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Garin Nugroho: Bringing politics into focus
Garin Nugroho (left) talks about his journey in the Indonesian movie industry, at Galeri Indonesia Kaya in January
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Garin Nugroho (left) talks about his journey in the Indonesian movie industry, at Galeri Indonesia Kaya in January. (A. Kurniawan Ulung)" width="511" border="0" height="396">Garin Nugroho (left) talks about his journey in the Indonesian movie industry, at Galeri Indonesia Kaya in January. (A. Kurniawan Ulung)While Garin Nugroho likes making movies about politics and history, the nationâs foremost auteur director says he has no interest in making a film about the nationâs handsome and dashing first president.
âSukarno is very popular. I always look for âunpopularâ figures who have had important roles in this country, such as Soegija. Who knows about him?â he said during a discussion about Indonesian cinema, at the Galeri Indonesia Kaya in Jakarta in January.
The 53-year-old filmmaker said that he would continue to explore the tales of lesser known actors on the national political stage, leaving the studies in power and the depiction of the great moments to others.
Movie making is his way to help strengthen the nation, said Garin, whose breakthrough movie Cinta Dalam Sepotong Roti (Love in a Piece of Bread) was released in 1990.
In Mata Tertutup (Eyes Shut), which was released in 2011, for example, Garin made a film aimed at young people to raise awareness about radicalism, violence or intolerance.
The film told the stories of three people who were victims of hard-line groups, including the outlawed Islamic State of Indonesia (NII) movement that was founded by Sekarmadji Maridjan Kartosoewirjo in August 1949.
Garin Nugroho (left)<)
Garin Nugroho (left) talks about his journey in the Indonesian movie industry, at Galeri Indonesia Kaya in January. (A. Kurniawan Ulung)
While Garin Nugroho likes making movies about politics and history, the nation's foremost auteur director says he has no interest in making a film about the nation's handsome and dashing first president.
'Sukarno is very popular. I always look for 'unpopular' figures who have had important roles in this country, such as Soegija. Who knows about him?' he said during a discussion about Indonesian cinema, at the Galeri Indonesia Kaya in Jakarta in January.
The 53-year-old filmmaker said that he would continue to explore the tales of lesser known actors on the national political stage, leaving the studies in power and the depiction of the great moments to others.
Movie making is his way to help strengthen the nation, said Garin, whose breakthrough movie Cinta Dalam Sepotong Roti (Love in a Piece of Bread) was released in 1990.
In Mata Tertutup (Eyes Shut), which was released in 2011, for example, Garin made a film aimed at young people to raise awareness about radicalism, violence or intolerance.
The film told the stories of three people who were victims of hard-line groups, including the outlawed Islamic State of Indonesia (NII) movement that was founded by Sekarmadji Maridjan Kartosoewirjo in August 1949.
A year later, Garin delivered another message of humanity in his film Soegija, which told the story of the first Indonesian Catholic bishop, Mgr. Albertus Magnus Soegijapranata, who played a silent role in fighting for the nation's independence.
The movie displayed the humanist leadership of Soegija, played by Nirwan Dewanto, that embraced members of every community, regardless of religion, ethnicity or race.
Garin is slated to release in April a new film exploring the life of another relatively unknown figure in the nation's political history: Raden Hadji Oemar Said Tjokroaminoto.
In Guru Bangsa: Tjokroaminoto (The Nation's Teacher: Tjokroaminoto), the title role will be portrayed by 27-year-old Reza Rahadian, who won a Citra award, equivalent to an Oscar in Indonesia, for his turn as another historical character: former president BJ Habibe in the biopic Habibie and Ainun.
Tjokroaminoto, who founded the colonial-era nationalist movement Sarekat Islam, is described by Garin as the' founding father of Indonesia's founding fathers', including Soekarno and Mohammad Hatta.
He called on people to emulate Tjokroaminoto, a teacher who always gave his students freedom to choose from the many different schools of thought that were popular at the time, including Islamist, nationalist, socialist and communist thinkers.
'When we are talking about HOS Tjokroaminoto, we are talking about the birth of this nation,' Garin said. 'We will see how great and noble his political thoughts are. In this movie, I want to introduce him not only as a politician, but also as an artist.'
For Garin, political movies are essential ' especially at a time when competition and grandstanding on the national stage is common. He wants his movies to make young people more interested in history ' especially political history, which is a frequent no-go area.
'We should learn about politics from politicians who have history ' not those who just love to make splash as we can see right now,' Garin, who graduated from University of Indonesia in 1991, said.
History is important, he says: People ignorant of the past will age without self-development, unable to discover the meanings of their failures or successes.
'Almost 80 percent of my movies are about politics and history,' Garin, who was been working in the Indonesian film industry for over 3 decades, said. 'I hope that the young generation will keep watching them, because they have an educational value.
For more information, visit indonesiakaya.com or tjokromovie.com.
