Full of contrasting signals, 2008 was a questionable year for Indonesian cinema. On the one hand, two films, The Rainbow Troops (Laksar Pelangi) by Riri Riza and Verses Of Love (Ayat-ayat Cinta) by Hanung Bramantyo established themselves among the greatest commercial successes of the past decade; on the other hand, a record number of domestic releases led to a decrease in average earnings per film. While Indonesian films enjoyed unprecedented visibility at international film festivals such as Pusan and Berlin, they continue to struggle to reach the more prestigious showcases of Cannes and Venice. The year began with a proposal to reform the censorship system, but in autumn the Indonesian parliament adopted a law against pornography. This could have serious repercussions for freedom of expression in film and the arts.
With regard to profits and operations, the situation in 2008 met with the same structural problems as in years past. Indonesia remains a country with an insufficient number of cinemas for its population. This is simply down to the fact that it’s the largest island-country in the world. But it still greatly hinders the local film industry. Indonesian films have only large urban centres to count on for ticket sales - the multiplexes are concentrated here, primarily inside large shopping malls. Another serious and unresolved problem is the lack of reliable marketing statistics. This renders any consideration for the performance of the Indonesian film industry frustratingly approximate.
For instance, two Indonesian films had enormous success with audiences in 2008, but there are no reliable statistics to quantify this success. What statistics there are vary considerable depending on their source - and their source's relationship to the production companies. At the end of February, Verses Of Love by Hanung Bramantyo, produced by MD Pictures and based on the best seller by Habiburrahman El Shirazy, won over Indonesian audiences with an endearing tale of a group of Indonesian students in Egypt. The film emphasises Islamic religious themes in addition to providing a de facto legitimisation of polygamy. Depending on the source, Hanung Bramantyo's film filled between three and a half million to four million two hundred thousand seats. Then in September, Riri Riza's new film, The Rainbow Troops - which was also based on an autobiographical novel by Anrea Hirata - topped Verses Of Love to become the single most successful Indonesian film of the last decade. Centred around the lives of poor students at an Islamic school on the remote island of Belitong, Riri Riza's film (produced by Miles Films) is an uplifting story about emancipation from poverty through education. It’s also imbued by healthy Muslim values. Depending on the source, the total number of viewers for The Rainbow Troops varies from four million three hundred thousand to over five million. The one thing no one doubts is that The Rainbow Troops outperformed Verses Of Love.
Apart from the two most successful pictures, in 2008 Indonesian films by and large disappointed expectations at the box office. 2007 ended with perhaps exaggerated enthusiasm because statistics (which were, as always, approximate) showing a preference of local audiences for Indonesian films. Local films claimed over 50% of yearly earnings. The prospect of a growing, lucrative new sector inevitably caught the interest of investors, as a result of which the number of domestic films and releases in 2008 rose substantially. The end of the year saw a record one hundred films distributed. The immediate consequence, however, was a decrease in average sales per film. According to official estimates, average sales for domestic films fell from an equivalent of $500,000 US dollars in 2007 to $300,000 in 2008.
Among the many films distributed in 2008, horror films and teen-romantic comedies prevailed. Horror films included: The Ghost Oath In My School (Sumpah Pocong di Sekolah) by Awi Suryadi, Kuntilanak 3 by Rizal Mantovani and - and to name but a few - The Virgin Ghost Of Jeruk Purut (Hantu Perawan Jeruk Purut) by Nayato Fio Nuala and Ghost Of Abortion (Hantu Aborsi) by Toto Hoedi. Romantic comedies and teen films included Contractual Marriage (Kawin Kontrak) by Ody C. Harahap, Claudia/Jasmine by Awi Suryadi, LoVe by Kabir Bhatia (an identical self-remake of the 2006 Malaysian film, Cinta), and on the dramatic front, the successful Best Friend? by Fajar BGT. Following the success of Verses Of Love, Indonesian cinema saw a number of films with “religious themes” - recognisable by the unfailing presence of veiled women on the posters) - like The Self-Claimed Prophet (Mengaku Rasul) by Helfi CH Kardit or Pledge Of Love (Syahadat Cinta) by Gunawan Paggaru. The success of the 2007 film Quickie Express paved the way for an entirely different phenomenon, the revival of sexy comedies with titles like XL - Extra Large by Monty Tiwa, My Name Is Dick (Namaku Dick) by Teddy Soeriaatmadja or Wet (Basahhh...) by M. Haikal. None of these matched the originals in the quality of writing or success at the box office. Also significant was the re-release in May of the 1980s classic Naga Bonar by MT Risyaf, hot on the heels of its triumphant sequel, Nagabonar Jadi 2, the single greatest commercial success of 2007.
Over the course of the last year, Indonesian cinema garnered an unusual amount of visibility at festivals. The Indonesian film industry was represented by no less than seven films at Pusan: The Blind Pig Who Wants To Fly by Edwin (presented in the New Currents contest), Jermal by Ravi L. Bharwani and Rayya Makarim, Fiction. by Mouly Surya, The Conductors by Andibachtiar Yusuf, Pesantren by Nurman Hakim and the serial film Chants Of Lotus and 9808. This “Indonesian wave” carried over to Rotterdam, where over eight feature-length films played. Some showed in a section dedicated to Asian horror films which included The Forbidden Door by Joko Anwar, The Shaman by Raditya Sidharta, The Anniversary Gift by Paul Agusta and the serial film Takut: Faces Of Fear. At Berlin, there were three international premiers including The Rainbow Troops. After taking a first step last year with Quickie Express, the Far East Film Festival in Udine follows the trend this year by hosting over six Indonesian films! Indonesian films continue to be excluded from the major festivals like Cannes and Venice, as well as the competition in Berlin. Perhaps this is a sign that although Indonesian films are solid pieces of work, they lack innovation and artistic expression.
On the legislative front, in late 2007 the MFI (Masyarakat Filem Indonesia or Indonesian Film Society), which is made up of film production companies founded in the decade after the fall of Suharto's regime, launched a public awareness campaign urging the Indonesian Constitutional Court to reform the censorship system. In effect, the MFI was requesting the introduction of a ratings system to end the arbitrary powers exercised by the censors to cut scenes and ban films. The debate became particularly heated in January with the release of Chants Of Lotus (Perempuan punya cerita), an all-women serial film directed by four women and written by two more. In spite of a dogged battle by producer and director Nia Di Nata, the film underwent major cuts before censors gave it the rubber stamp. At the end of October, the situation ostensibly took a turn for the worse with the approval of a new anti-pornography law. Debated by the Indonesian parliament for nearly a decade, the new law was approved amid a climate of growing moral conservatism and in view of the imminent elections. The new law prohibits any form of pornography and imposes heavy fines: public nudity (in addition to its representation) can incur penalties of up to ten years in jail; any performance that could incite sexual desire is prohibited and even downloading pornography from the internet is punishable by up to four years in jail.
Given this new legislative squeeze, a new golden era of Indonesian sexy comedies is doubtful. But there are those who fear that this new law will also prove a dangerous obstacle for those seeking to affirm the rights of women in any form, be it cultural, religious or sexual.
Paolo Bertolin