Foreign products dominate local comic industry
By Yusuf Susilo
JAKARTA (JP): Dozens of cartoonists under the flag of the Indonesian Comics Society (MKI), an association of some 700 cartoonists from across the country, held a rally in front of Pasar Festival in Jakarta recently.
Led by MKI chairman, Wahyu Sugianto, the rally continued peacefully until dusk fell. Nonpolitical in nature, the rally escaped the notice of the police and media.
Dozens of posters in Indonesian and English were placed along the outer fence of Pasar Festival, which is located in Kuningan. Other posters were simply scattered on the ground.
These posters "shouted" different messages, but in essence they all called on Indonesians to love their own comic books and to stop engrossing themselves in foreign (Japanese, American and European) comics at the expense of local comics.
Some of the messages read: "Support your local comic movement", "Foreign comics are not necessarily good", "Do not sell only foreign comics" and "Go to hell imported comics".
Ridiculously, when Wahyu attempted shout out a message, he could not be heard because, unlike at normal rallies, there was no megaphone, an indication that the participants were not true protesters.
Nevertheless, the rally was interesting to watch. Cartoonists and visitors could draw on pieces of paper scattered on the ground. Those who did not have the knack for drawing could simply watch how comics were made, or walk around and read the posters.
"Right you are, brother," said Sisca, a high school student, commenting on a poster reading: "This is the era of Indonesian comics". Next to it was another poster reading: "Go To Hell $ Imported Comics".
A day earlier, a similar rally was held in front of the Kompas building on Jl. Palmerah Selatan. The participants conveyed the same message and asked the mass media to support local comics. "We need help from the community, particularly the mass media and publishers, to be able to revive the local comic industry," said Wahyu.
The two rallies were held in connection with the Third National Comics and Animated Cartoons Week 2001 (PKAN III), held at the H. Usmar Ismail Film Center (PPHUI) from Feb. 9 to Feb. 16.
The event, organized by the Directorate General of Culture and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, with the support of MKI, the Indonesian Animated Cartoons Association and the School of Film and Television at the Jakarta Arts Institute, had as its theme In Search of the Characters in Indonesian Cartoons.
Director General of Culture IGN Anom said the theme was deliberately chosen because the characters in local comics and animated cartoons very much resemble characters in Japanese and American cartoons.
The event had a number of different programs, including an exhibition, a bazaar, a workshop on animated cartoons, a workshop on comics, a chance for children and teenagers to meet cartoonists, rallies and a meeting between aspiring cartoonists and cartoonists taking part in the workshops and the ASEAN cartoon exhibition, as well as the screening of animated cartoons.
In a report, the chairman of the organizing committee, Sri Hastanto, said this year's event could attract 8,972 visitors from Jakarta, Bogor, Tangerang, Bekasi and other regions.
Islamic comics
Wahyu made an appeal to the community, particularly publishers and the mass media, because the productivity of MKI members had dropped recently.
The work of most MKI cartoonists are yet to be appreciated by comic buffs because only a handful of publishers are willing to publish local comics. And overseas, the mass media has not provided space for Indonesian comics.
There are only a handful of publishers concerned by how local comics fare. They include Mizan in Bandung and Balai Pustaka and Gramedia in Jakarta.
These three publishers each offer something unique. Mizan, while also publishing general comics like the highly popular Ohir series by Bandung-based Bajing Loncat Studio, also publishes Islamic comics.
Andi Yudha of Bajing Loncat Studio and Mizan have enjoyed success with Ohir, a comic intended for small children and teenagers.
A young and stylish mother from Pondok Indah looking for books for her children at the Mizan stand during PKAN III said that in her experience, children were attracted to Islamic teachings presented through comics because they could better understand the subject matter.
"Perhaps because of the drawings. My children like these comics because they are easily understood," she said.
Some of Mizan's best-selling comics are Series of Islamic Comics: Stories of Muhammad, which comes in 12 volumes at Rp 9,900 per volume. Between 1997, when the series first appeared, and 1999, the series was reprinted five times.
There is also Olin's Diary: the Last Choice, a novel interspersed with comics for youngsters. It tells the story of how Olin, a tomboy, finally decides to wear a Muslim head scarf. For young children, Mizan publishes Stories for Children Under Five: Mio Series.
State publisher Balai Pustaka publishes original Indonesian comics made by winners of the National Comic Contest and the National Illustrated Story Contest held by the Directorate General of Culture and the ministries of education and culture. Some of the titles are Si Muka Kacang (the winner of the 1996 illustrated story contest), sold for Rp 5,100, and Ayam Majapahit (Majapahit Chicken) (the winner of the 1996 comic contest), available at Rp 5,000.
The third publisher, Gramedia, mostly publishes Disney comics (in translation) and Japanese comics that are popular with Indonesian children. Some of the titles include Pocahontas, Beauty and the Beast, Batman, Hercules and Hatori.
These comic books in translation cost about Rp 6,500 a copy, far less expensive than local comics published by Mizan, for example.
It is public knowledge that in the past decade these comics in translation have dominated the Indonesian market. Their position is also strengthened thanks to merchandising, with legal and pirated objects like CDs, VCDs, T-shirts, bags, stickers and dolls available, as well as big-screen films and television shows.
Capitalist Network
That Mizan-published comics sell well demonstrates a market for domestic comics still exists and has good potential. But the question remains: why do people always refer to imported comics? Why do bookstores prefer to display imported comics, rather than local ones, in their shop windows?
Why has the Japanese comic Crayon Sinchan, for example, been freely introduced to children here, while in Japan it is specifically intended for teenagers and parents. Why don't Indonesia's comic publishers imitate Malaysia and adapt Crayon Sinchan comics to the local culture?
Why does RCTI air Crayon Sinchan cartoons in the morning as a show intended for children, while in Japan it is shown only at night?
A comic observer and activist from the University of Indonesia, Rahayu S. Hidayat, the curator of PKAN III, has an answer that is short and to the point: "I have the hunch there is an international capitalist conspiracy behind all this."
What she regrets is that at home relevant parties have not yet realized the significance of promoting local comics and animated cartoons.
One key tactic to resist this "international capitalist conspiracy" is not to resort to a campaign against foreign comics, but, as suggested by cartoonist Dwi Koen Br, the "father" of famous Indonesian cartoon character Panji Koming, to adopt a total marketing concept.
This means that everyone involved in all aspects of comics and animated cartoons in Indonesia should improve their communication with one another and sit down at the same table to formulate a grand strategy. In this case, the government would only facilitate the meeting. Without such a step, it will be impossible for Indonesian comics to be the host in their own country.
The head of the National Gallery, Watie Moerani, gave her word that the gallery would make one room available for comics. In this way, all the worries felt by cartoonists, including the eagerness to find genuinely Indonesian cartoon characters, may be accommodated and creatively channeled. Will the goal also be a loud shout of "Go to hell imported comics"?