Starring R Sukran, Elly Joenara and AB Djoenaedi, it featured more than 500 people in supporting roles.

It was advertised heavily, emphasising the fact that the scholar Poerbatjaraka had served as the historical adviser and that the film was based on Balai Pustaka's version of the legend.

During childbirth the son is replaced with a dog, while Dewi Pangrenjep takes the newborn and throws him into a river.

[1] Tjioeng Wanara was directed and produced by Jo Eng Sek for Star Film.

[5] The film starred R Sukran, Elly Joenara, AB Djoenaedi, Muhamad Arief, and S Waldy.

[3] Tjioeng Wanara was based on a Sundanese legend of the same name, retold by M. A. Salmoen in a 1938 Balai Pustaka-published edition which was then adapted by Rd Ariffien;[2][3] as such, a review in the Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad found that the film contained little of the original tale except for the characters' names.

[10] Though initially slated for a July 1941 release,[11] Tjioeng Wanara ultimately premiered at the Orion Theatre in Batavia (now Jakarta) on 18 August 1941.

[10] It was publicised extensively,[3] often emphasising the role of Poerbatjaraka and using the name of Balai Pustaka, the official publishing house of the Dutch East Indies government known for its printed versions of traditional tales, in advertisements.

An anonymous review in the Soerabaijasch Handelsblad was positive, considering the film to be successful in its adaptation of the legend,[13] while another, in the same newspaper, recommended it.

[a][15] Star made four further films before it was closed in 1942, when the Japanese occupied the Indies; Jo Eng Sek did not direct again.