Jakarta – October 14. Kina is a cheerful young girl with a magnetic attraction to the sea. She loves snorkelling among coloured little fish and other incredible sea creatures that have given her a source of joy throughout her life. When the outgoing Kina realises that pollution is endangering the marine environment, she decides to take matters into her own hands, rallying others to join her cause.

Such is the simple and yet powerful narrative of a short animated film called  “Kina the Ocean Girl” which took home the  first place in the ATSEA-2 Animation Contest. The 1.5-minute video earned its creators, Aisha Alsakina, Firmansyah CU, Megan Nandia and Puguh Rohmanu the top prize of USD 1,000. With colourful interpretation of an undersea life, the story encourages audience to re-assess the relationship between humans and marine ecosystems in the Arafura and Timor Seas (ATS) region, home to some of the world’s richest marine biodiversity. The video also informs viewers about the various type of pollution endangering sea creatures such as plastic and noise coming from industrial ships.

In September 2011, the GEF/UNDP/PEMSEA ATSEA-2 Programme invited people from all over  the world to submit short, animated videos expressing the urgency of ocean conservation, under the theme: “Uniting the Arafura and Timor Seas.” Anyone over the age of 18 could submit the animated video to the #ATSEAchallenge, and the online judging process involved two specialised panels and a general jury.

“I hope through this contest, we can make an impact,” explained Ronny Gani, one of the expert judges and a senior animator who has worked on film and TV projects such Space Jam: A New Legacy, The Mandalorian, Avengers: End Game, Ready Player One, Ant-Man and Pacific Rim. “We may be artists who have no environmental background, but we can do our part to contribute and deliver the message to save the ocean,” he added.

Other judges included notable experts from the world of visual storytelling, such as Indra AD; the creator of the webtoon series Dracko Diary and maker of the Amsterdamned music video for Yellow Claw, as well as one of the key animators for the movie Battle of Surabaya. He was joined on the panel by Astiti Sukatrilaksana, a gender champion and the Head of Human Resources at UNDP Indonesia. “Each of us can contribute to raising the awareness of ocean protection among our community,” Astiti told the participants, adding “and using your talent to help people to understand the importance of saving our ocean,” she added.

The second place and a prize of US$500 went to Elanda Fikri for his video “Marine Life is in Our Hands”, while third place and a prize of US$250 was given to Jessica Clara for her video “How to Reduce Marine Pollution.” Honourable Mention was also awarded to Indira NT and Jean M, for their video “Small Impacts”.

The ATS region is unique in its ecology, geography and socio-political structure. Home to a vast array of natural wonders, this area provides the peoples of many nations with essential resources, while also stocking the world’s oceans with biodiversity. With the participation of dozens of amazing animators, the ATSEA-2 Animation Contest helped share these wonders with a wider audience, telling conservation stories through fresh media and encouraging the public to make a difference in their lives by showcasing creativity and highlighting the intrinsic links between the ocean and human lives. 

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Text by Aryo Djiptohandono (ATSEA-2 Programme)

Edited by Tomi Soetjipto