Young Indonesian Filmmakers and Human Rights Issues on Screen: Presentations of the work of the 2017 Herb Feith Foundation John Darling Fellows

Indonesia Forum and Herb Feith present:

Venue: Old Arts Building Room 224 (South Theatre), The University of Melbourne, Parkville.

The John Darling Fellowship was first offered in 2013 and again in 2015. The fellowship is designed to train emerging Indonesian documentary filmmakers in Australia so that their film making skills, commercial knowledge and awareness of archiving principles are enhanced. The fellow will undertake an intensive unit in ‘Video-making as Research’ at Monash University, School of Film and Journalism.

The Fellowships are named in honour of Australian-born filmmaker, John Darling (1946-2011). In 1969, Darling began living and researching in Bali for some 20 years. Beginning in 1978 he directed, produced and researched nine documentary films about Indonesia that have been screened internationally. They include Lempad of Bali about a 116-year-old Master-Artist with Lorne Blair, the 3 part Bali Triptych series on Balinese culture, Bali Hash and Below the Wind. After the 2002 Bali bombings, he co-produced with his wife Sara, The Healing of Bali. Darling also wrote books and poetry on Bali.

2017 Fellows:

Kartika Pratiwi was born in Malang, Indonesia and graduated from a Master Program in Cultural Studies. She has been an independent researcher with an interest in narrative discourse on the 1965 genocide in Indonesia, Chinese-Indonesian issues and digital storytelling. Since 2008, she has been part of kotakhitam Forum – an independent organization, dedicated to research; workshops and documentary movie production for social and political changes. During that time, she has been involved in documentary film productions including Api Kartini (2012); and several video archives on Indonesian political history and collective memory. With kotakhitam Forum, she regularly runs Seroean Sedjarah, History on Screen, and RePLAY project to facilitate history teachers and youth to use popular media as a learning tools in schools.  Since 2015, she has worked for EngageMedia, a non-profit organisation to provide strategies for the effective use of video distribution, connecting video makers, journalists, and activists.

Dery Prananda began learning to make films in 2005. He has recently completed his final project at Institut Seni Indonesia, Surakarta. His documentary films include those advocating environmental, social and human rights issues in collaboration with several institutions. In 2014 he made The Years Of Blur, a documentary about the murder of Udin, a journalist from Yogyakarta. In 2016, he made a documentary entitled Blessing From the Sea that took place in Lamalera, East Nusa Tenggara. His sort fiction film Amelis, was winner of Best Film and Best Fiction Film in the ReelOzInd Australia Indonesia Short Film Festival 2016.