movies that already have elements such as actors and real locations,” he reveals.
This is evident at how the rich details in the film come to life. Pastel colors and a bright palette bring a warm atmosphere to the film — reminiscent of a bedtime story. Every scene is done meticulously, from the flair of their hair, the way clothes fold, and the glimmer on their skin to the reflection of light on the puddles in the narrow alley streets.
Truly Indonesian at Its Core
Jumbo depicts a very familiar scene to every Indonesian: the panjat pinang, a greasy pole-climbing competition held during Independence Day. Contestants collaborate by climbing the pole like marathon runners as they attempt to claim prizes at the top. There are other details like hand-painted banners, vibrant mobile food stalls, and densely populated housing characterized by the modular bright-red clay roofs. Beyond the backgrounds and architecture, characters speak in various regional dialects, which display the ethnic diversity and strengthen the authentic local feel.
With a setting so close to everyday life, it feels like audiences are watching an animated storybook. For children, the film captures the essence of neighborhoods they know and love, while adults are transported back to the cherished memories of their own childhoods.
The Simplicity of the Complexity of Life
Don, who is also known by his friends as Jumbo (Prince Poetiray as the adult and Den Bagus Sasono as the child), is a boy who loves fairy tale books left behind by his parents who are both writers. He is then raised by his grandmother Oma (Ratna Riantiarno).
Image courtesy of Visinema Studios
The story is split into five parts, with the central conflict taking flight when Don’s prized storybook, intended to enter a local talent show competition, is stolen by Atta (M. Adhiyat). He teams up with his two best friends, Nurman (Yusuf Ozkan) and Mae (Graciella Abigail) to reclaim his book. Along the way, they meet Meri (Quinn Salman), a girl from another dimension searching for her missing parents.
What attracts the most attention is Atta’s character, initially viewed as an antagonist, Atta is a complex character shaped by economic limitations and personal struggles. His mischievous attitude towards Don is inversely proportional to his behavior at home. Audience will have to watch the film to find out why Atta acts the way he does in public.
It’s not just Atta. All the characters featured in the film flashes back to imperfect stories, reminding the audience that the world isn’t strictly black and white, that we are complex human beings. At the core, we are simply human. Though it is packaged as an animated film, Jumbo dares to grapple with complex issues, such as child bullying, grief, trauma, and the complexities of growing up without biological parents.
Jumbo raises relevant issues to both young and old viewers through Don, a young boy facing bullying while striving to prove himself through performing arts, which reflects Indonesia’s social reality. Tackling complex issues with simplicity, Jumbo offers us a story that remains child-friendly, providing space for us to understand the complexity of life in the simplest way.
Always in Your Heartbeat
The film’s main soundtrack, titled “Selalu Ada di Nadimu” (Always in Your Heartbeat) by Prince Poetiray and Quinn Salman, shows how one person remains in another person’s mind even when they’re physically gone. Jumbo uses this song to accompany the most emotional moments in the movie, often eliciting a few tears from the audience.
The melody in this song is wrapped in calm yet wrenching tones. There is nothing grand about the instruments, which gives room for the vocals to stand out and convey raw emotions through its heartfelt lyrics. This song acts as a bridge between cherished memories and a reality marked by pain yet tinged with beauty.
Theatrical Impact
Upon its release during Eid al-Fitr, Jumbo attracted more than 140,000 viewers in the first three days, with more than 1,700 screenings across 500 screens and still counting. Jumbo proves that local animation has a special place in the hearts of the audience.
Apart from its domestic success, Jumbo is also scheduled to screen in 17 other countries, including Turkey, Malaysia, and Singapore, starting in June 2025. Jumbo is living proof that the works of the Indonesian creative industry can compete among the international animation industry while strengthening its presence globally. With it, Jumbo hopes to bring a strong message about the importance of family, friendship, and courage.
Adriandhy and the Visinema Studios team pave the way for growth of Indonesian animation and inspire the next generation of Indonesian creatives.
Looking for something to watch? Check out our First Impressions of Gannibal here!
