Prenjak

Filmmaker Wregas Bhanuteja’s Prenjak (In the Year of Monkey), lasting 12 minutes and 42 seconds, made Indonesian film history this year for two reasons.

It is the first Indonesian film of any category that won an award at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival, for one, while on the other hand it opened the eyes of people at home to international exposure of Indonesian short films. They have been regulars at many international film festivals, some by submission and many more by invitation, such as Lucky Kuswandi’s The Fox Exploits The Tiger’s Might that was shortlisted at last year’s Cannes International Critics’ Week.

Some of the titles include Sidi Saleh’s Maryam, focused on mental illness and religion, that triumphed at Berlinale in 2014, Kamila Andini’s Sendiri Diana Sendiri (Following Diana) on polygamy which premiered in Toronto last year, and Nia Dinata’s Kebaya Pengantin (Wedding Kebaya), a transgender story that garnered attention in The Hague.

The connection between the films is the exploration of themes rarely found in feature films.

“Short films give filmmakers the freedom to create and to capture the realities in our society,” said film observer Adrian Jonathan Pasaribu of Cinema Poetica at a public discussion after the recent screening of four shorts at Bentara Budaya Jakarta.

Besides Prenjak, other films screened at the event organized in collaboration with e-commerce gramedia.com were Edwin’s Dajang Soembi: Perempoean Jang Dikawini Andjing (Dayang Sumbi: The Woman Who Was Married to a Dog), Ninndi Raras’ Kitorang Basudara (We Are Brothers), and Adi Marsono’s Semalam, Anak Kita Pulang (Last Night, Our Child Came Home).The works have traveled to various film festivals and received accolades.

If Prenjak was based on a folk story of a genitalia peep show from the past in Yogyakarta, Dajang Soembi has content of bestiality, Oedipus complex and gory violence wrapped in as artistic black-and-white silent film.

Kitorang Basudara explored racism and discrimination in Yogyakarta, while Adi Marsono’s work told of the hardships of migrant workers from the viewpoint of their families. According to Edwin, shorts have the advantage of giving viewers new knowledge about an issue without bowing to the prevailing market taste.

“It will be more interesting to watch a film without being able to guess what it’s about or how it ends from the start,” said Yogyakarta-based Adi.

“In my work I always think of which side of Indonesia I’d like the film to present instead of what kind of Indonesia I’d like to sell outside. Having said that, either it’s the best or the worst kind of film on Indonesia that would sell.”

WINDOW ON INDONESIA

Short film is the most favorable medium for aspiring filmmakers in Indonesia to capture local stories, hone their skills on a relatively low budget while using affordable devices within a shorter time of production. They were not usually made for commercial viewing in theaters, hence their independency.

The many annual short film competitions held by either private and government institutions can gain hundreds of submissions.

Filmmaker Monty Tiwa, who has often been appointed a judge for such competitions, said the high enthusiasm was a good sign for the film industry in the near future.

“We need good scriptwriters, for one, those who have knowledge about the market and have the ability to communicate the message in the film in the most effective way,” he said in a separate interview.

By definition, a short film is a feature film that is no longer than 40 minutes in duration. By nature, a short film sends a message across in the shortest time possible.

There are many international film festivals for ultra-short films under five minutes, even one minute — usually non-narrative or animated films.

Although most filmmakers acknowledge that they do not create short films for competition, the screening or nomination of the works at film festivals, preferably a prestigious international event, is assured of securing audience members at home.

A good review will lead to continuous screening at cultural centers or communities, or as Ninndi put it, “short in duration, but long in presentation”.

Despite their strong achievements, Indonesian short films have yet to have their own market at home because they were often considered merely as a stepping stone of filmmakers to develop their skills.

“Short films are not financially profitable,” said Adrian, adding that the increasing number of short film productions each year was partly attributable to technological advancements that make shooting a film with smartphones possible.

“Currently film communities encourage commercial screening for short films with the proceeds going to filmmakers.”

Acknowledging that limited screenings could be advantageous because they would not require approval from the censorship body, Monty suggested a dedicated theater for short films, similar to the practice in other countries, to create its own market.

“Short films have an enthusiastic audience and they are big in number, but they are mostly students whose access to the films is limited to occasional screenings,” he said.

Ninndi, however, said where and how her films were screened was the least of her concerns.

“I just want my films to be out there and to be watched by as many people as possible,” she said.

Kitorang Basudara (2015)
Duration: 30 minutes

Yogyakarta-based Ninndi said her film was made as part of a local government project to capture social issues in the city. She based her premise on the current tensions between locals and migrants, especially from the eastern part of Indonesia.

Kitorang Basudara follows two Papuan brothers seeking a room to rent for the younger sibling, a first-year student. They face rejection and prejudice that frustrates the older brother.

“Many of my friends hail from Papua, Maluku or Nusa Tenggara. I’ve traveled to those places and I can understand why they chose to study in universities in Yogyakarta, a region which has long been known as the students’ city,” said Ninndi.

“What I don’t get is where the discrimination against them comes from.”

Semalam, Anak Kita Pulang (2015)
Duration: 13 minutes

Adi Marsono, who was part of Yogyakarta-based production house Fourcolours Film, led the company-funded project that was made during a break after the busy 2014 election year of producing political advertisements.

“There was news about two Indonesian workers who were found dead in an apartment in a foreign country. The news brought me to more stories about the plight of the workers abroad,” he said.

The film focuses on an elderly couple waiting to hear from their daughter who promised to build a better house for them.

“It’s about the illusion of becoming a migrant worker,” said Adi, who majored in anthropology and became a filmmaker after years of acting in theater and, later, short films.

Dajang Soembi: Perempoean Jang Dikawini Andjing (2004)
Duration: 7 minutes

Edwin, who hoped his work could be termed the first Indonesian silent film although it was produced in the early 2000s, said it was one of his early projects while studying at Jakarta Institute of Arts, as he experimented with using text on film instead of dialog.

“I was at a bookstore and found the Sangkuriang folktale. I realized at that time the onset of the story was rarely retold and that it was incredibly violent,” he told the Bentara Budaya discussion.

The film story concludes when Sangkuriang kills his father and presents his liver to Dajang Soembi to eat in his determination to claim his biological mother as his lover.

Where to go

Besides regular screenings at cultural centers or film communities, the following are recommended venues to watch short films.

1. Microcinema Kineforum Taman Ismail Marzuki Jl. Cikini Raya, Central Jakarta

2.  Kinosaurus Jl. Kemang Raya 8B, South Jakarta (inside Aksara bookstore)

Community

Minikino.org
It holds monthly screenings followed by discussions with the filmmakers in Bali and occasionally Jakarta. Its second annual short film festival, Minikino Film Week, will be held in Bali from Oct. 8 to 15

OnlineKineria (www.kineria.com)
Tagged as a movie rental store, Kineria provides curated Indonesian short films.

Viddsee (www.viddsee.com)
The Singapore-based online service has a collection of short films from Asia and regularly holds Vidsee Shortee Awards.

Reel 13 (www.thirteen.org)
Based in New York, it is open to submissions for short films and provides criticism as well as film-related articles.

Student Films (www.studentfilms.com)
A place for beginners to showcase their works, equipped with a chat forum to submit reviews.

Short of the Week (www.shortoftheweek.com)
Award-winning filmmakers created the Brooklyn-based website for the best bite-sized films.