On a sweltering morning in November 1947, a nineteen-year-old walked through the gates of No. 8 Jalan Ampas. He had not been hired as an artist. Abu Bakar bin Ali Almasaid was taken on as a manual labourer — hauling Mitchell and Debrie 35mm cameras, iron tripods and scorching lamps from one corner of Studio A to another.
Inside, B.S. Rajhans was shooting the detective thriller Pisau Berachun. While the other labourers rested between takes, Bakar stayed by the lens. He watched how light carved bone structure into a face, how shadow manufactured menace, and how a small adjustment of one glass element could turn a flat painted backdrop into an endless horizon.
Around the same time another young man arrived from Penang carrying a violin and a head full of songs. The two met on the studio grounds in worn shirts and struck up an immediate friendship. Neither had any idea that between them they would invent the visual language of modern Malay cinema.
Learning by kerosene lamp
Cinematography at Jalan Ampas was a closed shop. The Shaws relied on expatriate directors of photography — N.B. Vasudev, R.C. Purushotham, C. Ramachandra, Chow Cheng Kok, Koh Jee Soon — and local Malay workers were rarely allowed past the role of camera coolie or grip.
Bakar refused the ceiling. He spent his small wages in the second-hand bookshops of Bras Basah on technical volumes about optics, photographic chemistry and lighting composition, and worked through them at night by kerosene lamp with an English–Malay dictionary at his elbow. By day he studied every movement of the foreign operators on set.
The studio noticed, and promoted him to assistant cameraman under Koh Jee Soon on Kembar (1950). Then his ambition met an administrative wall. He asked permission to attend night classes to improve his English so he could read the technical literature fluently. The studio refused — he was required on call around the clock. He resigned.
He freelanced at Nusantara Films until the company folded, and was picked up by the producer Ho Ah Loke at Rimau Film Productions, shooting two features under L. Krishnan. By 1954 the Shaws had worked out what they had lost, and asked him back with real responsibility and a path to chief cinematography.
Only a jeweller knows the gem
He assisted on Hang Tuah (1956) as focus puller to N.B. Vasudev — his first hands-on experience of 35mm Eastmancolor. That same year he operated the camera for the now-lost colour dream sequence in Semerah Padi, capturing Saadiah singing before her character is taken.
The foreign directors remained unwilling to hand full control of a picture to a local. P. Ramlee saw what they did not. There is a Malay saying for it: hanya jauhari mengenal manikam — only a jeweller recognises the gem.
In 1957 Ramlee went to Run Run Shaw with a condition: he wanted A. Bakar Ali as sole Director of Photography on Pancha Delima. Shaw agreed, on the condition that the veteran Chow Cheng Kok stay on set as associate cameraman to watch over it. The gamble paid immediately — Bakar's lighting gave the film an ethereal, dreamlike texture that startled the studio.
Ramlee never looked back. Bakar shot Bujang Lapok the same year, and from that point the division of labour was settled: Ramlee took performance, timing and music; the framing, the depth of field and the architecture of shadow were left entirely to Bakar.
Manila, 1958
Shaw Brothers sent three films to the 5th Asian Film Festival in Manila. One of them was Sumpah Orang Minyak, and Bakar's work on it is a tour de force of black-and-white expressionism — pitch-black low-key lighting for the cursed Bongkok, deep atmospheric mist over the Alam Bunian realm, and dynamic camera movement through the rainstorm duel between Ramlee and Salleh Kamil.
He won Best Black-and-White Cinematography, beating every seasoned foreign cinematographer in the region — including his own mentors at the studio.
The result turned heads. Lamberto V. Avellana came from Manila to direct Sarjan Hassan and bypassed the expatriate staff entirely, asking for Bakar by name. Five years later, at the 10th Asian Film Festival in Tokyo in 1963, his shadow-drenched work on Ibu Mertua-ku won him a second international award — on the same night P. Ramlee took the invented citation for Most Versatile Talent.
On the recordUntuk direkodkan
Shaw Brothers never once sent him to a festival. In Manila the trophy was collected on his behalf by Saloma. In Tokyo it was collected by P. Ramlee. Bakar remained in Singapore, on the studio floor, working.
The architecture of the lens
Across the late fifties and sixties he was the visual architect behind nearly every Jalan Ampas classic that still gets watched: Nujum Pak Belalang and Pendekar Bujang Lapok in 1959, Ali Baba Bujang Lapok, Si Tanggang and Seniman Bujang Lapok in 1961, Labu dan Labi in 1962, Tiga Abdul, Madu Tiga and Dupa Cendana in 1964, then Jefri Zain — Gerak Kilat and A-Go-Go '67.
The range is the point. The chaotic wide-angle slapstick of Ali Baba, the tight claustrophobic two-shots of Madu Tiga, the suave spy framing of Gerak Kilat — he adapted the lens to whatever emotional pitch the story asked for. When Shaw mounted Raja Bersiong in 1968, their most expensive production ever, in Eastmancolor and Shawscope, they brought in two Japanese cinematographers and put Bakar beside them as chief local operator to bridge the technical precision and the realities of the floor.
After Jalan Ampas
When the studio shuttered in 1967, Ramlee had already gone to Kuala Lumpur. Bakar, rooted in Singapore with his family, took a different path — seven years as senior cinematographer at Filem Negara Malaysia from 1968.
In the mid-seventies Aziz Sattar called him to Sabah Film Productions for Keluarga Si Comat (1975): the first full-length colour widescreen feature he shot entirely alone, without foreign supervision. It took a Special Jury Prize in Jakarta. The following year M. Amin asked him to shoot Hapuslah Airmatamu — a quiet symmetry, since twenty-six years earlier Bakar had been the assistant cameraman on Kembar with M. Amin as its leading man. Now both were masters of their trade.
The quiet gardener of Bukit Timah
In 1984, aged fifty-six, he packed away his light meters and left the industry completely. He retired to a bungalow in Bukit Timah with his wife Mariamah Ismail and their three children, Abdillah, Zahrah and Hamidah. Mariamah died of diabetic complications in 1993, aged fifty-three. After that he spent his days among his fruit trees, doting on five grandchildren, rarely speaking about the sets he had once commanded.
Recognition found him late. In 2005 FINAS invited the seventy-seven-year-old to the 18th Malaysia Film Festival and gave him the Anugerah Khas Karyawan, to a standing ovation from an industry built on his technical breakthroughs.
He died at home in Bedok on the morning of Friday, 15 June 2018, aged ninety — three days after the actress Sri Dewi, who had played Afida in Sumpah Orang Minyak. He is buried at Pusara Abadi in Choa Chu Kang.
The actors and singers of the golden era became the immortal faces on the screen. It was A. Bakar Ali's eye behind the viewfinder that framed their immortality — a self-taught coolie who mastered light, shadow and celluloid.
Pada pagi yang terik dalam bulan November 1947, seorang pemuda berusia sembilan belas tahun melangkah masuk ke pintu pagar No. 8 Jalan Ampas. Beliau tidak diterima bekerja sebagai seniman. Abu Bakar bin Ali Almasaid diambil sebagai buruh kasar — mengusung kamera Mitchell dan Debrie 35mm, tripod besi, serta lampu panas dari satu sudut Studio A ke sudut yang lain.
Di dalam, B.S. Rajhans sedang merakam filem detektif Pisau Berachun. Ketika buruh lain berehat di celah rakaman, Bakar tetap berdiri di sisi kanta. Beliau memerhati bagaimana cahaya memahat tulang pada sesebuah wajah, bagaimana bayang mencipta ancaman, dan bagaimana pelarasan kecil pada sebutir kanta kaca mampu menukarkan latar lukisan yang rata menjadi ufuk yang tidak berpenghujung.
Pada masa yang hampir sama, seorang pemuda lain tiba dari Pulau Pinang membawa sebuah biola dan kepala yang sarat dengan lagu. Kedua-duanya bertemu di halaman studio dengan baju yang lusuh lalu terjalin persahabatan serta-merta. Tiada seorang pun antara mereka menyangka bahawa bersama-sama, mereka bakal mencipta bahasa visual sinema Melayu moden.
Menuntut ilmu di bawah pelita minyak tanah
Sinematografi di Jalan Ampas ialah benteng tertutup. Pihak Shaw bergantung sepenuhnya kepada pengarah fotografi dari luar — N.B. Vasudev, R.C. Purushotham, C. Ramachandra, Chow Cheng Kok, Koh Jee Soon — dan pekerja Melayu tempatan jarang sekali dibenarkan melangkaui peranan kuli kamera atau pembantu alatan.
Bakar enggan tunduk kepada siling itu. Beliau membelanjakan gajinya yang kecil di kedai buku terpakai di Bras Basah untuk membeli jilid teknikal tentang optik, kimia fotografi dan komposisi cahaya, lalu menelaahnya pada waktu malam bertemankan pelita minyak tanah dengan kamus Inggeris–Melayu di sisinya. Pada siang hari beliau meneliti setiap gerak jurugambar asing di set.
Studio menyedarinya, lalu menaikkan pangkatnya menjadi penolong jurugambar di bawah Koh Jee Soon dalam Kembar (1950). Kemudian cita-citanya bertembung dengan tembok pentadbiran. Beliau memohon kebenaran menghadiri kelas malam bagi memperbaiki bahasa Inggerisnya supaya dapat membaca bahan teknikal dengan lancar. Studio menolak — beliau dikehendaki bersedia pada bila-bila masa. Beliau meletak jawatan.
Beliau bekerja sambilan di Nusantara Films sehingga syarikat itu gulung tikar, lalu diambil penerbit Ho Ah Loke di Rimau Film Productions, merakam dua buah filem arahan L. Krishnan. Menjelang 1954, pihak Shaw menyedari apa yang telah dilepaskan mereka, lalu memanggilnya kembali dengan tanggungjawab sebenar dan laluan yang jelas ke arah jawatan pengarah fotografi.
Hanya jauhari mengenal manikam
Beliau membantu dalam Hang Tuah (1956) sebagai penarik fokus kepada N.B. Vasudev — pengalaman pertamanya mengendalikan seluloid Eastmancolor 35mm. Pada tahun yang sama beliau mengendalikan kamera bagi babak mimpi berwarna yang kini telah hilang dalam Semerah Padi, merakam Saadiah menyanyi sebelum wataknya dilarikan.
Pengarah luar masih enggan menyerahkan kawalan penuh sesebuah filem kepada anak tempatan. P. Ramlee melihat apa yang gagal dilihat mereka. Ada peribahasa Melayu untuknya: hanya jauhari mengenal manikam.
Pada 1957 Ramlee menghadap Run Run Shaw dengan satu syarat: beliau mahu A. Bakar Ali sebagai Pengarah Fotografi tunggal bagi Pancha Delima. Shaw bersetuju, dengan syarat jurugambar veteran Chow Cheng Kok kekal di set sebagai jurugambar bersekutu untuk mengawasinya. Pertaruhan itu berbuah serta-merta — tata cahaya Bakar menghadiahkan filem itu tekstur mistik bagai mimpi yang mengejutkan seluruh studio.
Ramlee tidak pernah menoleh ke belakang. Bakar merakam Bujang Lapok pada tahun yang sama, dan sejak itu pembahagian kerja mereka termeterai: Ramlee memegang lakonan, ketepatan masa dan muzik; pembingkaian, kedalaman medan dan seni bina bayang diserahkan sepenuhnya kepada Bakar.
Manila, 1958
Shaw Brothers menghantar tiga buah filem ke Festival Filem Asia ke-5 di Manila. Salah satunya Sumpah Orang Minyak, dan kerja Bakar padanya ialah pameran agung ekspresionisme hitam putih — tata cahaya rendah yang segelap malam bagi watak Bongkok yang disumpah, kabus tebal yang menyelubungi alam bunian, serta pergerakan kamera yang dinamik menerusi pertarungan di tengah ribut antara Ramlee dan Salleh Kamil.
Beliau memenangi Sinematografi Hitam Putih Terbaik, menewaskan setiap jurugambar asing berpengalaman di rantau ini — termasuk mentornya sendiri di studio.
Keputusan itu menoleh banyak kepala. Lamberto V. Avellana datang dari Manila untuk mengarah Sarjan Hassan lalu mengetepikan kakitangan ekspatriat sepenuhnya, meminta Bakar atas nama. Lima tahun kemudian, di Festival Filem Asia ke-10 di Tokyo pada 1963, kerjanya yang sarat bayang dalam Ibu Mertua-ku memenangkannya anugerah antarabangsa kedua — pada malam yang sama P. Ramlee menerima anugerah khas Bakat Paling Pelbagai yang dicipta untuknya.
On the recordUntuk direkodkan
Shaw Brothers tidak pernah sekali pun menghantarnya ke mana-mana festival. Di Manila, trofinya dikutip bagi pihaknya oleh Saloma. Di Tokyo, ia dikutip P. Ramlee. Bakar kekal di Singapura, di lantai studio, bekerja.
Seni bina sebuah kanta
Sepanjang penghujung 1950-an dan 1960-an, beliaulah arkitek visual di sebalik hampir setiap karya klasik Jalan Ampas yang masih ditonton hari ini: Nujum Pak Belalang dan Pendekar Bujang Lapok pada 1959, Ali Baba Bujang Lapok, Si Tanggang dan Seniman Bujang Lapok pada 1961, Labu dan Labi pada 1962, Tiga Abdul, Madu Tiga dan Dupa Cendana pada 1964, kemudian Jefri Zain — Gerak Kilat dan A-Go-Go '67.
Kepelbagaian itulah intinya. Slapstik bersudut luas yang kelam-kabut dalam Ali Baba, syot dua watak yang sempit dan menghimpit dalam Madu Tiga, pembingkaian ejen rahsia yang bergaya dalam Gerak Kilat — beliau menyesuaikan kanta mengikut apa jua nada emosi yang dituntut cerita. Apabila Shaw menerbitkan Raja Bersiong pada 1968, penerbitan termahal dalam sejarah mereka, dalam Eastmancolor dan Shawscope, dua jurugambar Jepun dibawa masuk dan Bakar diletakkan di sisi mereka sebagai jurugambar utama tempatan.
Selepas Jalan Ampas
Apabila studio ditutup pada 1967, Ramlee telah pun berpindah ke Kuala Lumpur. Bakar, yang berakar umbi di Singapura bersama keluarganya, memilih haluan berbeza — tujuh tahun sebagai jurugambar kanan di Filem Negara Malaysia bermula 1968.
Pada pertengahan 1970-an Aziz Sattar memanggilnya ke Sabah Film Productions bagi Keluarga Si Comat (1975): filem cereka warna skrin lebar sepenuh masa pertama yang dirakamnya seorang diri, tanpa penyeliaan asing. Ia merangkul Anugerah Khas Juri di Jakarta. Tahun berikutnya M. Amin memintanya merakam Hapuslah Airmatamu — satu simetri yang tenang, kerana dua puluh enam tahun sebelumnya Bakar hanyalah penolong jurugambar dalam Kembar dengan M. Amin sebagai wira utamanya. Kini kedua-duanya sudah menjadi tokoh dalam bidang masing-masing.
Pekebun sunyi di Bukit Timah
Pada 1984, ketika berusia lima puluh enam tahun, beliau mengemas meter cahayanya lalu meninggalkan industri itu sepenuhnya. Beliau bersara ke sebuah banglo di Bukit Timah bersama isterinya Mariamah Ismail dan tiga orang anak mereka, Abdillah, Zahrah dan Hamidah. Mariamah meninggal dunia akibat komplikasi kencing manis pada 1993, pada usia lima puluh tiga tahun. Selepas itu beliau menghabiskan hari-harinya di celah pokok buah-buahan, membelai lima orang cucu, jarang sekali berbicara tentang set penggambaran yang pernah dikuasainya.
Pengiktirafan menemuinya lewat. Pada 2005 FINAS menjemput veteran berusia tujuh puluh tujuh tahun itu ke Festival Filem Malaysia ke-18 lalu menganugerahkannya Anugerah Khas Karyawan, disambut penghormatan berdiri daripada industri yang terbina di atas rintisan teknikalnya.
Beliau meninggal dunia di kediamannya di Bedok pada pagi Jumaat, 15 Jun 2018, pada usia sembilan puluh tahun — tiga hari selepas seniwati Sri Dewi, yang pernah melakonkan Afida dalam Sumpah Orang Minyak. Beliau disemadikan di Pusara Abadi, Choa Chu Kang.
Para pelakon dan penyanyi zaman keemasan menjelma menjadi wajah-wajah abadi di layar perak. Namun mata A. Bakar Ali di sebalik jendela lensa itulah yang membingkai keabadian mereka — seorang kuli otodidak yang menundukkan cahaya, bayang dan seluloid.