Janur Kuning (1979)

Interesting facts

• Filmed in: Indonesia

Janur Kuning is a 1980 Indonesian war film directed by Alam Surawidjaja and produced by Abbas Wiranatakusuma. Starring Kaharuddin Syah, Deddy Sutomo, and Dicky Zulkarnaen, it follows the Indonesian revolutionaries six-hour assault on Yogyakarta, under Suharto, in a show of force against the Dutch army. At the time the most expensive domestic production ever, the film's title is meant to symbolise the Indonesian people's struggle. A critical success, Janur Kuning received a nomination and two special awards at the 1980 Indonesian Film Festival.

Production

Janur Kuning was directed by Alam Surawidjaja and produced by Abbas Wiranatakusuma of the Jakarta-based production house Metro 77. The script was written by Syafnizal Durab in collaboration with Arto Hady, while cinematography was completed by Kasdullah. In post-production Soemardjono handled editing and Sudharnoto and Suparman Sidik handled music and other sound effects.

Janur Kuning was the most expensive Indonesian film up to that point, with a budget of Rp. 375 million. The cost led production to be held up for over a month when the allocated funds were unavailable. It was the second domestic production to deal with the 1 March general assault, after Usmar Ismail's Enam Djam di Djogdja (Six Hours in Jogja; 1951).

A scene was filmed, several minutes long, showing Sudirman meeting and hugging Sultan Hamengkubuwana IX after returning from his guerrilla campaign. According to Sutomo, the scene was cut because the censors working for Suharto's New Order disapproved of it.

Several small scenes were filmed using foreign high school students from Jakarta International School, who were brought to Yogjakarta to portray the Dutch soldiers during their midterm break from school. Additional European extras were recruited from the ranks of young overland travelers from the US, Australia, Germany and other Western countries.

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