Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Musical reveals Indonesia's heart of darkness
by Nabiha Shahab
=(PICTURE)=
JAKARTA, Dec 19, 2006 (AFP) - Filmmaker Garin Nugroho has turned to ancient Sanskrit legend and traditional Javanese culture to portray the inequality and violence that have plagued Indonesia's emergence as an independent nation.
Nugroho has previously explored dark episodes in his country's history -- "A Poet" was set in 1965 during the massacre of hundreds of thousands of "communists" and government opponents.
But for his new film, "Opera Jawa" ("Requiem From Java"), Nugroho took his inspiration from an ancient epic, the Ramayana.
"The Abduction of Sinta", one of the best-loved tales from the Ramayana, recounts the tragic love triangle between Prince Rama, his Princess Sinta and King Rahwana, who tries to take her by force.
In "Opera Jawa", the episode is recast as a story of everyday life in a Javanese village.
Setio and his wife Siti make a living selling earthenware pots in a village where trade is controlled by the rich and violent Ludiro.
All three are former dancers who used to perform the Ramayana tale in traditional Javanese "wayang orang" dance-drama, and their lives start to mirror the parts they once played, with similarly tragic results.
The innovative musical blends sophisticated traditional and contemporary dance accompanied by Javanese "tembang" song and "gamelan" (gong and xylophone) orchestra to retell the intricate and timeless tale of power, love and betrayal.
It "is probably the first gamelan musical in the world," director Nugroho, 45, told AFP in an interview.
Some 70 new musical compositions, more than 60 pieces of choreography and intricate installation art went into the creation of the film, which just had its Indonesian premier at the Jakarta International Film Festival.
The two-hour film was shot in just 14 days following three months of preparation.
It takes place against the picturesque landscape of the ancient cities of Yogyakarta and Surakarta on the southern coast of central Java.
But beneath the sumptuous beauty lurks a dark beast.
The story culminates with Setio killing his wife and cutting out her liver to discover whether she was still true to him.
Meanwhile, mobs of villagers burn effigies and shout "Rawe rawe rantas, malang malang putung," a Javanese proverb that literally means "Whatever obstruction lies ahead should be cut down".
The saying was often linked to socialism because of its extensive use by the communist party in the 1960s.
Its depiction of the stark contrast between good and evil is an illustration of "life in Indonesia, where beauty and violence live side by side," said Nugroho.
"This is the era of extreme paradox, the rich become more powerful and the poor become angry -- this is what I tried to depict in this film," he said.
Time references are unclear in the film, which could be set in the 1960s, during the social uprisings and pogrom against "communists" which brought Suharto to power, but could equally easily be framed during the upheaval that followed the fall of the dictator in 1998.
"I deliberately blurred the time reference -- civil unrest happens when the powerful oppress the powerless and this has happened many times in our history," said Nugroho.
"Opera Jawa is a requiem of grief for the killing fields which have been born out of the conflict of extremes across the world, conflict in society filled with anxiety," he said.
Despite its grim undercurrent, Nugroho said the film was designed as a showcase for Indonesian multi-culturalism, in particular on the island of Java, which has a rich variety of languages and culture.
"This film features the best artists in Javanese culture, Eko Supriyanto and Martinus Miroto are leading Javanese contemporary dancers," he said, referring to the dancers who play Ludiro and Setio, respectively. "I always watch their performances."
"Opera Jawa" may have just had its Indonesian premier, but it has already attracted international interest, and won two awards at the Festival of the Three Continents in Nantes.
Artika Sari Dewi, who plays Siti and represented Indonesia at last year's Miss Universe, won best actress, while Nugroho took the prize for best soundtrack and music creation.
The film was commissioned by the New Crowned Hope festival and funded by Vienna to mark the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth.
nsh/mtp/cc
by Nabiha Shahab
=(PICTURE)=
JAKARTA, Dec 19, 2006 (AFP) - Filmmaker Garin Nugroho has turned to ancient Sanskrit legend and traditional Javanese culture to portray the inequality and violence that have plagued Indonesia's emergence as an independent nation.
Nugroho has previously explored dark episodes in his country's history -- "A Poet" was set in 1965 during the massacre of hundreds of thousands of "communists" and government opponents.
But for his new film, "Opera Jawa" ("Requiem From Java"), Nugroho took his inspiration from an ancient epic, the Ramayana.
"The Abduction of Sinta", one of the best-loved tales from the Ramayana, recounts the tragic love triangle between Prince Rama, his Princess Sinta and King Rahwana, who tries to take her by force.
In "Opera Jawa", the episode is recast as a story of everyday life in a Javanese village.
Setio and his wife Siti make a living selling earthenware pots in a village where trade is controlled by the rich and violent Ludiro.
All three are former dancers who used to perform the Ramayana tale in traditional Javanese "wayang orang" dance-drama, and their lives start to mirror the parts they once played, with similarly tragic results.
The innovative musical blends sophisticated traditional and contemporary dance accompanied by Javanese "tembang" song and "gamelan" (gong and xylophone) orchestra to retell the intricate and timeless tale of power, love and betrayal.
It "is probably the first gamelan musical in the world," director Nugroho, 45, told AFP in an interview.
Some 70 new musical compositions, more than 60 pieces of choreography and intricate installation art went into the creation of the film, which just had its Indonesian premier at the Jakarta International Film Festival.
The two-hour film was shot in just 14 days following three months of preparation.
It takes place against the picturesque landscape of the ancient cities of Yogyakarta and Surakarta on the southern coast of central Java.
But beneath the sumptuous beauty lurks a dark beast.
The story culminates with Setio killing his wife and cutting out her liver to discover whether she was still true to him.
Meanwhile, mobs of villagers burn effigies and shout "Rawe rawe rantas, malang malang putung," a Javanese proverb that literally means "Whatever obstruction lies ahead should be cut down".
The saying was often linked to socialism because of its extensive use by the communist party in the 1960s.
Its depiction of the stark contrast between good and evil is an illustration of "life in Indonesia, where beauty and violence live side by side," said Nugroho.
"This is the era of extreme paradox, the rich become more powerful and the poor become angry -- this is what I tried to depict in this film," he said.
Time references are unclear in the film, which could be set in the 1960s, during the social uprisings and pogrom against "communists" which brought Suharto to power, but could equally easily be framed during the upheaval that followed the fall of the dictator in 1998.
"I deliberately blurred the time reference -- civil unrest happens when the powerful oppress the powerless and this has happened many times in our history," said Nugroho.
"Opera Jawa is a requiem of grief for the killing fields which have been born out of the conflict of extremes across the world, conflict in society filled with anxiety," he said.
Despite its grim undercurrent, Nugroho said the film was designed as a showcase for Indonesian multi-culturalism, in particular on the island of Java, which has a rich variety of languages and culture.
"This film features the best artists in Javanese culture, Eko Supriyanto and Martinus Miroto are leading Javanese contemporary dancers," he said, referring to the dancers who play Ludiro and Setio, respectively. "I always watch their performances."
"Opera Jawa" may have just had its Indonesian premier, but it has already attracted international interest, and won two awards at the Festival of the Three Continents in Nantes.
Artika Sari Dewi, who plays Siti and represented Indonesia at last year's Miss Universe, won best actress, while Nugroho took the prize for best soundtrack and music creation.
The film was commissioned by the New Crowned Hope festival and funded by Vienna to mark the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth.
nsh/mtp/cc
