Malik Nejer

Nejer was born on 4 February 1985 in Dawadmi, Saudi Arabia. As a child, he developed an interest in international cartoons. He later moved to Riyadh to study law at King Saud University, but dropped out and began working for an advertising agency.

In 2007, Nejer began posting animated videos on YouTube. His video The Real Reason Behind the Jeddah Disaster went viral and by 2011 his channel had become the No. 4 subscribed on YouTube in Saudi Arabia. Following that success, MBC invited him to produce animated shorts for television commercial breaks.

Nejer later co-founded Myrkott Animation Studio, which became known for producing the animated web series Masameer. The series gained a substantial online following for its satirical portrayal of Saudi society and everyday life.

In 2020, Nejer co-wrote and directed Masameer: The Movie, a feature-length adaptation of the web series released in theaters. The following year, Netflix released Masameer County, an animated television series based on the franchise.

Writing for the Middle East Institute, historian Sean Foley described Masameer County as reflective of broader social and cultural changes taking place in Saudi Arabia, noting that the series used satire to examine issues affecting Saudi society.

In 2023, Nejer directed Head to Head, his first live-action feature film. The film was released by Netflix and was described by Esquire Middle East as helping establish a new quality benchmark for Saudi filmmaking.

Nejer and the Masameer franchise have been cited as part of a broader transformation in Saudi entertainment and media production during the 2010s and 2020s.