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'Wiro Sableng 212' strives to define Indonesian films

Indonesia’s film industry is still relatively young compared to that of Hollywood, which has been digging up the past for decades to entertain contemporary societies and audiences. 
 

Dylan Amirio (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Sat, August 19, 2017

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'Wiro Sableng 212' strives to define Indonesian films Soon in the theaters: A remake of Wiro Sableng will be released in 2018. (Lifelike Pictures and Fox International Productions/File)

W

hen the present gives little inspiration for ideas, one will tend to look toward the vast treasure chest of the past to mine their creativity.

Indonesia’s film industry is still relatively young compared to that of Hollywood, which has been digging up the past for decades to entertain contemporary societies and audiences. 

However, in the last couple of years in particular, it seems Indonesian pop culture has amassed enough influence and content to enable remakes.

Making remakes from past creative products can be very lucrative too. 

For example, Warkop DKI Reborn Part 1, which was based on legendary comedy group Warkop’s past movies, was Indonesia’s largest-grossing local film of 2016. 

Last year there was also a sequel to local teen pop culture iconic film Ada Apa Dengan Cinta? (What’s Up With Cinta?), which was also successful despite middling reviews. 

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There will also be a remake of classic 1980s horror film Pengabdi Setan (Satan’s Worshiper) from director Joko Anwar, who became a horror fan himself after watching the original movie as a kid.

The emergence of classic remakes might be an indication that audiences that grew up in the 80s and 90s are unwilling to let go of the entertainment that defined their youth.

Enter Wiro Sableng; a hugely popular novel and comic book series that was made into a notable television show in the 90s that told the tale of mystical and comical warrior Wiro Sableng and his fantastic adventures in 16th century Indonesia. 

The original show was notable for its visibly cheap CGI effects, but it delighted and entertained the public nonetheless.

A new film about the warrior, Wiro Sableng 212, is due to be released sometime in 2018, under Lifelike Pictures in collaboration with Fox International Productions. 

For generations, the tale of this Indonesian superhero has traversed generations with his iconic 212 tattoo on his chest, trusty axe and literally lifelong dedication to the pencak silat martial art.

Read also: Indonesia's 'Marlina the Murderer' selected for Toronto International Film Festival

Is the film industry’s tendency to often look to the past necessarily a bad thing? Not always. 

The film’s producer, Sheila Timothy, said part of her intention in reviving the Wiro Sableng series as films was to introduce the character to a newer generation, much as how its original 1970s novel series was adapted for the 1990s generation.

“We figured out the marketing campaign carefully since this February,” the producer said.

One notable marketing campaign that appealed to the newer generation was an event at Popcon Asia 2017, where the film’s team held a competition for attendees who showed up to the event cosplaying as the white-robed warrior.

The film cast is a star-studded crew of some of Indonesia’s finest actors and actresses.

Vino G. Bastian is fittingly starring the lead role as Wiro Sableng, which was created and penned by his late father, Bastian Tito. 

Others include Lukman Sardi, Yayan Ruhian, Marsha Timothy, Sherina Munaf, Cecep Arif Rahman, Happy Salma and rockstar Andi /rif.

The film director, Angga Dwimas Sasongko, aims to make Wiro Sableng 212 as authentically Indonesian as possible but with the sophistication of international-level action films. 

“We want to create a new benchmark for Indonesian films[…] Wiro Sableng 212will be a film that defines Indonesia,” Angga said.

To achieve the benchmark, Angga’s team has collaborated with fight choreographer Man Ching, who has choreographed Jackie Chan films.

Meanwhile, Yayan Ruhian, the actor and martial artist who will be demonstrating the moves as Wiro Sableng’s foe Mahesa Birawa, explained that no less than three pencak silat schools were consulted in the making of the film.

“I will not be trying to just showcase one type of silat. There are dozens of forms of such in Indonesian martial arts. What will appear in the film will be something uniquely Indonesian even without the need to identify what specific strain it is,” Yayan said.

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