CCF Jakarta brings spring to Indonesia

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Sun, 05/07/2006 11:14 AM  |  Life

Kenny Santana, Contributor, Jakarta, qnoy2k@yahoo.com

There's actually no spring fever here, but a series of events brought from France called Le Printemps (literally translated as spring) brings a freshness to the country never before experienced. Le Printemps opened on April 20 with a photography exhibition, and continues throughout May and June in six different cities (Jakarta, Balikpapan, Bandung, Denpasar, Surabaya, Yogyakarta) bringing French fashion, films, circus, and puppet theater to the Indonesian public.

This event, held for the second time, was made possible by Centre Culturel Franais (CCF) in Jakarta is part of Les Printemps Franais en Asie, where Asian and French cultures meet in China, South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam and of course, Indonesia.

""Spring is a very special time in France, and more generally in Europe. This is the season following winter, with an atmosphere of rebirth: the whole of nature blossoms, the light is brighter and brighter, everybody feels reborn. The lifestyle of the French people is also changing at this specific moment, because the weather allows you to do outside activities, to take your time, to feel more free,"" Jany Bourdais, director of CCF Jakarta explained.

""CCF considers these feelings of joy, freshness, freedom and newness really representative of the French creation in contemporary arts and culture. Our mission is to promote the most contemporary forms of arts and culture toward the young Indonesian audience, and to reinforce the exchanges between our rich cultures,"" Bourdais continued.

The rich cultural exchange was seen in the first event held in April. French photographer Klavdij Sluban held a photo exhibition titled Aprs L'Obscurit where he takes another look at Indonesia with his Leica camera. More interestingly, as part of the event, Sluban himself and Indonesian photographer Firman Ichsan held a discussion on the French photographer's role in Indonesian history over six decades.

Moving forward, Jakartans will get a sense this month of two famous French trademarks: fashion and films. Flock to the Fashion bar in eX, Plaza Indonesia on May 11 to witness Traits Trs Mode a showcase of trends in hairstyles by L'Oral Professionnel will see the launch of their new coloring products for Spring-Summer 2006.

At the same time, the models will wear and present the prt--porter Spring Summer 2006 collection of the French fashion brand Sinquanone which will be followed by an all-night party with DJ Jaka from Fashion bar. The show will be followed by an 11-day exhibition that will present French fashion trends through a new wave of very important artists (2000-2006).

Besides fashion, what's France without its film history. Jacques Tati, Juliette Binoche and Franois Ozon are cinema legends, while Cannes Film Festival is the biggest film festival in the world. Mix the two, stir in a tang of the contemporary and you'll have the 11th French Film Festival opening May 30.

This year's exciting lineup includes the Cannes 2005 Palme D'or winner L'enfant (The Child), Michael Haneke's widely acclaimed Cach (Hidden), Oscar winner La Marche de l'Empereur (March of the Penguins), and the French joint production with Thailand's Tropical Malady and Indonesia's Berbagi Suami.

From the selection, Julie Godignon, Charge de Mission pour l'Audiovisuel from Ambassade de France recommends Les Poupes Russes (Russian Dolls), the sequel of the much beloved L'auberge Espagnole (Spanish Apartment). Starring Romain Duris and Audrey Tatou, the movie follows the life of Xavier (Duris), a freelance writer in between, career, friends and the quest of looking for the right girl. ""It has a good mix of drama and comedy by director Cdric Klapisch from a new generation of directors who bring new styles and lightness to French cinema,"" said Julie.

In between the fashion and the films, the French slip in the music for us. There are several different gigs in various genres for any music fans.

The French rock band, Astonvilla will perform on May 16, in Taman Ismail Marzuki along with Yogyakarta-based up and coming pop rock band, Next of Kin. Formed 10 years ago in Paris, Astonvilla has become an opening act for the likes of Deep Purple and Bryan Adams. With its catchy style of melodic rock, Astonvilla is known for its originality in the French scene. It have been touted as an excellent live act that appeals to several generations.

Bourdais from CCF seems to agree: ""Astonvilla represents the actual French music scene, they are really happening now in France, the radio stations play their music, the television stations play their clips. So, if you really want to know about the French music scene you wouldn't miss this concert.""

Astonvilla's rocking performance in addition to the psychedelic and ethnic influence Next of Kin has in its music will create a blend of two different cultures. ""The presence of Next of Kin as an opening act in this concert is really important because it represents the dialog that we can build between two cultures. We hope that the meeting of Next of Kin and Astonvilla, that will tour together in Surabaya, Jakarta and Yogyakarta, will be rich enough to develop an artistic relationship between these two bands,"" Bourdais explained.

Other musical performances not to be missed from the Gallic country is Mouron, one of the Divas in Chansons (May 20 in Oasis Restaurant) and the European Camerata on May 23 in Erasmus Huis.

The European Camerata is a European chamber orchestra consisting of 25 string players founded in 1995. Mostly dedicated to string music, they also like exploring the masterpieces of the symphonic repertoire from the Baroque period until the present day and often collaborate with soloists. In their performances, European Camerata always stand and play without a conductor. This gives the group a unity and homogeneity that is very close to chamber music.

In 2000, European Camerata was chosen by William Lyne for the gala concert New Stars of the Millenium at the Wigmore Hall in London. In Germany, they opened the Mozart Festival in Wurzburg. And here in Jakarta, commemorating this year's 250th anniversary of Mozart, the program will be devoted entirely to the works of Mozart.

Besides the legendary Mozart, there are more interesting things going on in Le Printemps. Take yourself on a detour to Depuis Hier by Turak Theatre performing May 31 in Gedung Kesenian Jakarta (GKJ). Conducted by Michel Laubu, the theatre takes big masks, marionettes and daily objects transforming them into a new creative world. Using childhood memories to play on the audience's emotions, the theatre has been cited as dreamlike and lyrical; a comic journey to human individuality. A must-see.

Another must is the Interiur Nuit on June 12 in GKJ, a contemporary performance by Jean-Baptiste Andr that plays with the laws of gravity, the supernatural and acrobatics. By mixing circus acts with theatre, dance, video and electronic music for one full hour, Andr will surely takes us to another level of gravity. Pun intended.

Voil! French spring time has come to life in the country with this series of films, concerts, circus, dance, and a whole lot more.

For a complete list of events, take a look at www.ccfjakarta.or.id

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