Indonesian classic films' restoration can open new insights for youngsters

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The restoration of classic Indonesian films, with access to screenings, can open new insights for young audiences, film observer Hikmat Darmawan stated here in an online discussion on Sunday.

"If there is no screening forum (for classic films and their restoration), watching generation-to-generation masterpiece films becomes difficult," Darmawan, who is concurrently the vice chairman I of the Jakarta Arts Council (DKJ), explained.

Filmmaker and film programmer Ifan Ismail stated that restoration of Indonesian classic films is not as simple as it seems in the wake of several challenges.

"The first is in terms of technology, especially if it is a celluloid (film) restoration, which (must) be repaired physically. Digital restoration is relatively easier because what is edited or cleaned is the digital images," Ismail explained.

The next challenge is the film's intellectual property rights, Ismail remarked.

"The issue of film rights is where and who owns the film. Sometimes if the movie is old, we figure that the producer or the production house no longer exists. That is what must be resolved first, and it is not an easy process either," he explained.

Meanwhile, the Madani International Film Festival will present the restored movie "Titian Serambut Dibelah Tujuh" (1982) on Wednesday (April 27) at a cinema in Central Jakarta at 2 p.m. local time.

According to Ismail, Titian Serambut Dibelah Tujuh has the ability to bring up the complexity of Indonesian Muslims.

Titian Serambut Dibelah Tujuh was a film under the collaboration of director Chaerul Umam and screenwriter Asrul Sani in 1982 and was a "recycled" film from Sani's film with the same title in 1959.

The film won the Best Screenplay at the 1983 Indonesian Film Festival (FFI) as well as the PWI Jaya trophy for Best Drama Film.
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