Screening List

Selected from 9808

Sugiharti Halim [Ariani Darmawan | 2008 | 09’52”]

Meet Jen /Bertemu Jen [Hafiz | 2008 | 16’39”]

Happiness Morning Light /Huan Chen Guang  [Ifa Isfansyah | 2008 | 15’00”]

Yesterday /Kemarin [Otty Widasari | 2008 | 13’02”]

Our School, Our Lives /Sekolah Kami, Hidup Kami  [Steve Pillar Setiabudi | 2008 | 11’45”]

 

Selected from Akumassa

The Edge of Ciujung River / Tepian Sungai Ciujung [2009 | 12’49”]

The Fisherman’s Friend / Teman Nelayan [2009 | 12’ 41”]

Magic Water / Negosiasi Atas Air [2009 | 9’18”]

In May 2010, Art Sonje Screening Program presents Indonesian film/video works programmed by Otty Widasari who is the director and program coordinator of Forum Lenteng, an egalitarian non-profit organization in Jakarta.

The eight screening works are selected from ‘9808’, a collaborative project with 10 film makers to commemorate a decade of Indonesian Reform era (1998-2008), as well as from Akumassa , one of the programs in Forum Lenteng.

Since the late 1990’s, Indonesia has undergone rapid change in society within the face of Asian economic crisis and political revolutions. This change has s provoked various social issues. Culturally, Indonesia experienced the rise and fall of the movie industry and the appearance of “video” as a new medium, hence developing the so called “video phenomenon”. It was based on active participation of young Indonesians who were eager to remember, describe and learn about the history and society. This screening program reflects this phenomenon.

 

9808

9808 project    www.9808films.wordpress.co

A group of filmmakers (Proyek Payung/Umbrella Project) from various backgrounds- visual artists, musicians, and other creative/arts workers- collaborate to honor a decade of Indonesian Reform era (1998-2008) by preparing 10 self funded short films inspired by May’98 events. This project is expected to initiate a dialogue within the public, especially among the students in an attempt to empower the public to address issues and to say something through audio-visual-medium.

1) Sugiharti Halim

Producer, Director, Writer: Ariani Darmawan  2008  09’52”

Cast: Nadia, Hengky Hidayat

DOP: Joedith Tjhristianto

Editor: Astu Prasidya

Art Director: Prilla Tania

Sound: Ariani Darmawan

What’s in a name? For Sugiharti Halim, though, a name can lead to a never-ending question. At times funny, annoying, and contradictory: Does one really need a ‘real’ name? Can you sell your name? Is it true that you can hide your identity behind a name? Sugiharti Halim offers a perspective that is comical, provocative, contextual, and deserving to be re-examined today.

*) Presidential Decree no. 127/U/Kep/12/1966 obliged Ethnic-Chinese to adopt an Indonesian-sounding name (e.g. change Liem to Halim, Lo/Loe/Liok to Lukito, etc.)

2) Meet Jen / Bertemu Jen

Producer, Director, Writer: Hafiz  2008  16’39”

“Life has given me time. However, I’ve never spent that time to really live.” Jen is an ordinary guy with big dreams and hopes. But, time has passed him by. A lot has happened. What has Jen been doing for the past ten years? The political changes have not changed Jen’s life that much. What happened then for him was just a vivid dream. That memory has turned into a ‘film’ about an occasion that he had witnessed.

3) Happiness Morning Light / Huan Chen Guang

Producer, Director, Writer: Ifa Isfansyah  2008  15’00”

Line Producer: Bae Chun Yeok

Camera: Tran Hoai Nam

Editor: Kim Jae Rim

Sound: Hae Kyong, Jung Woan

Chen Guang is a 21-year-old Chinese woman, who lives in Beijing. Her Indonesian mother died during the May 1998 riot in Jakarta. She then heads for Korea to erase the terrible memories haunting her, and replace them with good ones. On her first day in Korea, Chen Guang meets Huan, also a Chinese woman of the same age, who has resided in Korea for quite a while. Their journey begins. After spending the whole day together, Chen Guang and Huan spend a night in a small motel; passing the night in one of its rooms. Nothing happens between them, almost. The next morning, Chen Guang decides to return to Beijing because she has found what she’s looking for: happiness.

4) Yesterday / Kemarin

Producer, Director,Writer: Otty Widasari  2008  13’02”

Writer director Otty Widasari examines various stages of a life capturing birth, youth, marriage, death, growth and the idea of ‘to eat and to find what to eat’ as a natural cycle. Her film Kemarin (English title: Yesterday) sees a period of one decade as some sort of an autobiography of a one’s life.

5) Our School, Our Lives / Sekolah Kami, Hidup Kami

Producer, Director, Writer: Steve Pillar Setiabudi  2008  11’45”

Documentary filmmaker Steve Pillar Setiabudi (Pilar) initially wanted to get some insight on democracy and political awareness from his young subjects, a group of third year high school students in Solo, who are about to graduate soon and enter another phase of their lives as college students and would become eligible to give their votes on the upcoming election in 2009. Much to Pilar’s surprise his subjects were playing a key role in revealing the act of corruption that had been taken place in their school. The young students had been successful in conducting a very systematic investigation that lead them to some valid findings (proofs).

 

Akumasa

Akumasa   www.akumassa.org

Akumassa is a workshop program facilitated by Forum Lenteng on the use of video as a medium in the communities of young creative workers. It focuses on the study of social and cultural aspects which are shaped as a learning material to endeavor participatory awareness of problems in society.

1)The Edge of Ciujung River / Tepian Sungai Ciujung

Production : Forum Leteng & Saidjah Forum  2009  12’49’’

Bahasa Indonesia/Sundanese Language–with English Subtitle

Video Digital/Color/NTSC

By : akumassa Lebak, Banten

This video tells a story about the activity of the people in Kampung Jeruk. The edge of Ciujung River has many function for bathing, washing and toilet. Furthermore, the edge of Ciujung River has changed into a fluid social space. The intimate chit-chat of the users become a representation of the people of Rangkasbitung. Various honest phrases about every events today and the next bounded through personal communication.

2) The Fisherman’s Friend / Teman Nelayan

Production : Forum Leteng & Gardu Unik  2009  12’41’’

Bahasa Indonesia/Javanese Language

Video Digital/Color/NTSC

By : Akumassa Cirebon

The video frame the activity of fishermen in the Javanese Fish Auction place, Cirebon. They are very happy to go home after two months in the sea. Yahya Malik (the Participant) tells us about the skin disease the fishermen use to have, also for the lack of sleeping during the rainy night. They also speaks about the problem of life where sailing is an alternative to stay alive. Making jokes plus sipped couples of beers with traditional red wine is the ritual when they get back. The drinkings become their body refreshment. The majority of the fishermen are from Desa Kapetakan in the North of Cirebon Region. They are also a few from the city of Cirebon. This video presented the process of discharging of their fishes for the last 58 days.

3) Magic Water / Negosiasi Atas Air

Production : Forum Leteng & Gardu Unik  2009  9’18’’

Bahasa Indonesia/Cirebon Language–with English Subtitle

The video presents the life of people in the shore of Javanese Cirebon sea. Based on the interview with Pak Odi – the caretaker of Javanese shore, the water of this shore has the magic to cure stroke, and paralyzed people. Maybe this is because the rank of the salt is high, plus the mineral and the light penetration. To take a boat cruise and bathe in the center of the sea, people need to bargain with the price. When arriving to the place, they take a bath and bring the water home.

 

* Forum Lenteng, Jakarta

Forum Lenteng is an egalitarian non-profit organization, founded since July 2003 by communication/journalism students, artists, researchers and cultural analysts, as a vehicle to examine problems of culture in society, in order to support and widening chances to empower social and cultural studies in Indonesia. Forum Lenteng work in gathering social and cultural data which include historical and current aspects in a frame of study in conjunction with the development of an era and offering several solving rapprochement for various social and cultural problems in Indonesia and the world. Audio-visual (film and video) and publication (books, magazine and website) are the mediums that Forum Lenteng use to fulfill its goals.

* Otty Widasari

Otty Widasari studied journalism at the Institute of Social and Politic, Jakarta (1992 – 1997).  In 1998-2000, she worked as a journalist in a newspaper company. She started working as an artistic director for TV Commercials from 2000 to 2003.

She started making documentary films, and worked with a few NGOs and the government to produce documentaries about the environment, human rights and gender issues since 2002.

In 2003, Widasari founded Forum Lenteng-Jakarta with students majoring in communication Some of her films and videos were selected in international film festivals (Oberhausen International Film Festival Germany, Rotterdam International Film Festival, Bilbao Short Film Festival, Sao Paolo International Film Festival). As an artist, she participated in exhibitions in Indonesia and international forums. Since 2008, she has been working as a program coordinator for Akumassa Program—media literacy and community development program in rural areas in Indonesia. She is also working as Chief Editor in community journal www.akumassa.org.