Indonesian superhero films and the challenges ahead

Written by Alessandra Langit | Read in Indonesian

The film “Gundala” directed by Joko Anwar in 2019 came like a sweet promise from the Indonesian cinema industry to their loyal audience. The grand concept of the Bumilangit Cinematic Universe brought hope that Indonesia will be able to compete with Hollywood in creating its own superhero universe.

"Gundala" reaped massive success, attracting one million moviegoers right before the COVID-19 pandemic hit Indonesia and affected film production to film screenings.

At least, for quite some time, "Gundala" dominated Indonesian cinema screens and established a sense of pride in the hearts of the Indonesian people over the ability of Indonesian filmmakers to adapt the legendary superhero comic created by Harya Suraminata.

The COVID-19 pandemic passed in the blink of an eye, and the film screening ecosystem recovered. The Bumilangit Cinematic Universe then announced the next superhero that it will present in the Indonesian cinema.

Jagat Bumilangit Cinema released another two films, which resulted in discussions on social media that its superhero universe has failed. This is because the number of viewers for the movies "Sri Asih" (2022) and "Virgo and The Sparklings" (2023) fell way behind "Gundala", even far below the calculation of Indonesian box offices.

"Sri Asih" directed by Upi only garnered 570,619 viewers, while "Virgo and The Sparklings" by Ody C. Harahap was deemed a failure with only 54,115 viewers. The two films were only screened for a short time, replaced by a horde of horror and family drama films which dominated the Indonesian box office.

Does the low number of viewers for the last two films mean that Bumilangit Cinematic Universe was paralysed after the COVID-19 pandemic? However, outside the Bumilangit universe, other superhero movies such as “Satria Dewa: Gatotkaca” (Hanung Bramantyo, 2022) disappeared from discourse.

With the large number of fans of Western superhero films such as the Marvel Cinematic Universe and DC Comics, what makes Indonesian audiences reluctant to come to cinemas for local superhero films?

Talking about the precipitous path in the development of Indonesian superhero films today, TFR had a virtual chat with Jagoan Kancil, a content creator and fan of Indonesian superheroes.

**COVID-19 pandemic struck, promotions after "Gundala" laxed**

Since 2019, the YouTube channel Jagoan Kancil has been reviewing Indonesian superhero comics, narratives and films. With great interest in the story of local superheroes, Jagoan Kancil also follows the development of the Bumilangit Cinematic Universe and the controversy over audience figures that was trending on social media.

The Pekalongan-based man said lax promotion after "Gundala" was the main problem causing the decline in audience trust in Indonesian superhero films.

For the pre-premiere promotions of “Gundala”, the Bumilangit Cinematic Universe held large-scale events to introduce its universe and the first characters that will come to the big screen.

"At that time, it was really the best promotion, the media and the public were shocked and excited, 'Wow it turns out that Indonesia can make something like this, not inferior to foreign superheroes'," said Jagoan Kancil.

Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic hit and stayed for almost three years, sweeping away the memories of Indonesian audiences of the superhero characters that were promised to grace the cinema screens in the next few years.

A big homework for Indonesian superhero intellectual property (IP) holders and the filmmakers involved is to rebuild people's trust to leave their house and spend money to buy the movie ticket–which is a secondary need.

"What step can they take to repeat the success of "Gundala"? Well, the promotion must be even bigger. No matter what, if you look at it in Indonesia, the fact is that people watch it just to go to the cinema, people want to watch movies that are not complicated, they are only looking for entertainment when they are bored," Jagoan Kancil explained.

Awareness and relatability being important factors

Lax promotion is not the only factor that makes people reluctant to place their trust in Indonesian superhero films. Another problem according to Jagoan Kancil is that Indonesian people are not familiar with local superhero characters, unlike how they know Spiderman and Batman.

Indonesian horror films always attract millions of viewers and enter the Indonesian box office list, even without large-scale promotions. The Indonesian people are familiar enough with mystical and occult stories to believe in the stories that will be told in films that they haven’t even seen.

On the contrary, Indonesian superheroes are like a group of foreigners whose stories are distant from people’s everyday life. "How can they like it if they don't know it?" said Jagoan Kancil.

Having a strong traditional background, Indonesian people believe more in mystical stories about spirits, witchcraft, shamans, even spirits that enter the human body over science fiction stories that discuss the phenomenon of the universe as a backdrop for a film. Thus, the Hollywood superhero narrative formula cannot be used in the Indonesian superhero universe.

“We are different from Americans. The formula created by DC and Marvel maybe suits their people. But for our own people, maybe not so much?” said Jagoan Kancil.

The film “Sri Asih” seemed to miss the potential of a mystical story although its main character had a spiritual talent. In the narration of the film, since ancient times, the Dewi Asih incarnation has the ability to summon the spirits of her ancestors to communicate with the supernatural.

Jagoan Kancil said that apart from "Gundala", another superhero film that can be called a success and immediately stuck in the minds of the Indonesian people is "Qodrat" (2022) directed by Charles Gozali. What makes it unique is that "Qodrat" does not fall into any superhero universe and was promoted as a religious horror film.

"In my opinion, the most successful (superhero films) are "Gundala" and "Qodrat" because they show how to make superhero films in Indonesia with the right formula. These two films have become a blueprint for future films because they have succeeded in attracting and being liked by the audience," said Jagoan Kancil.

"Qodrat"does not label itself as a superhero film. However, the heroic narration beyond human reason and the supervillain element of the djinn that enters the bodies of its victims is in accordance with the familiar superhero film storytelling convention.

The mystical element of “Qodrat” is very close to the Indonesian people, making the audience believe that there will be a superhero who saves an Islamic boarding school village from an evil demon. The strong religious element is also an important point that makes the main character, Qodrat (Vino G. Bastian), gain the trust and sympathy of the audience.

Is there still a place for Indonesian superhero films in the future?

After the decline in the number of viewers for the last two films, the future of Indonesian superhero films is a big question mark because viewers are needed to generate revenue to cover the high production cost.

Jagoan Kancil said the Indonesian people are actually already open to local superhero films, considering that some Indonesians grew up watching classic superheroes on TV such as "Si Buta dari Gua Hantu", "Wiro Sableng" and "Saras 008".

“So actually, when it comes to liking, they will definitely like it. It's just a matter of how IP holders of Indonesian superhero films come up with a strategy that will attract audiences," said Jagoan Kancil.

They can learn from the ups and downs of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and DC Comics. The Marvel Cinematic Universe was only able to create a boom with the Avengers as a group of superheroes. Meanwhile, DC has been inseparable from the success of the Batman and Joker universe with their strong personalities.

Jagoan Kancil explained that the closest strategy is those of the Marvel Cinematic Universe which relies on films about superhero teams like "The Avengers". "The Indonesian people will only know later that there is a team film. For now, a series is better to introduce the characters first because they are still hesitant to buy cinema tickets," said Jagoan Kancil.

The superhero series "Tira" which will air on a major Over The Top (OTT) service is expected to bring a different effect on the Indonesian people. A series that can be watched anywhere will allow the public to see the quality of local superhero films which will determine their trust in following the universe, even on the big screen.

"My hope is that people will open their hearts and not be sceptical about things they don't know, such as Indonesian superhero films. Hopefully the filmmakers can also accept criticism because there will definitely be a lot of criticism," Jagoan Kancil concluded.

Now, the universe of Indonesian superhero films is a sweet promise that fans demand to be realised. However, the key remains in the hands of the Indonesian audience's trust.