Sidi Saleh to Debut With Feature 'Pai Kau' in Time for Chinese New Year
Jakarta. After 17 years of work as a cinematographer and several short films, Sidi Saleh has finally made a feature, "Pai Kau," a suspense drama set in the Chinese-Indonesian community, which will premiere on Feb. 8, a week before the Lunar New Year.
Sidi is known for being the director of photography in Edwin's shorts "Kara, Anak Sebatang Pohon" ("Kara, the Daughter of a Tree," 2005), "Babi Buta Yang Ingin Terbang" ("Blind Pig Who Wants to Fly," 2008), and "Postcards From the Zoo" (2012).
His directorial debut was the 2011 "Full Moon," part of an omnibus titled "Belkibolang." In 2013, his film "Fitri" was selected to compete at the Clermont Ferrand International Film Festival. In 2014, "Maryam" won the Orrizonti Award at the 71th Venice International Film Festival, becoming the first Indonesian film to do so.
Sidi said at a press conference on Wednesday (17/01) that making a feature was his life dream.
"It was my goal from the start. … Making short films was a method to survive as a filmmaker. Rather than just waiting for the feature film will take shape, it was better to complete smaller-scale projects," he said at the Institut Francais d'Indonesie (IFI) in Central Jakarta.
The initiative actually came from someone else. Irina Chiu, lead actress and co-producer, attended a screening of Sidi's shorts and was impressed by his craftsmanship. She approached him to see if he had a new project she could star in.
"We ended up collaborating, which is even better," Irina said.
Irina, Sidi and second producer Tekun Ji teamed up to be soon joined by Muhammad Ariansyah, who co-wrote the script with Sidi.
The idea for "Pai Kau" was partly inspired by Sidi's father, who worked as a wedding photographer.
"Pai Kau" comes from pai gow, a Chinese gambling game played with dominoes. As its subtitle says, "A Deadly Message on a Wedding," the film is set at the wedding of Edy (Anthony Xie) and Lucy (Irina Chiu). Troubles emerge when Edy's ex, Siska (Ineke Valentina), shows up. The love triangle will involve gangsters and gang wars.
The movie, which is going to have the vibe of the 1990's Hong Kong and Chinese dramas, is expected to attract an audience of at least 200,000.
Authentic Representation
The film features Chinese-Indonesians and has some dialogues in Mandarin.
Irina and Tekun wanted to represent fellow Indonesians of Chinese descent through "something new and fresh" and at the same universal, which can be enjoyed by viewers of all backgrounds.
Though the film does not delve into ethnicity and minority-related issues, Sidi expressed hope that it will inspire others to learn more about the Chinese culture in Indonesia.
"I hope this film will be an alternative in Indonesian filmmaking. This culture is part of Indonesia's diversity," he said.
In order to keep the film authentic, Sidi avoided stereotypes and cliches. He relied mostly on his childhood memories. Growing up he spent a lot of time in "Chinatowns," so he did not need much research on the culture.
"I controlled every part of the visual treatment. I avoided symbols that often appear in movies … I once came to see a barongsai [lion dance] performance, but I decided not to include it. I relied more on what my neighbors' houses looked like when I visited them as a kid," Sidi said.
Tekun said the crew worked with a wedding organizer specialized in Chinese weddings.
"We used real decorations and hired MCs. It was like a real, eight-day wedding."
Not an Easy Journey
The film was written in 2015, shot in 2016 and went through post-production last last year.
It took long, for although "Pai Kau" is a commercial film, producing it felt like making an indie project, because Sidi had to multitask. He directed, co-produced, co-wrote the film. He also did the camera work, in which as a professional cinematographer he was particularly meticulous.
The biggest challenge was getting the cast ready, because 80 percent of them were non-professional actors. Tjie Jan Tan, who plays one of the mafia bosses, is a biology lecturer in real life. He is also Irina's father and was the first to join the team to support his daughter's project.
"The more difficult the film is, the more I learn. Getting non-actors to be in character wasn't easy, but it was a fascinating experience," Sidi said.
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