Jakarta International Festival marries East and West

Jakarta International Festival marries East and West

By Yenni Kwok

JAKARTA (JP): Organizers of Jakarta International Festival
1997 (Jakfest '97) are clearly intent on dismantling Rudyard
Kipling's pessimism that the twain never meets between East and
West.

Its theme, "East Meets West," says it all, as the Eighth
Jakarta International Festival invites everybody to enjoy doses
of local and foreign cultures, all for free. Movies, dances,
music and handicrafts from 17 countries fill the week-long
calendar through June 29.

Participating countries are Australia, Austria, China, India,
Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Mexico, the Philippines, Peru,
Poland, Singapore, Slovenia, Sri Lanka, South Korea, Vietnam and
Indonesia.

"We have a mission to introduce their cultures to the public,
and to show the world that we too can appreciate their cultures,"
said Ita Munaf, the vice chairperson of Jakarta International
Festival, more popularly known as Jakfest.

Jakfest is held annually to celebrate the city's anniversary,
which falls on June 22. The festival is a collaborative effort by
the Jakarta provincial government, Jakarta Promotion Board and
Garuda Indonesia.

The cultural activities are held at different venues around
the city: movies will be in Gedung Kesenian Jakarta, art
exhibitions in Jakarta Convention Center, cultural performances
in Erasmus Huis, Pasar Seni Ancol and several shopping centers.

Although the welcome party will not be until this Thursday,
Jakfest kicked off last Monday with movie screenings at Gedung
Kesenian Jakarta.

Indonesia showed two movies, Nya' Abbas Akup's Cintaku di
Rumah Susun (My Love in the Housing Project) and Garin Nugroho's
award-winning Surat Untuk Bidadari (Letter to an Angel).

Surat Untuk Bidadari, scheduled to be screened at 8 p.m.
today, is the tale of Lewa, a boy living on the island of Sumba.
His rough surroundings have taken the lives of those he loves:
his mother, father, uncle and pet horse. Lewa is often scolded
for his free will and ideas. He then writes a letter to an angel,
asking why he is always faulted even when he does something
right.

Other films scheduled today are Poland's, The Scream and South
Korea's, Eternal Empire. The Scream is a grim story of a young
woman who has to work in a luxurious nursing home after her
release from prison. Marianne cares for Nestor, a senile old man.
The story is set in 1981, during the country's period of martial
law in which people were gripped by paranoia. Nestor is a target
of suspicion when two labor unionists come for an investigation.

Eternal Empire tells of political intrigues in 17th century
Chosun Korea. The Royal Party insists the power should be
centralized in the monarch, while the Old Party believes it
belongs to a majority of ministers. When the king's trusted
scholar is killed, apparently by the Old Party because of his
knowledge about a mysterious royal book, the king tries to get
rid of the Old Party members. The enigma centers around what is
in the book, why the murder took place and who was involved.

Films screened earlier during the festival included the
Philippines' Mulanay -In the Heart of Paradise, Vietnam's An
Oath, China's Yang Yuhuan - the Imperial Concubine and Japan's
The Sting of Death.

Music

Musical performances range from folk songs to classical music.
Vietnam's 20-member Thai Binh Art Troupe will perform the "folk-
songs of North Delta", as well as a series of dances.

The Netherlands will present jazz and a classical music
performances at their cultural center, Erasmus Huis. The Plexus
Sextet band of Rotterdam will perform their "hardbop" jazz
tonight.

If you missed cellist Rene Berman and pianist Kees Wieringa
yesterday, there are other classical music moments to be enjoyed.
Indonesian-Slovenian pianist Tomaz Tobing will perform Franz
Schubert's Impromptu pieces this Friday and Saturday at Erasmus
Huis.

Folk dances still reign in this festival. Seoul Municipal
Dance Company will perform several dances, such as Wedding Day,
Hallyang Dance, Fan Dance, Shaman Dance and Jindo Drum Dance.
In Jindo Drum Dance, two drums are used in the exciting and
energetic dance in reflecting the high spirits of the Jindo
people.

Multi-ethnic Singapore is represented by Silambam, the ancient
Indian martial art rooted in Tamil folk-art culture. It is much
older than Malay silat and even Chinese kung fu. In this
festival, Silambam fighters show their skills in dexterously
using long sticks, spring blades, ram horns and fire balls.

Nineteen artists from Australia, Peru, the Philippines,
Malaysia and Jakarta will exhibit their handicrafts at Jakarta
Convention Center from June 27 to 29.

On Sunday morning, participants of Jakfest '97 will also
parade through Jl. M.H. Thamrin, from the National Monument
(Monas) to the roundabout in front of Hotel Indonesia. Munaf
estimates around 500 participants, including 350 from Indonesia,
will take part in this cultural procession.

Except the welcome and farewell parties, all events are open
to the public for free. "It is part of the Jakarta provincial
government's social activities so that we all can enjoy the
variety of local and international culture," said Ita.

Events have always been free since 1990. Throughout the years,
foreign participants have increased, from four countries in 1990.
The organizers plan to keep the free admission policy for the
first 10 or 15 years. "Right now, we are more focused on creating
an image of a good, well-organized festival," Ita added.