NOTEBOOK #5
Paul shares online interviews and documentaries with filmmakers and actors within the Indonesian film industry – and a favourite novel set in Indonesia that deserves to be turned into a film.
Recommended by Paul
And as part of our Indonesian season, we have also interviewed a British-Indonesian actor Hannah Al Rashid on Indonesian films in our podcast: Episode 18 - One Word: Condom. You can also watch a short Indonesian film Humanisick on our DC@Home platform.
WATCH
Blood, Guts and Bad Acting: Inside the Indonesian B Movies of the 1980s
A brief introduction to the work of Rapi Films, the leading producer of Indonesian films from the 1970s to 1980s. Made during the years of dictatorship under Suharto, these films were surprisingly graphic and populist for the time and had some international success during the ’80s. Rapi Films contributed to a thriving domestic market, which was all but wiped out by the economic crash of 1997. However, these films went on to influence leading present-day Indonesian filmmakers such as Joko Anwar, who narrates the documentary; and who recently filmed a remake of one of Rapi Film’s most famous titles, Satan’s Slaves, screened as part of our last Indonesian film season at Deptford Cinema.
Watch on YouTube
Aria Prayogi & Fajar Yuskemal - The Raid
LISTEN
Aria Prayogi & Fajar Yuskemal
Aria Prayogi and Fajar Yuskemal are long-time collaborators with Gareth Evans, who made his name with his Indonesian trilogy of films starring Iko Uwais and Yayan Ruhian; Merantau, The Raid and The Raid 2. They created scores for the Raid films, Apostle and the recent Gangs of London TV series, all of which are distinct in their use of ethereal, ambient textures punctuated by battering industrial electronica while referencing traditional Indonesian music.
Their original score for The Raid was dropped in favour of a score by Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park, on the basis that it was more likely to have commercial appeal. However, the original score was released on vinyl after The Raid’s release and, it can be argued is the superior of the two. It is available from Death Waltz records and the score for Gangs of London is available on Amazon.
READ
The Redundancy of Courage
by Timothy Mo
This novel is based on the Indonesian invasion and annexation of East Timor (now Timor Leste) in 1975 and tells the story of the resistance movement through the eyes of an outsider; a gay Chinese hotelier who through circumstance becomes a guerrilla fighting for the resistance.
The novel is considered to be so accurate that it inspired the theory that it was written by an East Timorese, and that Timothy Mo is a pseudonym; his name, spoken in a Polynesian/Timorese accent sounds like ‘Timor-Timor’. The overall theme is how the United States backs conflicts around the world to expand and maintain its empire, and how this translates for those directly affected. To emphasise how these conflicts are a shared experience throughout the world, the location and names of the characters have been changed, although its origins are clear. East Timor becomes ‘Danu’, Fretilin, the resistance movement, becomes FAKINTIL, and the Indonesians become the Malais. The story is part action-adventure and part wry commentary on the foibles and character of both cultures and individuals on opposite sides of the conflict.
A novel that would seemingly lend itself to being turned into a film script, the nearest analogue to this story so far has been Night Bus. This may be because the subject is still controversial in Indonesia. However, with the trend of best-selling Indonesian novels, such as Aruna and her Palate being turned into feature films, it may only be a matter of time before we see the film version.
This book you can buy from Bookshop
The Industry, featuring Gareth Evans, director of The Raid.
WATCH
The Industry
In this YouTube series Arifin Putra, star of films such as Rumah Dara, The Raid 2 and the TV series Halfworlds, interviews fellow actors such as Rio Dewanto, Asmara Abigail, Yayan Ruhian and directors Teddy Soeriaatmadja and Gareth Evans about their work, and the Indonesian film industry as a whole.
The Raid 3 or Deathstroke? | The Industry feat. Gareth Evans
Watch on YouTube
The Art of Action
Scott Atkins, action film veteran who starred alongside Iko Uwais in Triple Strike, interviews Iko, Joe Taslim and Gareth Evans as part of this YouTube series on the martial arts film industry. As with ‘The Industry’ Atkins interviews his subjects from the perspective of an insider and even co-star.
The Art of Action - Joe Taslim - Episode 25
Watch on YouTube
The Art of Action - Iko Uwais - Episode 28
Watch on YouTube
BONUS
Also to watch, a short documentary tracking the journey of Queer cinema in Indonesia after the fall of Suharto, to the conservative backlash in more recent years. Indonesia's burgeoning democracy in the 90's led to filmmakers exploring new themes within cinema, including those around LGBTQ identities. However, as religion began to play a more prominent part within politics and censorship, the rise in conservative pressure groups has led to such films being targeted or banned. It also considers the role of film directors and society as a whole regarding their role in the portrayal of the LGBTQ experience in Indonesia.
Watch on YouTube