Catholics should be using cinema and culture to dialogue with other faiths, and we should be doing so in the market place, said President of SIGNIS World Augustine Loorthusamy in his keynote address at the SIGNIS Asia Assembly in Nepal in October.
It is certainly the view of Indonesian Jesuit Fr Yoseph Iswarahadi SJ, who is the director of Studio Audio Visual (SAV) Puskat in Yogjakarta and Vice President of SIGNIS Asia. SIGNIS is a non-governmental organisation comprising Catholic radio, television, cinema, video, media education, Internet, and new technology professionals from 140 countries.
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| Dewanto and Iswara |
“The Gospel message should be proclaimed not only from the altar, but in the market place as well,” said Fr Iswarahadi. “In order to spread the values of the Gospel to the world, the Church should go out from her own compound and meet the people out there. The presence of the Church among the people inclusively is a must. It is a call from within.”
That is the aim of Puskat’s latest effort, “Soegija”, a film on the first Indonesian Catholic bishop, a Jesuit, Mgr A Soegijapranata.
Work on the film is well underway, said Fr Iswarahadi. Filming was completed on December 8 and editing will begin shortly with a target completion date of April 2012. The film will be shown in cinemas across Indonesia from June 2012.
“Soegiya” tells the story of the struggle of Mgr Soegijapranata during the Dutch and Japanese colonisation of Indonesia, of his solidarity with the people and their suffering in the 1940s. Through this film, the Jesuits aim to promote the spirit of nationalism, interreligious dialogue, peace and solidarity with the oppressed.
The film is itself an exercise in interreligious dialogue and solidarity. Its many stakeholders include the Jesuit Indonesian Province, Archbishop of Semarang, Archbishop of Jakarta as well as some prominent figures and groups in Indonesia.
Directing the film is a Muslim, Garin Nugroho, who is a film director of international repute. Another Muslim, Nirwan Dewanto plays Mgr Soegijapranata.
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| Dewanto as Mgr Soegija |
There were four candidates to play Mgr Soegijapranata, but only Dewanto passed the selection. The spirit of nationalism, peace and solidarity with the people are values that are promoted by many religions, including his own, Islam.
Playing the role of Mgr Soegijapranata was a big challenge for Dewanto because he felt he had to live the values proclaimed by the bishop. He read books on Mgr Soegijapranata and learned his biography but he felt that was not enough. So he went to the Jesuit Novitiate in Semarang for a short retreat under the direction of Fr Murti Hadi Widjayanto SJ (producer and assistant film director, Puskat).
Dewanto was very touched by the environment in the Novitiate and the simplicity of Jesuit life. He felt better after his retreat and is happy in his role as Mgr Soegijapranata. It is a creative way to deepen his own faith as a Muslim.
The cast includes national actors and actresses as well as many local actors and actresses, a total of 2,500 people from various religious backgrounds.
The film will cost USD 1.325 million to produce and market, and the fund raising team is working hard to raise the sum by April 2012 and would welcome more financial support. Below is the film proposal with English subtitles.
For more information on the film and details on how to contribute, contact Fr Iswarahadi at iswarahadi@yahoo.com
Top photo: Film director Garin Nugroho in action.