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Indonesian Cinema By Christine Hakim

The growth of Indonesian films cannot be set apart from the history of conflict of the Indonesian people. Two countries ruled Indonesia. One is Holland, which ruled Indonesia for 350 years, and the other, Japan, which ruled Indonesia for three and a half years. What we must not forget, however, is that even in the age of the Suharto regime which followed, Indonesia was still being “dominated”. At present, we are in an age of reform where I can talk freely and where I do not fear interrogation, as I felt when I returned to Indonesia. Films began at the start of the 20th century and grew after our independence through the activities of a generation represented by film director Usmar Ismail, known as the “father of Indonesian films”. Thereafter, came an age of reform, transforming the old establishment into the new. During this time, the communist issue brought down Sukarno. A transition then took place, establishing a new order led by Suharto. During this period, the government announced a policy of reviving the Indonesian economy. This policy indirectly implied an increase in the volume of production within the film industry. Subsequently, however, under the same new government of Suharto, the film industry declined to its very worst state. Currently, it has still not recovered to the heights of prosperity it enjoyed in the 1970s. The history or process of the development of Indonesian films is very much tied to the policies of the government in power at the time, and is greatly affected by the prevailing political and social conditions of the period.

The 5-Year Plan
As proof of this, I would like to bring up the 5-year plan implemented by the new-order government of the time. This was a plan to cover growth projects on a five-year basis. The film industry was also a category within these growth projects. In the early 1970s, the government instituted regulations which required “the production of one Indonesian film for every five foreign films imported.”The film...