Maya Karin Roelcke (born 29 October 1979) is a Malaysian film actress, television host and singer, known for ''
Pontianak Harum Sundal Malam'', ''
Anak Halal'', ''
Ombak Rindu'' and ''
Munafik 2''. She holds the
Malaysia Film Festival record for the actress with most nominations in the category of Best Actress Award (11), and is among the few actresses who have won the award twice. She is also the first of only two Malaysian actresses to have won the prestigious Best Actress Award at the
Asia-Pacific Film Festival
The Asia-Pacific Film Festival (abbreviated APFF) is an annual film festival hosted by the Federation of Motion Picture Producers in Asia-Pacific. The festival was first held in Tokyo, Japan, in 1954.
History
The festival was first held in T ...
.
Early life
Roelcke was born in October 1979 in
Bayreuth
Bayreuth (, ; bar, Bareid) is a town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtelgebirge Mountains. The town's roots date back to 1194. In the 21st century, it is the capital o ...
,
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...
,
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 ...
. She is of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
, Malay,
Chinese and
Indian Muslim
Islam is India's second-largest religion, with 14.2% of the country's population, approximately 172.2 million people identifying as adherents of Islam in 2011 Census. India is also the country with the second or third largest number of Muslim ...
descent. Her father is from
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
and her mother is from
Penang
Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the M ...
, Malaysia. She lived most of her teenage years in different parts of
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...
, finally ending up in Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...
when she was 17. She is the oldest of three siblings.
She graduated from Limkokwing University of Creative Technology Kuala Lumpur in Media and Marketing studies before starting her acting career.
Career
2000–2004
In 2000, she was cast as a television show host for Malaysia's
TV3 Channel 3 or TV 3 may refer to:
Television
* Canal 3 (Burkina Faso), a commercial television channel in Burkina Faso
* Canal 3 (Guatemala), a commercial television channel in Guatemala
* Channel 3 (Algeria), a public Algerian TV channel owned by E ...
lifestyle entertainment programme ''Wavelength'', which began her mainstream career. She was soon cast in her first film role as one of the leads in
Aziz M. Osman's ''Seri Dewi Malam'' alongside popular actor Hairie Othman. Later that year, she played a girl living in a rural village in her second movie ''No Problem'' which was a box office failure. She won the New Popular Artist Award at Malaysia's Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian and the Anugerah Media Hiburan in 2001. In 2003 she was cast in a supporting role in, Mr. Cinderella 2.
In mid-2004, she was cast by director
Shuhaimi Baba
Yang Berbahagia Datin Paduka Shuhaimi Baba (born 27 January 1967), is a Malaysian film director. She was born in Negeri Sembilan.
Filmography
Film
Television
Honours
* :
** Knight Companion of the Order of Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah ( ...
in the lead role in ''
Pontianak Harum Sundal Malam''. She won the Best Actress Award at the 49th Asia Pacific Film Festival 2004 in
Fukuoka
is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since anc ...
, Japan. She also received her first nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role at the
Malaysia Film Festival.
2005–2010
In 2005, Roelcke reprised her role as the lead in ''
Pontianak Harum Sundal Malam II'' and won Best Actor (male/female) at the Estepona Fantasy and Terror Film Festival 2005 in
Málaga
Málaga (, ) is a municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 578,460 in 2020, it is the second-most populous city in Andalusia after Seville and the sixth most po ...
, Spain and, her second nomination for Malaysia Film Festival's Best Actress. Roelcke also won the Most Popular Actress (Film) Award at the Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian 2005.
Despite her growing film career, Roelcke continued her involvement in television, and in 2004 she was invited by
Channel ">International to join their VJ team. In 2006, she was voted Best VJ in Star Buzz Editor's Choice Awards 2006. Other shows that she has hosted are the bridal programme 'Ratu Sehari' (Queen for a Day) in 2004 for Malaysia's Astro Ria channel and the travelogue programme 'Beauty Secrets From The East' in 2005 for TV3.
In 2007, Roelcke played a variety of lead roles in Pesona Pictures' ''
Waris Jari Hantu'' and ''
1957: Hati Malaya'' and Tayangan Unggul's ''
Anak Halal'' and continued to receive nominations for various awards. Karin won Best Actress Awards at Malaysia Film Festival and Anugerah Oskar Malaysia in 2008 for her portrayal of a
tomboy girl in ''Anak Halal''.
In 2008 she began to play comedy film roles. Beginning with ''
Duyung
''Duyung'' (translation: ''Mermaid'') is a Malaysian fantasy comedy film that was released on 6 March 2008. The film is directed by Abdul Razak Mohaideen and produced by KRU Films (now known as KRU Studios) in association with Grand Brillian ...
'' in 2008, she played the title role of a
mermaid
In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Asia, and Africa.
Mermaids are sometimes asso ...
, performing all the underwater scenes on her own in the open sea of
Sipadan Island
Sipadan ( ms, Pulau Sipadan) is the only Island#Oceanic islands, oceanic island in Malaysia, rising from the seabed. It is located in the Celebes Sea off the east coast of Sabah, Malaysia. It was formed by living corals growing on top of an ex ...
. In the same year, she received her second Most Popular Actress (Film) Award at the Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian 2008. In 2009, she starred in ''
Pisau Cukur
''Pisau Cukur'' (Malay: " Razor Knife", but also metaphorically "Gold Digger") is a 2009 Malaysian mystery comedy film directed by Bernard Chauly, which is his first comedy after his 2005 blockbuster break-out drama '' Gol & Gincu''. It stars popu ...
'', a comedy film about gold diggers where she performed more comedy scenes than her role in ''
Duyung
''Duyung'' (translation: ''Mermaid'') is a Malaysian fantasy comedy film that was released on 6 March 2008. The film is directed by Abdul Razak Mohaideen and produced by KRU Films (now known as KRU Studios) in association with Grand Brillian ...
''.
In 2010 in the romantic comedy movie ''Cun'', she played a famous entertainment show host who falls in love with a man from a rural village alongside Remy Ishak.
2011–present: Career challenge and further success
In November 2011, Roelcke had her biggest commercial success ''
Ombak Rindu'', where she played a young women from a rural village struggling with life and love For this she won the Best Actress Award at both the ''Anugerah Skrin'' and Malaysia Film Festival in 2012 and her third Most Popular Actress (Film) Award at the Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian 2011.
After ''Lagenda Budak Setan 2'', she appeared in ''Sejoli'', wher she portrayed a girl looking for her true love, gaining her Best Actress award in Comedy Role at the second Anugerah Lawak Warna in 2014. Next were ''
Jwanita
''Jwanita'' (abbr for Jiwa Wanita; '' Women Heart'') is a 2015 Malaysian psychological horror movie. The movie features A-List actors, Maya Karin, Bront Palarae, Cristina Suzanne Stockstill, Umie Aida, and Marsha Milan Londoh. The film tells ...
'' and ''
Nota'', a collaboration between local and Japanese film producers.
In 2017, Roelcke appeared in the horror film, ''
Munafik 2'' directed by
Syamsul Yusof, becoming the highest-grossing Malaysian film to date with a record of RM48 million in sales, also gaining commercial success in Indonesia, Brunei, and Singapore as well.
Musical career
In 2002, Roelcke recorded her debut music album, ''Erti Cinta'', and was nominated for the Best New Singer and Best Video awards at the
Anugerah Industri Muzik. Her second album is ''Bukan Qalamaya'' (2004). In 2013, Roelcke signed with
Warner Music Malaysia returning after 9 years with the single "Bintang Syurga". Her next album ''Teka-Teki'' was released on 24 March 2014.
Advertising
Roelcke has advertised various products starting with Wella in 2001, followed by Pantene, Yishion in 2003,
Celcom in 2006,
L'Oréal Paris Malaysia in 2007. Other endorsements include Tag Heuer, Nescafe, Innershine, Dulux, Vono. Sorella and GreenTech Malaysia.
Activism
Having been influenced by her father, Roelcke has been very passionate about the environment from a young age. Roelcke is actively involved in various campaigns for environmental and animal protection and often works with the
Malaysian Nature Society and
World Wildlife Fund
The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the W ...
(WWF).
She also has her own campaign drive ''MayaLovesNature'', the first two of which involved working with 22,000 schoolchildren from 14 different primary schools targeting awareness of excessive use and waste of plastic bags. 2012 sees her as ambassador for the governments new recycling initiative and as spokesperson for the Geological Institute of Malaysia.
In January 2019, Roelcke was appointed as the ambassador for River of Life, a public outreach programme initiated by Malaysia's Ministry of Federal Territories which aims to transform the Klang River into a vibrant and livable waterfront of high economic value. Her popular #MayaRiverChallenge began when Karin uploaded a photo of her dipping her head into a stream to social media, which was then mimiced by many others.
Filmography
Film
Television series
Television
Music videos
Theatres and musicals
Discography
* ''Erti Cinta'' (2001)
* ''Bukan Qalamaya'' (2004)
* ''Teka-Teki'' (2014)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karin, Maya
1979 births
Living people
Malaysian film actresses
Malaysian women pop singers
Malaysian people of German descent
Malaysian people of Malay descent
Malaysian Muslims
Malaysian people of Chinese descent
VJs (media personalities)
Malaysian people of Indian descent
Malay-language singers
Malaysian television actresses
21st-century Malaysian actresses
German emigrants to Malaysia
Citizens of Malaysia through descent
German people of Indian descent
German people of Chinese descent
German people of Malaysian descent
German people of Malay descent
German Muslims
Pesona Pictures contract players
KRU Studios contract players
Malaysian rhythm and blues singers
21st-century Malaysian women singers