Let me add a slight personal touch to this review. This is the author’s fourth year writing for Festival Film Dokumenter (FFD). When asked why I keep coming back to FFD, the answer is simple: it makes me ‘smarter’. Smarter in the sense that it opens my eyes and heart to empathize with the wider world. Documentaries always offer new perspectives, showing the realities of life that are rarely seen, as in Under the Moonlight (Tonny Trimarsanto, 2023).
In a small Islamic boarding school in Yogyakarta, the transgender community has found a home where they can be themselves. The boarding school is an oasis, in contrast to the outside world, which is full of hatred and rejection. Behind its walls, they are free to live their identities, worship, work, and live life cheerfully. We see them cooking, praying, laughing, and joking light-heartedly, even when taking HIV tests. They even joke about themselves.
The author views transgender people as ‘unique’ and enigmatic figures. Not infrequently, the author also wonders what drives them to make big decisions in their lives. Without the slightest intention to judge, this curiosity remains, as if there is an unspoken ‘distance’. However, this documentary gently and beautifully answers those questions. Basically, we are all human beings, equally deserving of love, equally deserving of feeling love, equally deserving of worship and the pursuit of happiness without question.
There was a moment when a religious group tried to ban their activities. Instead of flinching or retaliating with anger, the students continue to live their lives cheerfully. They cooked, prayed, and sang as if the threat were just a passing wind. They chose to celebrate life. Despite being in the midst of uncertainty, they embraced gratitude and happiness in every little thing they did.
Under the moonlight, all appear equal, without judgment, without limitations. The moon, in its splendor, shines down on us all, reminding us that we are but a grain of dust in the midst of an unimaginably vast galaxy. In this serene light, we are invited to create a space for all souls, a place where everyone, without exception, can live, be loved, and live their beliefs in peace. (Tirza Kanya) (Ed. Vanis/Trans. Naufal Shabri)
Film Details
Under the Moonlight (Nur)
Tonny Trimarsanto | 86 Min | 2023 | Central Java, Indonesia
In Competition for Indonesia Feature-Length
Festival Film Dokumenter 2024
Screening Schedule
Nov. 4 | 19:00 WIB | IFI-LIP
Nov. 7 | 13:00 WIB | Militaire Societeit, TBY
