I Made Suarbawa

Producteur·trice, Réalisateur·trice, Scénariste

Bali Tersenyum

BIOGRAPHIE

I Made Suarbawa (nickname: Birus) is a filmmaker and writer who has an interest in telling stories about issues of family, children and youth and the technology impact to our lives. Professional in audio visual field and also makes short fiction films and documentaries. Active as a film activist in Bali since 2003 by conducting film screenings and training in rural areas with Minikino.org. Has been working in films since 2006 with the first documentary entitled Aku Bukan Maling (I’m Not a Thief) under the InDoc-Ford Foundation program; then received a production grant from Acffest/KPK 2015 for short fiction entitled Pengen HP (Desiring for a Smartphone); and throughout the film journey involved in several projects, among others as a scriptwriter, director, producer, editor and location manager. Director Statement ------------------ As a generation that was born in the 80s in the village of a small island named Bali of Indonesia and experienced the TV transition era from black-and-white to internet based services, makes me naively wonder how far technology will go and merge into my life and my family. Will I still be able to ‘communicate’ with my children? The addiction to using social media, to having the latest gadget and to acquire the skill to showcase our ‘persona’ online have shown the hyperconnected life but disconnected at the same time. I am worried yet I am grateful to have the technology to ease my life. It becomes a new currency and we cannot avoid any of that. My work as a film director, writer, and photographer has been influenced with this very specific theme. I pay a lot of attention to the transitions of children, youth, women and the values of families related to technology. My previous short film entitled Pengen HP (2015) tells the influence of gadgets in the lives of teenagers; continues with photo series exhibition called “Renjana: FAMILY T'H'REE” tracing the cultural transition in the family that is read from three generations; grandmother, mother and daughter. Currently, I have finished the short film ‘@ItsDekRaaa’, as an effort to study the emergence of TikTok and as an effort to cut the distance between me and my 10-year-old daughter who happens to be quite fluent in the latest technology. There is a gap between us. We watch different types of content, we laugh at different jokes, we learn in different ways, we even have different ways of speaking. In the film @ItsDekRaaa, I recorded the phenomenon of the use of social media in teenagers and children, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, which forced them to study online using gadgets and the internet. The power of audio-visual media and various social media features provide a new creative space, new culture, new lifestyle, and various novelties that are far from the previous generation. Change is always a double-edged sword, which can improve the quality of life and has the same destructive power. In this film, I recorded simply and specifically the imagination, expression and willingness of teenagers in the countryside to fulfill their interest in using the Tiktok application.

FILMOGRAPHIE