I WAS THERE, PART II (2024): STILL AMONG THE RUINS OF HIROSHIMA

— Film Review
FFD 2024

Chi Jang Yin, the director, writer, and producer of I WAS THERE trilogy echoes the collective memory of the effects and trauma of the Hiroshima bombing through her second experimental documentary series, I WAS THERE, PART II (2024). This time, through archival video footage, a Professor of Philosophy is presented as a witness to the fall of the 15,000 tons of TNT atomic bomb codenamed Little Boy.

“Could you describe exactly what happened on the morning of August the 6th?”

At 8.15 am local time, John A. Siemes was in his room overlooking the valley. Suddenly, a flash of magnesium light broke out and immediately a giant mushroom cloud engulfed the valley. Shards of window glass lunged at Siemes, and flames began to wrap around the surrounding farmhouses. The 4,000-kilogram US atomic bomb was in action; it burned 70% of Hiroshima’s buildings, killed more than 100,000 people, and left a deadly annual radiation trail across the city.

Chi Jang Yin combines archival 16mm footage from the US military during the Pacific War in Japan, VR footage showing the remains of the post-bombing ruins, and graphic maps of the bomb’s epicenter area to document the explosive effects of Little Boy on Hiroshima.

“We have to discuss among ourselves the ethics of the use of the bomb. Does it not have material and spiritual evil as its consequences which far exceed whatever good that might result?”

Ending the war and securing a dominant position on the post-war global stage may have been the justification for the US to launch atomic bombs on Hiroshima, as well as Nagasaki. However, the consequences of the damage and humanitarian ethics caused by these weapons of mass destruction need to be questioned. Not only does Chi Jang Yin question this, but she also investigates it through the I WAS THERE trilogy.

“This epiphany releases the self to live life in the present. My self-worth is no longer bound to events of the past or future. Life is simply a cascade of possibilities, and yet the perception of my individual importance is irrelevant.”

Little Boy is still a nightmare for its survivors. However, Chi Jang Yin still tries to uncover the collective trauma and insert a reflective narrative at the end of the movie. The determination to rise up and learn to accept the explosive wounds of the past serves as a reminder and an admonition that humanity should remain the main thing that comes first, above the ego that destroys the soul. (Hesty N. Tyas) (Ed. Vanis/Trans. Naufal Shabri)

 

Film Details
I WAS THERE, PART II
Chi-Jang Yin | 10 Min | 2024 | United States
Official Selection for Spektrum
Festival Film Dokumenter 2024

Screening Schedule
Nov. 3 | 19:00 WIB | Ruang Seminar, TBY
Nov. 9 | 13:00 WIB | Militaire Societeit, TBY