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View all search resultsThe eight-minute film is a modern retelling of the wayang legend, presenting a contemporary take within the age-old shadow puppet tradition
rikandi will make its appearance at the 46th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) 2021, which runs from 9 – 18 Sept., under the Short Cuts program, among 37 other short films.
Written and directed by Indonesian-born and Vancouver-based Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto, Srikandi has been selected as part of the digital component in TIFF's hybrid edition and will be screened across Canada. Nirmala, who is only 21, is the youngest Indonesian director to compete in the festival.
The story follows the grieving process of 17-year-old Anjani (Rai Putriansyah) following the death of her father (Sutrisno Hartana), a famous dalang (puppeteer). To stay financially afloat, Anjani's mother Santi (Rina Kusumajuda) attempts to sell their house, which doubles as a wayang studio.
Conflict arises when Anjani's calling to follow in the steps of her late father finds no encouragement from Santi because of her gender. There is simply no room for women in the dalang world. These opposing views of whether to carry the legacy forward as it initially stands, or to calibrate it with modern values gives the story a good amount of relevancy.
Shadow game: Wayang is a traditional Javanese art form that uses the shadows thrown by puppets against a translucent screen lit from behind. (Srikandi stills/Courtesy of Srikandi production team)On the surface, Srikandi showcases the pride and tenacity of Indonesians in preserving culture. Yet on another layer, it also reveals the age-old limitations on gender equality embedded in our culture, where some roles are gender specific. Yet wayang is also instilled with forward-looking values through female warrior characters like Srikandi.
"For the longest time, wayang has only been told through the male perspective. Most myths portray women as weak and submissive toward the male protagonist," Andrea told The Jakarta Post. She pointed to the wayang character Sinta as an example, where she is portrayed as someone who needs to be saved. Yet when she is finally saved, she is accused of adultery.
Coming back home
As a metaphor-laden art form, wayang hooked Andrea, but a longing to reconnect with her roots also factored into Srikandi’s creative process.
Andrea is of Javanese descent, and she was taken in by the familiarity and significance of wayang within her own family. Heightened by a feeling of homesickness when Andrea was studying abroad, wayang became her muse, a vehicle to share a part of herself to the world.
Srikandi shows a glimpse of what makes wayang mesmerizing – the intricate details of the puppet designs, the strong shadow games and the hypnotizing sound of gamelan. Hints of Javanese mysticism and rituals are often presented positively throughout the film.
It comes as no surprise then that the person who took the reins of Srikandi is Sutrisno, the film’s dalang performer. Sutrisno has studied wayang his entire adult life and has routinely performed in North America over the past 20 years. In 2004, Sutrisno was granted the title of Mas Lurah Lebda Swara by Paku Alaman of the Yogyakarta sultanate, making him a court musician at the royal palace.
Diverse team
Behind Srikandi are young, talented filmmakers with diverse nationalities. Without prior introduction to wayang, the team has obtained a lasting impression of the Javanese art form.
When the team learned wayang would serve as a vital pillar of the story, familiarizing themselves with wayang characters and stories became the first step in understanding the film's direction.
"Our production designer, Rachel Yuezhang Qin, who grew up in China, for example, did all the art and set decoration for Srikandi and understood the basic elements needed for a wayang performance like the screen and gamelan instruments. But then she saw Sutrisno perform live during the shoot at school, and she cried because according to her, it was an experience close to magic," said Andrea.
Opposing views: Following the death of a famous shadow puppeteer (Sutrisno Hartana), his daughter Anjani (Rai Putriansyah) struggles to set make mark in the male-dominated tradition. (Srikandi stills/Courtesy of Srikandi production team)The same goes for Srikandi's producer Matthew Herst from Vancouver. He told the Post, "Watching wayang performance and hearing gamelan music on that set was absolutely enchanting. But it was the tale of Srikandi that hooked me on the concept [of wayang]. I loved the idea of tackling modern dilemmas through ancient myths, and the more research I did, the further down the rabbit hole I crawled."
While Andrea gained more understanding, particularly of traditional Javanese rituals from her time working on Srikandi, Matthew said that he learned about Indonesia's history in broad strokes during the hurried development of Srikandi.
In his own words, "The largest questions in my mind going into the project were largely about life in Indonesia. It's a country that has not gotten much of the limelight in my life until recently. While we began working on Srikandi, we watched both recent releases and old classics to see how others had viewed the country through a lens."
He added, "Srikandi had helped us to understand the history and the importance of a familial culture and how we needed to pay respect to that."
The 46th annual Toronto International Film Festival runs September 9-18.
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