Sabah signs MoU with animation production company to boost digital creative content industry

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is looking to grow its digital creative content industry as well as local talent with the signing of a deal with one of Malaysia’s leading industry pioneers.

Qhazanah Sabah Berhad (Qhazanah), the strategic investment arm of the state government, signed a memorandum of understanding with renowned animation production company Giggle Garage Sdn Bhd (GGSB) here on Friday, September 9, to launch the Industry Bridging Program (IBP).

Ahmad Rizal (third from right) exchanging signed deals with Juhaidah as Salleh (second from right) and others watch.

GGSB is a local company that has made a name for itself on global streaming services, such as Netflix, with its anime shows that have reached audiences in over 100 countries.

His most popular animation, Cam & Leon, reached some 250 million views on Youtube, which convinced Qhazanah that GGSB, as one of the leading pioneers in the creative content industry in Malaysia, was the right partner. most appropriate to establish the IBP initiative.

Qhazanah Group CEO Ahmad Rizal Dahli said they hope the IBP will transform the creative industry in Sabah.

He added that they aim to help develop a local talent pool while paving the way for more employment opportunities in the creative sector.

“Through the IBP, we hope to tap into Sabahan’s existing talent pool for expansion and development by providing market access to the digital creative industry through regional and international collaborations,” he said. he said in a statement on Friday, September 9.

“The fact that GGSB was co-founded by Sabahans makes us more confident that the collaboration can pave the way for scaling content quality to international standards.

“We hope to see the ability of young digital animation creators in this state to be on par with other renowned digital animation companies.

“QSB believes that by providing them with the right support system, locally created content will captivate global audiences in the near future,” added Ahmad Rizal.

He said that while the creative industry had always been important to the economy, its growing dominance as one of the crucial engines to drive post-pandemic economic recovery in Malaysia and Southeast Asia was not. not gone unnoticed.

Ahmad Rizal represented Qhazanah while GGSB was represented by its Managing Director Juhaidah Joemin at the signing of the MoU in the presence of Qhazanah Group Deputy CEO Rudy Jaglul and GGSB Executive Director Zeno Gabing.

Meanwhile, Ahmad Rizal said Qhazanah also hopes the collaboration with GGSB could attract the attention of overseas digital content creators.

“That would hopefully prompt them to establish a base in Sabah.

“At Qhazanah, this is what we continue to strive for: to be objective in our role as a catalyst for growth and, in doing so, align our business with the core values ​​envisioned in the state’s Sabah Maju Jaya development plan” , did he declare.

Also present at the signing ceremony were Qhazanah Chairman Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak and Qhazanah Executive Director Mohd Shukor Abdul Mumin.