Museum Man Apologises For Claiming Upin & Ipin Had An Indonesian Origin Story
The YouTuber stressed that the video had no intention of “claiming” Upin & Ipin as a product of Indonesia, and admitted that the series belongs to Malaysia.
- Frans Sanjaya and museum worker Sadan apologised for claiming Upin & Ipin had Indonesian origins, stressing they never intended to "claim" the series.
- Upin & Ipin was created by Shah Alam-based studio Les Copaque, officially premiering on Malaysian TV on 14 September 2007.
- The show's massive popularity in Indonesia, heavy localisation, and shared cultural values likely contributed to confusion about its origins.
- The introduction of Jakarta character Susanti, alongside shared language and kampung lifestyles, gives Indonesian viewers a strong sense of connection to the show.
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An Indonesian YouTuber, Frans Sanjaya, recently landed in hot water after he uploaded a video where a museum employee claimed that the characters from Upin & Ipin, a popular animated television series in Malaysia, was initially created by a group of animators from Jakarta and Bandung.
The video, which has been removed and reuploaded by others, claimed that the titular characters of the show were not two, but one character named “Aripin”.
It also claimed that the animation project was submitted to an Indonesian television broadcaster in 2008, but did not receive any response. This narrative then told that the intellectual property was sold to Malaysia, until it developed into the popular Upin & Ipin series.
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Checks by TRP found that this statement is impossible, as Upin & Ipin officially premiered in Malaysia on 14 September 2007, on TV9.
Frans uploaded an apology video following backlash from Malaysians
The content creator later published a video on his official YouTube channel alongside the Gubug Wayang Mojokerto Museum worker, identified as Sadan, to apologise for the controversial claim.
Frans explained that they had no intention of “claiming” the animated series as a product of Indonesia.
“We want to apologise to Malaysians, and to Indonesians as well, for the misunderstanding that we caused in our previous video. I went to the Gubug Wayang Mojokerto Museum to learn more deeply about the local culture. My tour guide was Sadan, and we went through cultural history like gamelan, keris, and more.
“When we went upstairs, I came across Upin & Ipin dolls, and I asked isn’t Upin & Ipin from Malaysia? Why are they here? And Sadan explained that Upin & Ipin may have Indonesian roots.
“We are not claiming that Upin & Ipin belongs to Indonesia. I know, and the whole world knows that the licencing and copyrights to Upin & Ipin belongs to Malaysia,” he said, before apologising again for stirring things up.
Frans is a content creator who reviews toys through his social media channels. His videos on YouTube garners thousands to hundreds of thousands of views for his first-hand reviews of rare and often expensive toys and collectibles.
Upin & Ipin was created by a Shah Alam-based studio
The hit animated series Upin & Ipin was created by Les Copaque, an animation studio based in Shah Alam, Selangor.
It was launched in 2007 and went on to achieve commercial success as well as critical acclaim globally.
An animated feature film based on the series titled Geng: The Adventure Begins was released in 2009 and managed to collect around RM 6.2 million, making it one of the highest-grossing Malaysian films in history.
In Indonesia, the show is a massive hit leading it to be heavily localized through Indonesian broadcasting networks like MNCTV. Because millions of children grew up watching it on local television, it has become deeply integrated into Indonesian pop culture.
To bridge the relationship between the two nations, the creators introduced Susanti, a character from Jakarta. This inclusion, along with features of Indonesian culture, makes many viewers feel a deeper sense of ownership and connection to the show.
Not only that, but because Indonesia and Malaysia share deep linguistic roots, similar religious values, and overlapping village (kampung) lifestyles, the setting is highly relatable to Indonesian viewers.
Thanks to all these relatable factors, it’s no surprise that some might think the show originated from Indonesia, or has some roots from there.
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