Selamat SA,

Since the Indonesian archipelago and Malay peninsula consist of hundreds of islands and remote regions, hundreds of drastically differing styles of pentjak silat have developed over time. Some of these many different styles of Pentjak Silat do indeed contain "animal forms" or styles, some do not. They are not *usually* complete systems in themselves (like many of the Chinese animal styles are) but usually subsets of larger systems and frequntly merely apply to specific techniques so usually they require the studying of that larger system in order to learn the various subsets. Also the many different styles can have a completely different take on things, so for instance the 'harimau,' or tiger style (usually the most prominent animal style in the pentjak silat genre) of one system could look absolutely nothing like the harimau techniques of another. Unfortunately for most of us, the vast majority of pentjak silat arts are not available for study outside of Indonesia or Malaysia. So it can be difficult to be in a position to "shop around" for an art that fits any given individual.

If your interest is fighting efficiency might I suggest determining what type of fighter you are and then look for a system that suits your individual strengths as a martial artist rather than primarily looking for one that teaches "animal forms" since most "animal" style labels are usually just a method to categorize movements suited to a specific fighting style

If your interest is more artistic or culturally motivated, there's nothing wrong with that. There are many styles of pentjak silat that focus on beautiful, fluid motions very well suited to performance. However, I would still suggest looking around a bit and find a style that you find aesthetically to your taste. Again, the different styles all approach things very differently, so it is better to have an idea of what you want to get out of your art before choosing what to study.

As far as DVDs and videos that focus on the animal aspects I confess that I havent viewed any that I can personally recommend but I am sure there are plenty out there. I know the Pentjak Silat Cimande Pusaka group are pretty big on the animal totems so that might be a decent place to start. Personally I don't recommend training in an art off of a DVD or from only a book. They work fine as great introductions and often as reference material for arts you are already studying, but you can often miss very important aspects of training by trying to learn too much new stuff from them without personal instruction not to mention not having a source to correct any mistakes that you might have accidentally picked up.

Best of luck to you though, hopefully you found some of this useful.