Center for Southeast Asian Social Studies Universitas Gadjah Mada successfully held SEA Movie 2017 program titled Borderless On Screen on 8-9 August 2017 in the audio room of Institut Français Indonesia (IFI-LIP), Yogyakarta. The event lasted from 09:00 to 16:00 pm which began with a welcome from Ade Nuriadin, M.A as the program manager of SEA Movie. Furthermore, the program was officially opened by Director of CESASS, Dr.phil. Hermin Indah Wahyuni who hoped that the short films played in the SEA Movie could be a medium that raises awareness to the community in Southeast Asia.
SEA Movie program is a routine program that is always implemented by CESASS, but in SEA Movie this time the screening activities were more specially packed. If SEA Movie usually screens one movie from one country, then this time there were 12 short films made by filmmakers from several countries in Southeast Asia such as Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Singapore, Philippines, and Indonesia. The selected short films were accepted through open submission which was then curated by film curators and academics. The selected short films were then grouped into three categories: Hidden Stories, Connecting The Dots, and The Source of Life. Dr.phil.Vissia Ita Yulianto, CESASS researcher, who was also part of the film curator team, hoped that through this program the filmmakers in Southeast Asia would have space to show films capable of portraying economic, cultural and political reality so that the films did not only have entertainment function , but were also capable of driving change in Southeast Asia.
The program also involved the Minikino short film community based in Bali to play short films from Myanmar titled S-Express. There were four short films from Myanmar played in this program. In addition to film screenings, this activity also presented academics and film activists in the form of a general lecture on film in Southeast Asia. The speakers included Dr. Budi Irawanto (lecturer of Communication Sciences UGM and Director of JAFF), Dyna Herlina (lecturer of Communication Sciences UNY), and Karina Roosvita (Jogja Film Academy). Some filmmakers whose films were screened in SEA Movie also attended, among others were Eden Junjung, Tunggul Banjaransari, Arie Surastio, Agustinus Dwi Nugroho, and Ersya Ruswandono.
The screening of the film itself was interesting with the presence of approximately 100 spectators during two days of film screenings. During the discussion session, the audience seemed enthusiastic, they asked or contributed in three discussing sessions with the theme of Film Development in Southeast Asia, Identity in Southeast Asian Economic Community, and Visual Culture in Voicing Agricultural Society. The audiences also got an opportunity to ask directly to the filmmakers whose films were screened in SEA Movie from the production process to the grief-making of the film. In addition to film screenings, SEA Movie’s advanced result involved academics and film activists in the writing and publication of anthology book containing studies on films in Southeast Asia. (Venda)