I have known Sen for about 5 years now. During that time we have finished our studies, made our first film and worked side by side on many projects, both commercial and personal.
After all this time I still remain amazed by Sen’s dedication, sacrifices and his love for the art. I have witnessed Sen growing a lot as a person and animator. A sign to this growth is his latest film ‘Satay-Satay’, which shows Sen embracing his roots with a personal yet entertaining story that delivers a strong message to the viewer.
This book is only but a small insight into Sen’s vivid imagination and you’ll need to add the time factor of animation to truly appreciate his talent.
I’d like to thank Sen for his inspiration, support and friendship.
Enjoy the Senimation!
By Paul Lalo
_____
It was about one year ago that I was working with Sen on a pilot episode for a children’s TV series. We were part of a team of 4 artists, whose role it was to begin fleshing out the series, and to make it appealing to kids.
A few days into the project we still had no concrete theme to base the series around. The group of us were at the food court in our lunch break, going back and forth between ideas, making small progress but hadn’t yet reached a solid concept to run with. The conversation that took place over the meal is quite hazy in my memory. One minute we were eating, then we were talking about cartoons, then for some reason we were talking about food - then Sen said something along the lines of “One thing that grabs kid’s attention, is having cartoons filled with FOOD!”
That was the turning point for the whole project. A wave of clarity washed over the group as we all sat quietly for a brief moment, nodding while we pondered how such a simple idea seemed so appealing. Food became the central focus of the series from this moment on.
Sen’s film Satay Satay is his newest work, also featuring food. It follows the story of a bratty young boy, who’s lust for Satay drives him to do bad deeds to get what he wants. I believe the film’s main strength is its ability to relate to kids. Every kid knows the pain of being denied that piece of junk food that they yearn for so badly.
A lot of great art was made during the production of Satay Satay, and this book contains all the ingredients that went into creating such an enjoyable film.
By James Lee
_____
Somehow I think Sen believes there’s 48 hours in a day, and every second of every minute has to be spent either animating or thinking about animation. This is the only valid explanation I can come up with, his work ethic and passion is limitless.
Sen has unknowingly been a great teacher to me and many others, and most importantly over the last year, I believe Sen’s understanding of the medium, in terms of draughtsman ship, story telling, ideas and concepts have become much clearer to him.
Good stories are those which tell the truth, a human truth, evoking in us images which we all can relate though aren’t necessarily proud to admit. It appears Sen has made ‘Satay Satay” with this in mind. The narrative touches on emotions which are quite personal to Sen, while being presented in an aesthetic style which perfectly reflect Sen’s personality.
By Steven Smith
Finally, I filled in the color and shadow where needed.
