Collaborative Colloquium | Dr. Ariel Heryanto: "Genocide and Film: The case of Indonesia" (14 November 2012, 16.00-18.00)
Dr. Ariel Heryanto: "Genocide and Film: The case of Indonesia"
The first Collaborative Colloquium of the semester, "Genocide and Film: The case of Indonesia" will be on Wednesday, 14 November from 1600-1800 in the Institut für Ethnologie Seminarraum. This colloquium will be presented by Dr. Ariel Heryanto, an Associate Professor of Indonesian Studies at The Australian National University. He is the author of State terrorism and political identity In Indonesia: fatally belonging, London: Routledge (2007). His review of the film The Act of Killing appears in the latest issue of edition of the IIAS Newsletter, No. 61 (Autumn 2012): 16-17, and downloadable here.
Colloquium Abstract:
"The 1965-1966 genocide in Indonesia gave rise to the New Order regime (1966-1998). To a significant extent, the justification for the genocide, the silence about its occurrence, and the legitimacy of the New Order's authoritarianism could be maintained for over three decades thanks to the regime's successful propaganda, of which the film Pengkhianatan G 30 September (The Treachery of the 30th September Movement) (Arifin C Noer, 1984) was a part. The film established the central and over-arching framework for any public discussion, fantasy or allusion, around and within which details can vary. In post-New Order Indonesia, film has continued to be one of the critical media through which younger generation of Indonesians revisit the sensitive topic, and challenge the official history. This seminar will highlight some of the difficulties and achievements of these competing narratives on and off screen. In conclusion, the speaker will comment on the extra-ordinary film The Act of Killing (Joshua Oppenheimer, 2012) that promises to change radically the ongoing debate about this single most defining episode of the nation's history since independence."
When: 14 November (Wednesday), 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Where: Werthmannstr. 10 - Institut für Ethnologie Seminarraum
