Hollywood-based VFX house 42 Entertainment is creating a universe of characters for a Malaysian action-thriller feature film set in the jungles of Sabah, Borneo.

Adapted from a novel by Malaysian author Ramlee Awang Murshid,Tombiruo is the saga of a man raised by a hermit who is ostracized because of his deformity, which he hides beneath a mask. Eventually Tombiruo realizes his destiny is to protect others and the jungle as the spirit of the jungle.

Now shooting, the film is co-directed by Malaysia’s Nasir Jani (whose credits include Kembara Seniman Jalanan and Rozana Cinta 87) and Australian Seth Larney.  Larney is making his feature directing debut after working in visual effects on many movies including The Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions, Star Wars: Revenge Of The Sith andSuperman Returns, and directing behind-the-scenes footage for X-Men Origins: Wolverine, The Lego Movie: Piece de Resistance and The Guardians of Ga’Hoole.

The producers are Malaysian entertainment conglomerate Astro Shaw, Ideate Media, the country’s largest publisher Grup Buku Karangkraf and Layar Sunan, supported by the film development agency National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (FINAS). “I am thrilled to bring my previous experience to Tombiruo and at the same time gain new experiences about Malaysian film making,” Larney said.

The film is being shot in Malay and in a native dialect unique to Sabah, Kadazan-Dusun. “ There is increasing acceptance of South East Asian languages with international audiences in the last five years and we think this adds to the uniqueness of our films,” head of Astro Shaw Najwa Abu Bakar tells FORBES. “As with Astro Shaw’s other films that have traveled outside Malaysia, we will provide English subtitles and where required dubbed tracks in various languages.”

Astro Shaw will release Tombiruo theatrically in Malaysia and Borneo and Zainir Aminullah, CEO of Ideate Media, is sourcing an international distributor. 42E, which has worked on some of Hollywood’s top franchises including DC Comics, Marvel, Indiana Jones, Tron, Star Trek and Halo, is creating the characters both for the feature and premium TV products.Link to original article on Forbes.com here https://www.forbes.com/sites/dongroves/2016/08/23/42-entertainment-creates-characters-for-malaysian-action-thriller-tombiruo/#54dd87b44fed