“The challenges were many and it was tough to make a film about a person I admire. For Javanese people, Sultan Agung is more than just a national hero,” Hanung told Antara news agency.

Since he was young, Hanung has considered the king of Mataram to be superior to other kings of Java. Hence, he treated the subject very carefully.

“Ever since I was young, I was told that Sultan Agung was the highest among other kings. […] I felt the pressure [during the making of the movie], especially since I’m not part of the Keraton [palace],” said Hanung, who is known for directing hits such as Rudy Habibie (2016) and Ayat-Ayat Cinta (Verses of Love) (2008).

Read also: Official trailer, poster for ‘Sultan Agung’ biopic released

 

Setiap produksi film selalu menyiratkan drama yg menegangkan. Begitupun dengan film ini. Sultan Agung bagi masyarakat Jawa bukan sekedar tokoh Raja Mataram. Dia tokoh yang dalam berbagai catatan Belanda dianggap kejam, otoriter, ambisius. Apalagi ketika menyangkut pertempuran di Batavia. Sejatinya, Sultan Agung adalah seorang cantrik dari Ilmu ma’rifat Kanjeng Sunan Kalijaga sebagaimana kakeknya, Panembahan Senopati. Beliau selalu dahaga ilmu dan membenci keserakahan. Membuat film ini adalah sebuah panggilan jiwa saya sebagai orang Jawa. Seluruh Shooting dikerjakan di @gamplong_studio, Sleman dan desa Jatisari, Dlingo, Bantul. Melibatkan pemain pendukung dari Yogyakarta dan Surakarta. Sebuah film yang diadaptasi dari sejarah tentang awal kejayaan Mataram Islam yang kelak melahirkan Kota Surakarta dan Yogyakarta. Tidak hanya itu. Konon kabarnya, seluruh presiden yang pernah memerintah indonesia adalah keturunan Mataram. Dari Soekarno hingga Jokowidodo. Wallahualam. Nantikan persembahan kami untuk Indonesia di 23 Agustus 2018 🙏🙏🙏🙏

A post shared by Hanung Bramantyo (@hanungbramantyo) on Aug 5, 2018 at 4:34am PDT

Hanung said he had conjured up images of the Sultan and his life from literature, although not in detail.

As information was scarce, he decided to dig deeper into the Sultan's character, who was notoriously known as ambitious and cruel in Dutch literature. An attack on Batavia, for instance, was one of his crucial decisions.

“I had to gather information from various sources. I found [information] from an Islamic group on why Sultan Agung attacked Batavia – it was considered a holy war, a jihad for the future. That’s why I used the attack [in the film]. While other kings cooperated with foreigners, Sultan Agung fought against them,” Hanung said.

While the film is about a historical figure, Hanung believed it cannot be used as a historical source as it was made as a reminder for the younger generation about Sultan Agung.

Sultan Agung: Tahta, Perjuangan dan Cinta is scheduled to be released on Aug. 23. It stars Ario Bayu (Sultan Agung), Putri Marino (young Lembayung), the late Deddy Sutomo (Ki Jejer), Adinia Wirasti (Lembayung) and Teuku Rifnu Wikana (Panji Kelana). (wir/wng)

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