Counting down the days to announce the world premiere of ANAK MACAN, the new short film by the wonderful Indonesian filmmaker Amar Haikal.

It will be in the official competition at one of the world’s most prestigious international film festivals and is eligible for the Hollywood Oscars.

ANAK MACAN, aka MY PLASTIC MOTHER, is a magnificent drama produced by Michael Rainheart and star by Muhammad Alfat Apriansyah. An actor with a fascinating magnetism.

Ayung Rudysta does an amazing job as Director of Photography, worthy of an Academy Award from the Hollywood Film Academy.

Director’s Statement:

I grew up without my mother. As a kid, I did not really consider it to be a problem until I saw the relationship my classmates had with their mothers. For example, family photo days in elementary school were always a terror; the other kids brought in photographs of their whole family, and all mine had was just a photo of me and my father. It made me feel incomplete. I would then end up crafting well-thought-out lies to my friends about my mother working overseas. I slowly became a very troublesome and hurtful kid, to the point of expulsion in the sixth grade. As I reflect, the frustration and confusion that I kept to myself were the one that led me to hurt others around me.

With this film, I want to encapsulate those years of my childhood. It is a story about longing and the desire we all have to feel complete, interpreted through the pure desire of a child. The protagonist is a naughty, harsh boy that secretly keeps a lot of pain inside – which is also a trait most male don’t get the chance to outgrow.

In 2021, as I was shooting a documentary project in the landfill of Bantar Gebang, a huge landslide happened. Burying hundreds of old public graveyards with plastic waste sent from the capital, Jakarta. The locals refer to the kids who play in the landfill as “Anak Macan” or “Tiger Boy” due to their reckless nature. But I see it as an ironic relation to the mascot of Jakarta, the Kemayoran Tiger. All the characters in this film are played by non-professional actors, they are the kids who live in Bantar Gebang. This story is theirs as much as it is mine.

We will soon announce further successes for this cinematic gem produced in Indonesia.

#mailukifilms #shorts #shortfilm #bilbao #variety #cortos #cortometraje #thewrap #indiewire #deadline #thehollywoodreporter #movie #moviemaker #festival #film #filmmaker #sundance #flickerfest #europeanfilmawards #oscar #academyawards #fotogramas #dirigidopor #cinemania #award #premiere #oscars #premiosgoya #hollyshorts #nomination #foryourconsideration #oscars #theacademy #academyawards