RI film not off the critical list

Joko Anwar, Contributor, Jakarta

While fans of Indonesian music can take their pick from the wide selection of albums in record stores, those in search of local flavor in the movie section are not so lucky.

Their choice is limited to a tiny shelf displaying a few local films.

After the lean years of the 1990s, some have called the recent increase in film production -- sparked by the huge success of children's musical Petualangan Sherina (Sherina's Adventure) in 2000 -- a "revival" in the industry's fortunes.

That consists of four films released in 2001, eight in 2002 and 13 in 2003 -- still a paltry number.

There have been a few well made and commercially successful films, such as teen romance Ada Apa dengan Cinta? (What's Up with Cinta?) in 2001, but the rest have not measured up.

They are either polished but commercially doomed movies or commercially successful but poorly made: Filmmakers still do not make movies with their audience in mind.

Riri Riza's Eliana, Eliana garnered acclaim from critics here and abroad, but it was simply too stylish for the tastes of local audiences.

Horror flicks, no matter how badly conceived they are, enjoy a long, profitable stay at the local cinemas.

The commercial triumph of Kafir (Infidel) last year was surprising, considering its poor quality and low entertainment value. Its success encouraged movie makers to rush out poorly made vehicles to jump on the bandwagon.

Thankfully, moviegoers are becoming more sophisticated and many of the films were box-office duds.

It's obvious -- from the poor storytelling concept, lack of consideration of art design and costumes as well as technical deficiencies -- that many of the so-called "filmmakers" are still learning on the job.

"We've got to have more film schools. This country is too big to have only one film school, for heaven's sake," film director Nia Dinata told The Jakarta Post, referring to the only film school here, the Jakarta Arts Institute (IKJ).

Competent filmmakers agree that a film school is essential to provide knowledge to budding directors on how to do things right.

"Filmmaking is unique among other art forms. You've got to know the basics," Riri said. "If you don't learn the basics, you'll have to do many times until you get it right."

He acknowledged that there were local moviemakers who did not have a film school background but gained skills through experience.

"Still, you've got to know the rules. You can break the rules and make a breakthrough. But to do so, you've got to know the rules," Nia said.

The lack of basic knowledge of filmmaking is clear in the entries on the independent film circuit. The Guy Ritchie or Robert Rodriguez wannabes think they can make a good movie by stylizing it, without a thought to coherent storytelling.

"We still treat films purely as art. That's not enough. We also have to treat it as science so we have to possess the basic theory to communicate with our audience," cinematographer German G. Mintapradja said.

The lack of knowledge of filmmakers is not the only problem, for there is no basic, integrated film system.

In countries with more established film industries, such as Australia, the production line is specialized so each part of the chain provides an optimal contribution.

Film production companies take care of their side of business, and leave distribution and promotion to other professionals.

It's not the case here -- there is no distribution firm.

"Here, after we finish our films, we still have to deal with promoting and distributing the films ourselves instead of spending energy to prepare our next film," Riri, who is also a film producer, said.

Garin pointed out that the industry suffers from a half-baked syndrome common in this country: The declared big plans are not backed by a willingness to do the necessary hard work.

"We dream about having a film industry but we don't put in enough effort to do what is required to build one. This mentality is so us (as a people). We also show this in other fields."

It's not all bleak, however. The energy and enthusiasm of the young filmmakers are commendable, but it's now up to them to make the effort to perfect their craft and keep the audience coming back for more.