Special screenings at Rialto and Studio/K
CinemAsia is presenting 2 special screenings:
26 JULY – 21:00 – Rialto DE PIJP
You and I
Kusdalini and Kaminah by no means met under ideal circumstances. The year was 1965, Indonesian communists were trying to seize power, but failed miserably. What followed were endless purges. Kusdalini and Kaminah were both members of a communist youth organisation, and they too ended up in jail, sharing a cell. Since then, the two women have always stayed together. Now both are in their 70s and live in Surakarta in central Java, where they make a simple living selling the rice crackers they make themselves. Kusdalini’s health leaves much to be desired, but fortunately Kaminah is always there for her.
Director Fanny Chotimah portrays the beauty of unconditional friendship and love in this beautiful documentary, it is her directorial debut. That with age comes defects, does not detract from the fact that there is also much beauty in growing older.
27 JULY – 19:00 – sTUDIO/K
MADAME X
When a land in the middle of nowhere is threatened by a militant and homophobic political party, the safety of the country depends on Adam, a hairdresser. Armed with make-up and extraordinary dance moves, they must defeat the bad guys before they are able to win an election. But Adam must first learn Lenggok, a mix of traditional Indonesian and modern dance, and transform into the legendary transgender superheroine Madame X. Blending action-packed superheroes with trashy queer parody and martial arts, director Lucky Kuswandiās debut film offers a riotously entertaining perspective on LGBTQ+ issues in Indonesia. Lucky Kuswandi is one of Indonesiaās most exciting young directors. The Wall Street Journal has praised his films as āoriginal and unchartedā and they have been screened in festivals worldwide, receiving various awards and accolades.
And we have organized a wonderful panel after the first Asian trans superhero film from Indonesia š
Panel: discussion aboit contemporary queer rights in Indonesia and the growing radicalisation in politics, or the eradication of folk gender-fluid representation due to growing religious fundamentalism.
Speakers:
Saskia Wieringa (UvA)
Arnaud Kokosky Deforchaux (CinemAsia/ Tong Tong fair
Luluk Surahman
Moderator: Lidya Sihombing
Saskia E. Wieringa is Emerita Professor at the University of Amsterdam. She wrote and (co-) edited more than 30 books and over 200 articles. Her latest books include Heteronormativity in Asia (2015 Sussex Academic Press); Propaganda and the Indonesian Genocide, Imagined Evil (2018, with Nursyahbani Katjasungkana, Routledge). She is the chair of the Foundation IPT 1965which organized a people’s tribunal on the Indonesia genocide in 1965/6. For over 40 years she has done research on same-sex relations globally, particularly in Indonesia. Forthcoming in 2024 is her book on the history of the LBT movement in Indonesia.
