Wayang kulit enthusiasts hope robotics can save ancient art

College lecturer Ahnaf Hakimi Ahmad hopes to save the ancient tradition of shadow puppetry using 3D-printed figures controlled by robotics instead of people.

Wayang kulit, a theatrical art form once popular across Southeast Asia, particularly in Malaysia and Indonesia, is traditionally performed with figurines crafted from buffalo skin, whose shadows are cast onto a screen.

Ahnaf, 33, hopes his invention, which is funded by...