The Jakarta’Post POTPOURRI The UN and Acehnese reconstruction James Bourk Hoesterey Contributor Madison, Wisconsin ‘There is an Indonesian saying that when’ ele- phants are locked in a fight, the mousedeer will die in the middle. In Aryo Danusiri's documen- tary film Playing Between Ele- hants, the mousedeer is Pak Geuchik, the village chief in charge of implementing a post- tsunami $13 million UN-Habi- tat reconstruction project in his village of East Geunting, Aceh, Pak Geuchik carefully (and, ‘at times, not so carefully) nav- igates between the worlds of UN aid workers, Indonesian translators, building suppliers and local villagers. This is a story of culture and conflict, of hope and despair. ‘The mousedeer plays between the elephants, but somehow man- ages to survive, Danusiri’s documentary re- ‘minds us that telling good sto ries does not depend on tech- nology or marketing analysis, Good stories do not even rely on “telling” — but on seeing and showing, With his keen ethnographie eye, Danusiri documents a beautiful, lyrical, and dramat- ie story. of post-tsunami Acehnese who are rebuilding their lives, their dreams, and their country. Danusiri’s “observational cinema” style of filmmaking does not depend on the pseu- do-investigative journalism vand“talking heads" of somany ‘documentary films. Similar to his previous. awardsinning film Lukas’ Moment, Danas tells the story of « community Shrough the life of one of it members We follow Pak Geuchik from the first brick to the final roof, from UN meetings in city offices t0 community deliberations inthe village mosque. In the process, we get an insider's view into the cul tural polities of post-sunar reconstruction Danusiet does not just fol- love people, but also the money "rom the initial disburse. ment to the climactic, heated budget argument between vil- lagers. and. UN-Habitat olf cials. The film explores the political economy of foreign Gonor projects which ‘come ‘with cultural sting: attache, 'UN donations "accompa nied by thetri of transparon= oy, accountability and partic pation — become a primary fouree of tension, confit, and mistnist between villages and those supervising. the funds Welear that evervone is play ing between the elephants the foreign UN workers, the Indonesian aid workers’ the local suppliers, villagers. and Pie Geacile The limits ide- alized values of tong Moyong (community cooperation) ase tested by the eveation of new power brokers and the Indone- San culture ofthe envelope in this dance of and between ele- Dhants there is no clear pro- {agonist or antagonist, SON workers, building sup- pliers, and villagers all vent thee frustsations towart Pak Geucniig ‘One dy, he has had enough. Thursday, December 13, 2007 Sitting alone, staring out at ‘the unfinished houses, Pak Geuchik expresses his despair in song: .."my life has become ‘a mess; Being in charge of peo- ple is a tricky business; No longer can T take this ordeal. We see his struggle in his face, hear it in his voice, and feel it within ourselves. This is the kind of intimate and revealing moment made possi- ble by observational cinema, Danusiri brings us into the lives of the people. He did not come to Aceh to tell a particu- lar story, but rather he came to let the story tell itself. In perhaps the most power- ful scene of the film, building Inspectors roll into the village in their UN trucks. The inspec- tors declare that the houses that do not conform to “prop- er” construction standards ‘must be torn down, One inspector, with the tone of voice of a colonial officer, says “I'm afraid it’s gonna have to be a carrot and stick approach. Once you start rejecting work, they will listen.” The power ‘dynamics are clear. Pak Geuchik’s smile masks hhis disgust and his heart sinks into despair. The camera lingers on Pak Geuchile. He is Powerless. He feels the rage of | tiger, yet must speak with the voice of @ lamb. Smiling, he ‘mutters to himself, “unbeliev- able”. This one scene reveals ‘more about the social process- fs of reconstruction than 100 “talking heads” ever could, In terms of documentary style, Danusinis observational cinema does not sacrifice other aesthetics of filmmaking HeThe Jakarta Post Thursday, December 13, 2007 Assiill rom ‘Playing with Elephants’ provides beautiful, lyrical of patience with reconstrue- shots of village life. tion, and the impending poss ms of other narrative bility for everything to fall conventions, Danusiti turns a apart, These shots are elegant- wobbly bridge in the village ly composed and add a poetic into a central charac beauty that is impossible in the film. more traditional forms of doc- In doing so, he develops a umentary, The musical score visual fietapHbr for the ten- sions in this village, the limits also adds to the rich depth and emotional tone of the film, In Danusiri’s style of obser vational cinema, the camera does not just view — it looks In the process, the audi is given a is through which to look at the lives of Igdonesians, a new £ Feference with whi understand the prob! ‘modernity, and a new appreci ation for the dilemmas of liv- a global world. And so next chapter of doc- sim in Indonesia, ‘The writer is a documen- tary filmmaker & PhD eandi- date, University of Wisconsin Madison, Department of Anthropology