Access the official Dancing Village: The curse begins trailer here.
After a successful history in the film Industry, Kimo Stamboel became the first Indonesian director to work on a film shown in IMAX and collaborated with Lionsgate to distribute this film internationally. In fact, through the film Dancing Village: The Curse Begins, director Kimo Stamboel admitted that he applied a special treatment that had never been done in a previous project. Check out this interview with Kimo Stamboel!
Kimo Stamboel’s Film, Badarawuhi in Penari Village: First Film Shooting for IMAX and Applying Special Treatment that Has Never Been Done!
How do you feel knowing that Badarawuhi di Desa Penari is filmed for IMAX?
Kimo Stamboel: “Excited, ya. This is the first time. I think I’m quite lucky enough to be able to shoot for IMAX. Maybe not many directors or filmmakers can get this opportunity, though. Thank God I was able to get this opportunity, and hopefully, what I shoot will be in accordance with IMAX’s needs. So, I am quite excited and hoping for the best result. We’ve done the camera test, and it’s pretty cool—I’m quite satisfied. We took several segments then, but now they are all complete. I hope it becomes something that we can all be proud of for this Badarawuhi universe.”
How did Kimo Stamboel turn this true story into a film?
Kimo Stamboel: “It’s a big quiet challenge, ya, because the real story is long and has a lot of intriguing parts which are hard to visualize. The challenge is primarily to really adapt it to the screen—in this method involved lots of discussions with SimpleMan and our writer, Mba Lele. We discussed to ensure that we could incorporate almost all the elements of the story being told into the visuals. Yet, some areas do not need to be pictured—we can infuse it into the character’s behavior and the situation. That’s what I think is important, ya. Especially at the stage where we are developing the story. And it’s not easy because, with a big story, we try to keep going back and forth with Simple Man and our writer to get that dynamic to present it visually. The key is when we develop the story and my involvement. My involvement in this is extremely deep because it is also a foreign thing for me. I have never heard a story like this, especially since it’s already printed as Badarawuhi from KKN, there’s already a story, so we can’t go away from it. I guess you can say it was adapted. So, we can not visualize everything in this story and that is where we have to be smart in how we take it all.
Tell us about the start of the process of making the film Badarawuhi in Penari Village!
Kimo Stamboel: “We’ve actually been working on the script for a few months. Of course, SimpleMan is very involved in this. We begin the process of casting players. We still want to combine the first KKN, so we are still including characters from the first KKN here. We also have to look at the villages in KKN, where the challenge is. The real village no longer exists. When we returned, many things had changed. During pre-production, we have to look for locations similar to KKN, especially the village. But there are some things where the structure is still there. We are looking for a location, practicing too, because the East Javanese language is spoken here, and it’s no joke. We did several technical aspects, such as scenes that we had to test and preparations for IMAX, so the flow was a bit different from previous preparations, which were more detailed than my previous projects. After a few months, we went into production. That’s where we try our best in the existing and quite heavy conditions. There is crew movement, too, and the terrain is quite large. We build lots of sets, too. When we entered post-production, I never found the challenges getting lower, instead, they continued to rise. So far, it’s been a real challenge to bring this story through editing and storytelling so that it can be enjoyed.”
How has your experience been working with the cast of Dancing Village: The Curse Begins?
Kimo Stamboel: “It’s fun, really. I’ve never worked on this project before. Aulia’s first time, there was Dinda’s—Dinda’s first time too. There’s Claresta, Maudy, Jourdy, Iqbal, Ardit, everyone. They’re all talented and I’m really happy because they are willing to explore because this story is really not easy. With all the emotions involved, it was a bit heavy.”
Also read: Sandiaga Uno Dukung Film Badarawuhi di Desa Penari Sepenuhnya: Gala Premiere
Is there any special treatment for the movie Dancing Village: The Curse Begins?
Kimo Stamboel: “This is the first time I have ever used dance elements, ya. So, the dance element is quite strong, yes, and I haven’t implemented this before. Then, traditional dance too, right? Very special and something I’ve never done in films before.”
Is Badarawuhi an interesting character in this movie?
Kimo Stamboel: “I tried searching by myself, I tried researching it myself and finally, I found out which one was true. Trying to dig deeper into who and what it (Badarawuhi) is. And I went straight to the source, which really knows Badarawuhi. He explained what Badarawuhi was like. So if you pay attention, from KKN and Dancing Village: The Curse Begins, Badarawuhi looks darker because it actually came from that place. So, we made the special treatment here a little darker.”
Which scene was the hardest to take?
Kimo Stamboel: “Everything, but difficult is the stormy scene. It’s a very short scene, I wanted it to be bigger than that because technically, it’s not easy. Because it involves a lot of stuff. Characters have to walk, enter the house, leave the house, inside the house. If you pay attention, we shot inside the house in the studio and I had to bring the story to the storm in the house. And we have to create that. And after that, the character has to leave—which means relocation. We have to make a pretty big storm. But it seems that in terms of time, we can’t. One of them, it’s one of the biggest challenges. But, working with 50 dancers is also difficult. That’s a controlled environment. For us to manage, it is quite a challenge. What I thought would be really complicated, like involving snakes of all kinds, is actually just normal.”
Were there any difficulties with stories that come from a time setting in the past?
Kimo Stamboel: “Language problems, yes. Especially because we are set in East Java, especially in East Java in the 70-80s, the language seems very different from now. That’s what creates its own challenge. I even asked people who actually lived that year, consulted dialogue coaches too. We align that.”
Were there any horror incidents that occurred during the shooting set?
Kimo Stamboel: “There may not be any at the location, but there was at the hotel. The hotel is really good, very comfortable. It’s just that we, right, shoot in a location where the energy is different. There are several locations that are really ancient, that’s old. We are in the Wonosari area, Central Java. That’s untouched forest, right? And the funny thing is that there are several structures that if we pay attention, it seems like the take back is really far away. Maybe it was built in what year, we don’t know. And it looks really ancient. Obviously, if there are energies like that, maybe follow suit. But, thank God, it was safe at the location.”
Apa fun fact sebelum take?
Kimo Stamboel: There must be something on my table, bananas! “I can’t concentrate if I don’t eat bananas,” he laughed.
What is Kimo Stamboel’s favorite set?
Kimo Stamboel: “I like all of them, but what’s quite special is that we have a scene in a bathhouse and it’s very busy, right? I quite like it there, even though it’s a bit creepy. People also find it a bit creepy. We can only shoot during the day, we can’t shoot at night. The name of the set is twin padusan.”
What are Kimo Stamboel’s hopes for the film Badarawuhi di Desa Penari?
Kimo Stamboel: “The hope is that this film can be remembered by the current and next generations. When I make a film, I always want the film to be watched many times. If you watch this film once in the cinema and then want to come up on OTT, somewhere, and you watch it again, it has the same impact. That’s my target, really. This film can be remembered by the next generation and our generation who watched it.”
So, that’s a special interview from director Kimo Stamboel who worked on the film Badarawuhi di Desa Penari – this film by Kimo Stamboel was his first film to be shown in IMAX and distributed to America and other countries. Indonesia is proud too! Are you curious about the story of Badarawuhi in the Dancer Village full movie? Watch now!
Also read: ArumtaLa Nyanyikan Kembali Lagu ‘Apa Arti Hidup Ini’ untuk OST Badarawuhi di Desa Penari
Apart from that, stream the original soundtrack of Dancing Village : The curse begins sung by Madukina and Matoha Mino with the title ‘Dawuh’ and ‘What is the Meaning of This Life’ by ArumtaLa on all digital streaming platforms!
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