Short films made by locals go International

By Gotot Prakosa

JAKARTA (JP): Short films are void of any commercial value in this country, yet, even during the present economic crisis a young man has completed an admirable 29-minute video film.

Nanang Setiabudi, 27, a graduate of the Jakarta Arts Institute's (IKJ) film school, has produced Revolusi Harapan (Revolution of Hope), a film dwelling on society's hopes.

Revolusi tells a story of someone who comes across a book about the revolution of hope. The regime in power considers the book very dangerous, and has ordered the book found and its possessor killed. The film is rife with symbolism, all bearing a message. When the regime's operatives finally find the person who has the book, they discover its contents are too difficult to translate into social reality.

The film won a prize in a festival of short films and videos held by the Jakarta Arts Council last March. It will be part of an international festival of short films in Croatia from June 27 to July 4 and in Philadelphia's International Film Festival in August.

Revolusi Harapan, like other short films made recently by IKJ students, was made in a video format because film is generally too expensive for most students due to the crisis. It is a pity that film students must now be satisfied with making only video films since film and video are very different in terms of esthetics and values.

Even though video is more affordable than film, it is not cheap. As many as eight short films by IKJ film students have been stored at Interstudio Pratama's studio laboratory because the processing cost is too much for the students' budgets.

Most films by IKJ students are made to fulfill their academic requirements in order to receive their diploma after three years of study. Many films are good enough to enter international film festivals, including those organized by the Centre International de Liaison des Ecoles des Cinema et de Television (CILECT). IKJ is a CILECT member.

IKJ short films have been participating in international festivals since the 1980s. Some have earned prizes while others have been screened for information or retrospective purposes. Many films have also been aired on foreign television.

These short films, in a way, have promoted Indonesia and its people abroad through their screenings and foreign press reviews. Unfortunately, such films have made little impact in the domestic market and the media rarely reports about them. Nevertheless, these short films continue to be made.

Some makers of short films who have achieved success abroad have now secured positions in the audio-visual industry in this country.

Among the short films that have won international awards are Nan T. Achnas's Hanya Satu Hari (Only One Day), which won a citation in ASEAN Young Cinema in Tokyo, Japan, in 1991; Yulianto K.'s Langkah-Langkah Kecil (Small Steps), which won a prize at Recountres International Hanry Langlois in Paris, France, in 1992 and Sonata Kampung Bata (The Sonnet of a Brick Village) by Riri Reza, who won a price at Oberhausen Film Festival in Germany in 1995.

In 1997, Ari Bulu's Jakarta 468 won a citation at the Philadelphia International Film Festival, United States. In the same year Novi by Asep Kusdinar was nominated at the Festival du Court Metrage de Clermont-Ferrand, France.

Obviously IKJ short films have made a significant contribution to the development of the country's film industry.

While Indonesia's film industry is on the brink of total collapse, short films continue to be made, although the producers have to settle for technical compromises in using video instead of film.

IKJ students have been producing short films since the establishment of the film school in 1971. Over 200 titles are now in its library. Unfortunately, they have yet to be screened for the general public here because Indonesia does not have a professionally managed theater for alternative and artistic films. In fact, the screening of such films would help establish a network of moviegoers, filmmakers and distributors outside the film industry's main stream, providing a means for national works to receive the appreciation they deserve.

The writer is a filmmaker and a lecturer at the School of Film and Television, Jakarta Arts Institute (IKJ).