Wregas Bhanuteja's New Short 'Prenjak' in Competition at Cannes Film Festival
Jakarta. Wregas Bhanuteja is no stranger to international film festivals. Just last year, the 23-year-old filmmaker screened "Lembusura," a short film inspired by the eruption of Mount Kelud in East Java, at the famed Berlinale in Germany. Soon "The Floating Chopin" followed, another short he made with Esya Ruswandono, which competed at the Hong Kong Film Festival in March.
Later this week, Wregas will participate in arguably the most prestigious film festival of them all—the Cannes Film Festival in France.
His new flick, "Prenjak" ("In the Year of the Monkey"), has been selected as one of ten short-film contenders in the 55th Semaine de la Critique, or the International Critics' Week, which commences on Thursday (12/05). Annually held by the French Union of Film Critics during the Cannes Film Festival, the competition seeks to discover up-and-coming international directors and has introduced the likes of Alejandro Gonzáles Iñárritu and Gaspar Noé to the general public.
Wregas's new short will be the third Indonesian film ever to enter the competition, after Eros Djarot's "Tjoet Nja' Dhien" in 1989 and Lucky Kuswandi's "The Fox Exploits the Tiger's Might" last year. At the competition, "Prenjak" will be in the running for the Leica Cine Discovery Prize for Short Film, which grants 4,000 euros to the winning director.
Before his departure to Cannes, Wregas talked to the Jakarta Globe about the new film, the challenge in making short films and his next big project. These are the edited excerpts from the conversation.
Q: Can you tell us a little bit about 'Prenjak'?
A: 'Prenjak' tells the story of a young woman called Diah who needs money desperately, and so she comes to Jarwo, one of her friends, for help. Diah asks Jarwo to buy a box of matches for Rp 10,000 (75 cents)—for each matchstick. And for each stick bought, Jarwo also gets to see a part of Diah's body.
This film is inspired by a story that one of my crew members, my camera assistant, told me. The same story happened to him with a wedang rondhe [a traditional Javanese beverage] seller in Yogyakarta.
How did the production for 'Prenjak' go? Did you think about submitting this film for the Critics' Week at Cannes Film Festival from the outset?
We shot the film in Yogyakarta, my hometown, for two days. Reading the script took only three days, editing took one week. I didn't plan to submit the film to Cannes at all, but while I was editing I opened the festival's website and saw the competition's deadline was only two days away. I sped up the editing and submitted the film.
What are you looking forward to from the competition?
For me, Cannes is the biggest film festival, I will get to see many films from various countries while I'm there. I hope this experience will widen my perspectives on cinema, so when I return home—this will inform me in making my next film.
Do you think it's important for Indonesian filmmakers to participate in international events like this?
It's very important. It makes us stronger as filmmakers. It's an opportunity to tell the story, the identity of Indonesian cinema, as well as our culture. It also opens up opportunities for other Indonesian filmmakers to be featured in the coming years. We have to keep this going.
You were involved in 'Ada Apa Dengan Cinta 2' as a director for the behind-the-scenes and video-diary featurettes. What was that experience like?
It was a learning process for me. I used to watch the original "Ada Apa Dengan Cinta?" on TV and now I was working with many of the original cast and crew. It was a good opportunity for me to learn about the wider scope of the film industry.
As a director focusing on short films, is there any particular challenge you've been facing?
The biggest challenge for me is to protect the film's original idea and vision, from their inception in my head to their execution, as the film is shot. Sometimes a tiring shoot and the complexity of production can corrupt the perfect vision I had in my head. This is why I always try to keep a healthy atmosphere during shooting, to keep everything well-organized and try not to go overtime, certainly not until midnight—so I can make sure that original vision is delivered in its entirety, as it was conceived.
What's your next plan after 'Prenjak' in Cannes?
I'm developing a story for my first feature-length film, starting with a screenplay that I will write myself. It's about time.
Watch the trailer of "Prenjak" below:
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