babibutafilm.com

Friday, August 24, 2007

yippiieee

we were travelling together last week
me, sid n edw. ( n tnut also our dearest friend )
we were invited to a precious boracay co-prod meeting
a meeting for babibutafilm.

before going to the best part - part 1b…there is another best part - part 1a.
(by the way…there is only one best part)

part 1a is…. we were travelling together….
i mean, us together! and abroad!
usually we only plan…plan…plan…and never real.
it feels absurd n marvelous at the same time.

part 1b is… we get the fund!
it’s even crazier… we get money from hubert bals fund
to continue babibutafilm progress…
it feels so high………..

bonus track part 1c….
and its all because of babibutafilm.
we meet
we work
we bond…

amazing how we travel so far…
(when people say two is better than one, trust me three is better than two… )

thanks to the universe
hope to travel with all crew
(amin)

Friday, June 29, 2007

practise is the best policy

last week i met a researcher.
she is doing a research on chinese identity.
she interviewed me.

anyway…she asked me ‘how do i feel about my chinese identity.’
i said ‘i dont know what you mean?’

to be honest, i never ask about it.
for me, by asking the question means there is something wrong with it.

making blindpigfilm is a decision i’ve never planned.
producing a film has never crossed my mind.
(edw n sid are the crazy one for this part)
the only reason why i join the project is because i see my life in the film.
i find the film urgent for some.
some for my health.

back to the researcher.
finally we talked quite a lot.
i feel like i trust her.

‘the truth is i kind of exhausted, answering all these questions.’

it appears to me that it is a wound. a deep one that has never been taken care of.
a wound you should not touch. should not ask. should not see.

i feel like my chest shrinked.
squeezed until no more water to drop.
it hurts.

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Surabaya

I went home to Surabaya on May 11. I needed to extend my driver’s license and KTP.

All you need to do is pay a guy who can take care of it for you in no time. In one day I had both my SIM and KTP, thanks to this guy whose name I won’t mention, I don’t remember it anyway.

This guy has always been in the business of taking care of all kinds of government paperwork. I’ve known him since I made my first driver’s license 14 years ago. My entire family knows him. Today he updated us on another endeavor beyond SIM, STNK and KTPs. He offered to take care of my sister’s dentistry practicing license! She just graduated this year. As he talked to my parents, I decided to go to bed.

There wasn’t much to do in Jakarta, so I decided to kill time in Surabaya.

Saturday the 12th I went to Yudi’s, we talked about video art and the various possibilities of other forms of art. Beni was there too. Beni is an artist, a skilled illustrator who earns his living in advertising and lets off artistic steam being a visual jockey. He sounded very excited about creating visuals for electronic music. He created this piece of equipment which he takes everywhere when he turns Into a visual jockey. I can picture how it must be quite a special device- it creates images that gets projected to a wall, even a large wall outside a movie theater. I saw photographs of when he projected his work to to the wall outside a 21 theater, Mitra.

Beni and Yudi always work together, Beni dances the dance, Yudi sings the song:)

Surabaya 2

Last Sunday, they asked me to play basketball. At this point, at least I’m old enough to use it as an excuse for being short of breath.

These are friends I’ve known since SMP, and they’re still playing basketball. The difference is we weren’t talking about girls anymore. Now it’s business and business, in between stories about raising children. Timber, shipping, homewares, even the egg business, and then how expensive it is to bring up kids, doctors, milk, their wives’ pregnancy checkups.

Beni and Yudi had an entirely different topic. One of them asked me “So those religious TV shows make a lot of money, don’t they?” I didn’t know how to answer.

My friend Chandra, who also knows what kind of work I am in, put in “Edwin doesn’t do sinetrons…he’s an artist, bos”

Another person answered “If I were a sinetron-maker I wouldn’t even worry about art. It’s the money that matters, just like any other job.”

I felt thirsty. I drank 2 bottles of water, smiled wearily and looked away to a lone basketball in the empty court.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

IFA

So I tried to raise some cash yesterday. Or at least ask around what one might do in order to raise some cash for one’s film.

I went to SET, meaning to consult with Garin.

I didn’t have an appointment, so it was 2 hours in the waiting room.
I got to talk to a few people I hadn’t seen in awhile. John de Rantau was going to Shanghai, his film was up for a few awards. There was Pulung and Sugeng and their hectic workload. There was Lia, who Invited me to help give a workshop on short films.

And there was Ifa Ifansyah, a friend from Jogja, a fellow short filmmaker who I have much respect for. I explained to him how I was trying to raise money for this film and how I was hoping Garin could help me.

Ifa asked, perhaps jokingly, “Why aren’t you asking me for help?”, to which I responded, “Sure, you can buy me dinner.” We laughed for a while until Ifa said, “So is cash really the only way to help you?”

I realized I had totally dismissed a form of support, a form of aid, assistance, that was probably worth a lot more than money.

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Raymond

An old friend from SMP, maybe from my very 1st day at that school.
I suppose I pretty much lived through puberty with this person. There were the adventures in pursuing girls; I think that, although It wasn’t something we talked about, we kind of shared the same esthetic ideal, especially when It came to girls:)

So there were ..film screenings of a certain kind at his house, comfortable and safe, well, at least we never got caught.

Raymond is the second out of three brothers. I’ve known all of them since I’ve known Raymond. Their father ran a sound systems rental for events from weddings to small concerts called Lasika.

Friday, after I finished taking care of my SIM & KTP, I went to Raymond’s house. I haven’t been there since high school. The façade looked exactly the same but Raymond and his brothers have apparently moved to the house next door, the house that they used to store the sound system equipment in. Raymond lived on the 2nd floor of the modern building with Nancy, his wife who was also our friend from SMP, and their two kids.

We had a good time reminiscing and getting nostalgic and started talking about what we were both doing now. Lasika had grown into a stage setting company, providing everything from sound to lighting. They currently hold the stage setting contract for all Slank concerts in the entire country! They also work with Mata Elang in Jakarta. Raymond was now a Boss.

Raymond also followed my story and the conversation moved to my plans for the film. I told him the conditions I was facing to make this film.

And this is how he offered to help.

This August, Lasika will be participating in an expo at Tunjungan Plaza. Full equipment. Raymond actually said I can use the venue to shoot!

This surprising form of support really made my night.

The next day, Raymond called and asked me to go out to meet Ivan Litan.
We played in a band in SMA and Ivan now runs an Event Organizing company for weddings. He has produced several wedding videos about 10 minutes long that is usually played to start off the reception, something like a video clip. I saw a few and had a good time but the killer was a video where the groom was an Indiana Jones (but Chinese:)) who had to rescue his bride from evil Tengger villagers. There was even a chasing scene with a gang on horseback and the hero on a motorbike. It was shot in Bromo! As a wedding video, it certainly was..special.

He said maybe I could try to make one of those wedding videos someday. Interesting:)

Sunday, June 17, 2007

REALITY SHOW

Exploitation in reality shows. Life can be just like a reality show. We don’t realize how, underneath something that amuses us, we’re being humiliated by a greater power. A power that blinds us.

Like a mute girl winning on Indonesian Idol. Her victory comes from sympathy for her muteness.

The blind pig who wants to fly is someone who doesn’t understand they are part of a reality show.

Thursday, May 31, 2007

IFA 2

I spent the rest of the day regretting why I had not responded to Ifa’s offer.
How was it that all I could only think of was cash? Obviously Ifa made his own film with very little money.

We’re facing the same reality; subconsciously, we work by having faith that making films is really not just about the money.

It sounds so illogical to say that money isn’t everything, but that’s if you use logic. Why is it we don’t respond to that statement with heart, with feelings and faith, through watching and observing, through not quite knowing what lies ahead.

Why must logic be ahead of everything else and why does it set aside feelings. Why does everything sound tiresome. Maybe I’m tired of logic.

Sunday, May 27, 2007

THE DENTIST WHO WILL NOT BE NAMED

Today is for location hunting for Halim the dentist’s practice.
We went to 2 places, both of them were closed.

The only hope we had left, so there would at least be some progress to the day, was this clinic in Menteng.

The place had been a dental clinic since way back when. There used to only be one room, now there are three.

Just like in the script, the dentist’s room is adjoined to the family room in the house. Sparkling white except the wall at the end of the room which was entirely covered with a kitschy wallpaper of trees and natural scenery. We, Edwin, Sidi, Eros, instantly fell in love with the location.

What was even more interesting was the dentist who owned the house. An Chinese lady, almost 80 years old, the product of Dutch colonial education. She told us she didn’t need their name mentioned, if we were to shoot the film here.

From the start she said, “So you probably don’t have the resources to pay to use this place..” and I told her frankly we didn’t. “So what is it that you are making?”

I pulled out my laptop and showed her the trailer.

She watched thoughtfully, nodding. At the 1st minute and a half she pointed towards Sidi, “Get that book behind you” ; I saw two books with the same title, THE RIOTS OF MAY 1998 from SOLIDARITAS NUSA BANGSA.

“I think I understand what you’re trying to make.”

I listened as she spoke, this lady, nearing 80, but filled with such spirit and integrity.

She spoke about this country, how important it was to start solving the tension between Cina and pribumi.

Suddenly she jumped to the topic of discipline, because we had arrived there on time, 4 pm as scheduled. “I like your sense of discipline. I understand what you’re trying to do and your condition. I think I can help you, I just need to consult my husband and the other doctors who share the practice.”

We fell in love with the location, we fell in love with the owner.

We must make a film that will not disappoint the dentist who will not be named.

LIMITED DISTRIBUTION

Talked to Mandy at Citos. Making films is not easy. And it’s even harder making the money back. Everything is at the mercy of 21.

There’s never a clear standard of why a film gets stopped from playing in the cinemas. Whenever 21 feels, by any standard, that the film isn’t profitable, it gets taken out of distribution. And that’s that.

And don’t even think of trying to submit it again for another screening cycle.

The 60% cut for 21 is non-negotiable. And then there’s all the taxes, all those numbers and calculations.

Babi seems doomed at 21. We don’t even have funds for publicity. It would probably be taken down in an hour.

Oh well.
Then I ran into Lisa who runs Kineforum, they screen films outside of the 21 dictatorship/tyranny, in a theater owned by 21! At TIM.

Just a thought.

What if we worked with just Kineforum. What if they could screen Babi for an entire year? We could give them a 50% cut.

If they screened It once a day, that’s 365 shows. If we get 30 people every day, that’s 10.950 people in a year. If It’s 20,000 per person, we could make 219 million, which we would only share with Kineforum and still get 109,500,000. That’s not bad to pay off what we owe people.

And 109.500,000 isn’t too bad for whatever Kineforum needs for their program, which I’m certain is far sexier than what 21 could ever use It for.

They could restore the Suzanna films, bring back the legendary 80s horror films. Let Suster Ngesot, Pastur Jeruk Purut or what have you, can compete with Sundel Bolong, Nyi Blorong or hell, with Suzanna herself.

They could print DVDs of Teguh Karya’s works.

That’s if it’s screened every day and 30 people go to see it.
What if only 1 person shows up?

Never mind. What matters is that the distribution and appreciation of this film will not be determined by 21 or Hollywood blockbusters!

Tuesday, July 3, 2007 at 6:51pm

A Sense of Humor

The intention to make a film on a topic like discrimination is so easily
misread. People are sooo quick to react. One person we talked to actually
warned us to be careful not to stir up emotions that have already settled.
Well, stirring emotions is usually a good thing for a film, so we will go
against that advice and hope that emotions will be stirred.

But the very least thing this film wants to be is a sob story. It just
hopes to express a certain feeling through the composition of characters
and stories and images. With a sense of humor, if we succeed.

Hopefully the underlying humor of the sketches will come across to the
audience.

Humor is a wonderful antidote to discomfort. In the healthiest
environments, nothing or no one is taken too seriously, and blessed is the
person who knows how to laugh at himself. I suppose that at the end of the
film, we hope Linda will eventually discover this. We hope it will set her
free.

Humor is an important part of this film, although it was not meant to be a
full on comedy or parody. We hope that the audience will discover that
layer of humor. Not a graphic and comedic one or a dry and cynical one,
but a liberated, light-hearted way of seeing and speaking of feelings that
are often too uncomfortable to discuss. The humor itself is a form protest
against the discomfort and silence.
Monday, July 2, 2007 at 6:54pm
Anehnya Menjadi Cina (How strange to be inconesian Chinese)

Berbagi cerita tentang anehnya menjadi Cina, berbagi cerita mengenai seekor babi buta yang ingin terbang. (telling stories about how strange to be Chinese in Indonesia, telling stories about blind pig who wants to fly)

This is what the character Linda says in the trailer. It’s one of the things she kept in her memories of Cahyono and it’s actually one of the most important things about this film.
Maybe she felt refuge in the moments she had with him, a feeling of security that she needed to feel again later in life when she felt lost and disoriented and frustrated with the things that were happening around her.

For most people, it’s not easy to live without a sense of identity, of knowing and belonging. That’s what being lost and disoriented means. It’s even more difficult when, to answer your question of identity, you are unwillingly faced with an impossible choice.
Unwilling and impossible. You wish you didn’t even have to think about it, and once you are forced to think about it, you are not able to, none of it makes sense.

A History of Confusion

The question about ethnicity and nationality, the problems faced by a racial or ethnic minority, is as old as time. The boundaries of the discussion are endless. In Indonesia, we know that racial or ethnic tension cannot be separated from political history. A segregation conditioned by those in power, for political and economic gain. Any kind of segregation will create an ‘us’ and ‘them’: a fear and suspicion that is handed down in many forms. A melting pot of discomfort that spills over from generation to generation, intentionally or unintentionally. It could be as strong as words and decisions, as subtle as just a glance.

There are efforts to ease the pain. Political efforts, social efforts, cultural efforts, you name it. There will be committees, treaties, proclamations. There will be festivals, exhibitions. Books and films. There will be parades, campaigns and campaign groups. They will talk about ethnic pride and usually try hard to say that there shouldn’t be a ‘problem’. In Indonesia, everyone enjoys pointing out how the Chinese Indonesians have been part of our national history, how the Chinese Indonesians intellectuals have contributed to the forming of the nation, how Chinese traditions and influences have contributed to the advancement of culture: food, art, literature. Sports.

All of this is a wonderful development and surely serves some sort of purpose, somehow. At least on the public horizon there is some sort of sense of what is politically correct. It is now politically correct to embrace and express your ethnicity; it is now politically correct to respect and celebrate diversity.

It does not make things less confusing though, especially when you remember that this ‘embrace your ethnicity and celebrate diversity’ theme has applied for Chinese Indonesians only since the last 9 years. Before that the official theme was be as ‘Indonesian’ as you can be and they even had a word for it, pembauran- to ‘blend in’! It was also campaigned by many Chinese Indonesians, without thinking further or deeper into the context of the word. It definitely was not a sound solution and had its own set of problems. Who or what defines ‘Indonesian’, for example, is in itself debatable.

Tracing the socio-political background of tension related to the Chinese Indonesians further back— the simplest way to say it is that the Chinese Indonesians as an ethnic group have been traditionally and systematically screwed by whoever was in power.

To begin with, the systematic segregation during colonial times. There were ghettos, so geographically and physically, the Chinese Indonesians were already separated from the so-called pribumi/inlanders. Then there were zone restrictions (in the form of travel passes) that limited interaction between Chinese Indonesians and the pribumi.

The Chinese Indonesians were given privileges and granted special facilities in the business sector, but the price was those segregated living restrictions. The combination between the segregation and special privileges and classification of social functions (the Chinese were placed as businesspeople who controlled production and distribution of commodities) naturally caused tension, jealousy, even hostility.

Go into the Chinese Indonesian mind during colonial rule to understand the disorientation. There were sides at war, you couldn’t trust one side, yet you could not be accepted or even associated with the other. You knew you were being taken advantage of, so that even with the privileges you enjoyed, you knew you were never quite safe.

After the nation’s independence, it did not help that there were political developments that linked the Chinese to China and communism. After the downfall of communism, it did not help that the abuse of power by the New Order government was so closely linked to Chinese Indonesian economic dominance. Cycle after political cycle, the Chinese Indonesians as a group was always an easy target for the ruling power to both exploit and condemn.

Throughout all of it, there were so many conflicting and confusing policies, principles, campaigns, rules and regulations. After the trauma of colonial segregation and anti-communist sentiments, the New Order brought in the idea of pembauran. The idea was to ‘blend in’ and ‘be Indonesian’. Yet there were outdated citizenship rules that still relied on documents like the SBKRI (a letter to prove citizenship) that only applied to Chinese Indonesians; there was the special status of WNI keturunan Asing, a citizen of foreign descent. The examples could go on and on. But in short, here’s what it was: they didn’t want you to use your Chinese name, yet they could not quite call you a real Indonesian citizen.

It’s true that sometimes these rules were there just because no one took the time to change them. It’s ridiculous, but that’s how silly and inefficient the government can be. And these rules still get thrown into that melting pot of confusion and discomfort. A small example. For a period of time, in most forms that you have to fill, from your school exam to your bank application, you were asked to check WNI or WNI keturunan Asing. It seems so innocent, so harmless, just checking an option in a box, but it can also be confusing and for the person who feels the option is unnecessary and unfair, it can be painful.

All of this is just a general sketch, described in context to the feelings described in this film, how it feels to be Chinese Indonesian. There are many, many good books on the subject that you can refer to if you’re interested. Go back to the first few paragraphs, which discusses Linda’s feelings– now you know that the things happening to her and around her have a social history. A history of confusion.

Linda and Halim

Halim belongs to a generation that probably got hit the hardest. They are not privileged with the liberal, carefree and independent way of thinking that Linda’s generation has absorbed through the media, yet they are not equipped with the composure, patience and poised acceptance of Opa’s generation. Halim’s Indonesia is the most aneh in comparison, the generation that lived in the height of Orde Baru Indonesia under Suharto.

Although the discomfort had been handed down generation through generation, the feeling of insecurity might be worse in Halim’s generation because of the political, and social economic structure fostered by Orde Baru. Here is where you might again want to refer to other books/materials which can describe the repressive atmosphere of the times from 1970s to 1990s, where wealth and power of the regime went unquestioned, unchallenged.

A culture of conformity was born out of these times, one that did not approve of progressive or independent thinking. This consciousness seeped into homes, classrooms, offices. For few, it created rebellion and the effort to resist, fight back- but for most, it created frustration that is usually repressed, not discussed as a problem, you just tried to get by with whatever means you could manage.

This is what Linda sees and disrespects (or maybe she is just disappointed) in her father, his means of survival against a condition that frustrates him. She sees Halim desperately groping for the next golden ticket which will lead him to a life better than this one.

Linda herself is dealing with her own questions about identity, she knows she does not see a good example in her father, although she does not exactly know what a good example will be. Her mother, Verawati, has suffered her own heartbreak in being a Chinese Indonesian and chooses to withdraw, retract, perhaps in shock, or as a way of protecting herself. In a way, Linda knows that this can’t be right, either.

Linda uses the word aneh, strange, because she doesn’t even know how to describe it. Imagine a realm of thought where something hurts where you know it shouldn’t. And then, the confusion of seeing the same pain around you being handled in different ways, some that you understand, some you don’t.

Imagine not wanting to think about all of it, but having to- because it is a fact of life that you are forced deal with day to day. Linda is plagued by this discomfort and what makes it even worse is that she has to be reminded of it even more through her father’s actions. The questions Linda faces are ultimately questions everyone faces, universal dilemmas of self-discovery. What makes the burden weightier is that she is faced with a question she feels is unnecessary and unfair in her journey of self-discovery. This is where she seeks comfort in the security and belonging that she knew from her childhood.