{"id":89635,"date":"2018-09-14T10:12:30","date_gmt":"2018-09-14T08:12:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=89635"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:23:05","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:23:05","slug":"documentaire-door-eur-promovenda-op-zurich-filmfestival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2018\/09\/14\/documentaire-door-eur-promovenda-op-zurich-filmfestival\/","title":{"rendered":"EUR doctoral candidate\u2019s documentary debuts at film festival in Zurich"},"content":{"rendered":"

The ethnographic film \u2018The Feel of History\u2019 explores the culture of re-enactment in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Re-enactment is the staging of historical events and in this case involves a reconstruction of the Serangan Umum 1 Maret<\/a> general offensive.<\/p>\n

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Lise Zurn\u00e9 during the filming of the re-enactment in Yogyakarta<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLise Zurn\u00e9<\/span>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

The documentary was the result of Lise Zurn\u00e9\u2019s research for her Visual Anthropology master\u2019s thesis at Leiden University. \u201cFilming wasn\u2019t something new for me, since I had completed the first year of the fine arts programme at University of the Arts Utrecht. So it seemed a logical step to record my research on film as well as in writing,\u201d says Zurn\u00e9.<\/p>\n

Zurn\u00e9 is well-acquainted with film festivals. Since 2016, \u2018The Feel of History\u2019 has been screened at fifteen ethnographic film festivals. In October the documentary will be screened at the Regard Bleu Film Festival in Zurich. This festival focuses on academics and researchers. \u201cI think the film is interesting mainly due to the insights it offers in how a community positions itself and moves between historical conflicts and political interests.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sensitive<\/h2>

Lise Zurn\u00e9 follows a historical society in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, which annually stages an historical re-enactment of Serangan Umum 1 Maret, one of the last battles against the Dutch coloniser in 1949. Zurn\u00e9 spent three months filming the historical society Komunitas Djokjakarta 1945<\/a>, from their earliest preparations to the performance itself \u2013 a performance with a limited number of attendees chiefly consisting of family and friends.<\/p>\n

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Lise Zurn\u00e9 amidst the re-enactment participants<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLise Zurn\u00e9 <\/span>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>

\u201cWhat makes this re-enactment special is that it involves a lot more than just re-enacting historical events,\u201d declares Zurn\u00e9.<\/p>\n

This is because in Indonesia, there are numerous controversies regarding the historical narrative of Serangan Umum 1 Maret; to this day Indonesians debate who was responsible for initiating the offensive and they also have their doubts about Suharto\u2019s role in the attack. Suharto later went on to become the president-dictator of the country.<\/p>\n

The doctoral candidate continues: \u201cBecause the battle was somewhat of a sensitive issue in history, my main questions were: how does the historical society deal with all these controversies? Which choices do they make for the re-enactment?\u201d<\/p>\n

Spectacle<\/h2>

Zurn\u00e9 answers these questions in the film by deconstructing the re-enactment. She lets the participants themselves speak and she observes how they fashion their replica weapons and outfits. \u201cWhile filming I discovered that the people doing the re-enactment in Yogyakarta feel a close kinship with the army and soldiers,\u201d says Zurn\u00e9. \u201cThey aren\u2019t staging this re-enactment purely in the interests of history. They also just enjoy walking around in their army uniforms with their military equipment.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLise Zurn\u00e9 <\/span>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

The participants take virtually no notice of the controversies surrounding the theme. \u201cThere are no profound discussions regarding the controversy or Suharto\u2019s role. The society has chosen to focus on the spectacle of the event. The re-enactment must be as spectacular and impressive as possible; the \u2018truth\u2019 of the historical narrative was less important to them,\u201d Zurn\u00e9 says.<\/p>\n

In her current research she is comparing re-enactment in the Netherlands, Belgium and Indonesia. \u201cThe study is still ongoing, but I suspect that re-enactment in the Netherlands and Belgium will demonstrate more concern for sensitive issues; my research shows, for example, that someone wouldn\u2019t wear an SS uniform during a re-enactment, while in Indonesia there would be far more leeway allowed regarding how people would approach a sensitive issue.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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De redactie<\/h2>\n\t\t\n\t\t
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