Film Story Hunters from ”Blue Continent”

Organizing Europe on Screen 2023 provides Indonesian audiences with new knowledge and perspectives, especially regarding social issues, such as issues of identity, racism, and immigrant groups.

The following article was translated using both Microsoft Azure Open AI and Google Translation AI.

KOMPAS/PRIYOMBODO

Visitors commemorate the tickets of the European Union Film Festival at the Goethe Institut Jakarta on Tuesday (20/6/2023). The film festival, which takes place from June 16-25, 2023 in seven cities, can be enjoyed by the general public for free.

Stories from many countries with various storytelling styles are now increasingly sought after by film enthusiasts. At film festivals, they are busy arranging their schedules and moving from one venue to another to enjoy their desired films.

Muazd Karia Nugraha (32) departed from his house in the Cipinang area, East Jakarta, to the Institute Italiano di Cultura (IIC) in Menteng, Central Jakarta, at 14.00 by Transjakarta bus, Tuesday (20/6/20203). At the Italian cultural center, he watched a film from Switzerland, Last Dance, directed by Delphine Neckicey, at 16.30.

The screening of films at IIC is part of the European film festival, namely Europe on Screen 2023. Europe on Screen 2023 showcases 73 films from 24 countries in 17 screening locations and 7 cities in Indonesia, namely Jakarta, Bandung, Bekasi, Denpasar, Medan, Surabaya, and Yogyakarta.

The festival was first held in 1990, followed by the second one in 1999. Since 2003, the European Union Film Festival is held every year under the name Europe on Screen. With an age of more than 20 years, the festival that runs for 10 days from June 16-25, 2023, becomes a home for both old and new audiences.

After the film was over, Muazd rushed to the GoetheHaus cultural hall on foot. The distance between IIC and GoetheHaus is only 1.5 kilometers. There, he watched the Austrian film, Alma & Oskar.

Films shown in these two places present a different experience. The film Alma & Oskar, set in autumn, tells the story of the love between a socialite named Alma Maher and artist Oskar Kokoschka. The sensual romance in the film contrasts with the genre of Last Dancecomedy that Muazd watched at IIC. However, it is the difference that is the attraction of film festivals.

"There's always a new experience, both from the story, cinematography, and also the experience of watching itself," said Muazd.

In Indonesia, there are several festivals that screen domestic and foreign films. Last year there were the Indonesian Film Festival (FFI), Sundance Film Festival: Asia, Japanese Film Festival, and World Cinema Week. This year, there is Europe on Screen which is screened in seven cities.

CHRISTOPH/EUROPE ON SCREEN

Scene from the movie First Snow Of Summer.

During Europe on Screen, Muazd has watched Alma & Oskar, Last Dance, First Snow of Summer (Austria), Luxembourgh, Luxembourg (Ukraine), and Somehwere Over the Chemtrails (Czech). "Actually, I want to watch four movies per day, but sometimes there is no time," he said.

Another movie enthusiast, Ayu Mutia (28) from Fatmawati, South Jakarta, watched a film at GoetheHaus with her friend, Cynthia Martha (28). For Ayu, this is not her first experience watching Europe on Screen. "I first watched this festival in 2016 after missing it a few times, and now I come again this year," said the marketing worker.

He likes watching European films because he can learn the culture and traditions of countries from the "Blue Continent". ”When I watched the movie Somewhere Over the Chemtrails, I realized that oh, the Czech village is like this, the culture is like this. So far, we only know Italy and France in Europe," said Ayu.

Vania Narulita (34), a spectator from Jagakarsa, South Jakarta, has never missed watching Europe on Screen since 2009. At that time, she was still studying at the University of Indonesia. Her interest in it began with her major in German literature.

“You learn about the film, right? From there, for fun just want to watch. At first, I was specifically looking for one in German," said Vania after watching the film Comedy Queen from Sweden at the GoetheHaus, Jakarta, Sunday (18/6/2023).

Armed with a synopsis, Vania chose the movie she wanted to watch. Afterwards, she picked a suitable time. "Sometimes I have to be disappointed because the movie I really want to watch is only available during workdays and in the afternoon. If the timing is right, I can catch them all," she said with a laugh.

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This year, Vania watches three to four movies a day in different places. She considers this as a form of self-appreciation after the pandemic while satisfying her passion for hunting diverse European films with hot themes.

On the second day of the festival, Saturday (17/6/2023), Vania is eyeing an animated film from Portugal, namely My Grandfather's Demons, at the GoetheHaus. After watching the film, he rushed to order an online motorcycle taxi to take him to IFI Thamrin near the Sarinah shopping center.

Although not too far, she is worried about getting stuck in weekend traffic. She wants to arrive before the ticket reservation counter opens so she can have time to have lunch. For all movie screenings, viewers can only book tickets one hour before the screening time.

The target is reached. He also watched a Belgian film called I Have Electric Dreams which tells about the relationship between father and son. In the evening, Vania returned to GoetheHaus to watch Somewhere Over the Chemtrails, a Czech film.

EUROPE ON SCREEN

Scene from the movie Esther's Orchestra.

Apart from Vania, actress Asmara Abigail (31) has also been hunting for film festivals since 2010. For her, Europe on Screen and the Madani Film Festival cannot be missed. In fact, if he could, he would come every day to watch. "I wish at a festival like this, watching three films a day, but usually only get two or one," he said after watching the film Esther's Orchestra, Tuesday (20/6/2023).

Asmara did not hesitate to dig directly into the meaning of the narrative that was presented to its creators in the question and answer session. After the screening ofEsther's Orchestra, he asked director Sagmo about how Danes process grief and respond to the death of a nuclear family. The previous day, he also attended a session with director Marco Martani after watching his film, She's the One.

In the film Esther's Orchestra, the situation depicted is indeed unusual in Indonesia. Instead of crying or preparing for the funeral, Esther's husband wrestled with himself over the proper way to tell his children that their mother, Esther, had died. Even when the children found out, Esther's husband still gave space for the child to perform at the school's dance performance with himself, his youngest child, and Esther's father watching.

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Sagmo is aware of the significant cultural differences between Denmark and Indonesia in responding to death and grief from the questions posed by Asmara.

The appeal of this European film has also brought in new audiences, such as Astrid Cornelia (27). This screening which was spread across seven cities gave Astrid the opportunity to watch a number of films, such as You Will Not Have My Hate from France and Amusia from Italy, at IFI Surabaya, Sunday.

Unexpectedly, the film she watched was quite provocative. "It turns out to be interesting. Initially, I thought it was just regular. I also watched it because my friend who had previously watched Europe on Screen invited me," said Astrid.

New perspective

The organization of Europe on Screen 2023 provides new knowledge and perspectives for Indonesian audiences, especially regarding social issues such as identity, racism, and immigrant groups.

Kenanga Sekar (25), an employee at a startup, said that thanks to watching the film Totem which was shown at IFI-LIP Yogyakarta, Sunday, Sekar came to understand the challenges faced by immigrant families in the Netherlands. This film has also changed his perspective on the presence of immigrants in a country.

"Until now, I have considered immigrants as a negative thing, burdening the country, and consisting of problematic people. There is a stigma that associates immigrants with crime. However, they are part of society struggling with life," he said."

EUROPE ON SCREEN

Scene from the Dutch film Totem which tells the story of an immigrant family and its identity.

Totem tells the story of an 11-year-old immigrant from Senegal named Ama who lives in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. During this time he considered himself a completely Dutchman. Until one day, he and his father were being chased by the police because they were going to be deported to Senegal. Ama is assisted by a spirit animal in the form of a giant hedgehog named Totem trying to find asylum. In the process of searching, he managed to find not only the community that supports him, but his own roots.

Audience regeneration

Europe on Screen 2023 Co-Director Nauval Yazid stated that considering Europe on Screen's age, which has reached 23 years, it is time to regenerate the audience. "It is impossible to rely on the old audience," he said.

Therefore, Europe on Screen strives to attract new audiences as a form of regeneration. The way chosen to regenerate the audience is by creating a Short Film Pitching Project competition followed by young filmmakers. The festival also screens animation films and drama films with a family theme. With this, parents can encourage their children to attend the film festival.

He is trying to promote the films that were screened in Europe on Screen through social media. "From TikTok or social media, we learn that Indonesian audiences prefer light and entertaining films, so we also present films with comedy themes," he said.

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