Mouly Surya

Mouly Surya (born 1980) is an Indonesian film director and screenwriter. Beginning her career as assistant director and screenwriter in local film productions, Surya rose to prominence in 2008 for her directorial debut the psychological thriller Fiksi. which won her the Citra Award for Best Director.[1] She won a second Best Director award at the 37th Citra Award for her satay western Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts in 2017.[1]

Mouly Surya
Mouly Surya in 2013
Born
Nursita Mouly Surya

(1980-09-10) September 10, 1980
Jakarta, Indonesia
NationalityIndonesian
CitizenshipIndonesia
EducationMedia and Literature
Alma materBond University
Swinburne University
Occupation
  • Director
  • screenwriter
Years active2007–present
Spouse(s)Rama Adi (m. 2007)
AwardsSee full list

As of 2020, she remains the first and only woman director to have won the award, considered Indonesia's top film honors and regarded by Screen International as "Indonesia's equivalent to the Oscars".[2] She will next direct her Hollywood debut Trigger Warning starring Jessica Alba.[3]

Early life

Surya studied Media and Literature in Australia and earned a B. A. from Swinburne University and an M. A. from Bond University. While in Australia, she ran a blog and became online friends with then-unknown Raditya Dika who was studying in Adelaide and later became a collaborator in the film adaptation of his best-selling book Kambing Jantan.[4]

Career

2007–2012: Debut with Fiksi. and Citra Award for Best Director

Upon graduation, Surya came back to Indonesia and gained experience in the local film industry by working as assistant directors in Rako Prijanto's comedy-drama D'Bijis (2007) and romance Love Is Red (2007).[4] While working on the latter, she met future husband Rama Adi, who was part of the film's cinematography department.[5]

In 2007, she acquired funding to direct Fiksi. based on a screenplay she developed herself.[4] She and Adi decided to become collaborators and founded their own film production company Cinesurya.[5] Based on the advice of Riri Riza, they decided to seek another collaborator who could bring more experience in shaping the screenplay, which turned out to be producer Tia Hasibuan and Joko Anwar.[4] Anwar spent a month working on Surya's draft and was credited as a co-writer.[4]

In 2008, Fiksi. was released theatrically with Ladya Cheryl, Donny Alamsyah, and Kinaryosih in the starring roles.[6] The film received critical acclaim, but failed commercially with only 30 thousand admissions.[4] At the 28th Citra Awards, Surya made history by becoming the first woman to win Best Director since the award was first given in 1955.[7] Overall, the film won four out of its ten nominations, the other three being Best Picture, Best Screenplay for Surya and Anwar, and Best Original Score.[7]

In 2009, Surya co-wrote the screenplay of Kambing Jantan with friend Raditya Dika and Salman Aristo.[8]

2013–2018: History at Sundance and second Citra Award for Best Director

In 2013, Surya wrote and directed her sophomore feature What They Don't Talk About When They Talk About Love. In January, the film made history as the first Indonesian film to compete at the Sundance Film Festival of that year in the World Dramatic Competition, where it also had its world premiere.[9] Domestically, the film was released in May 2013. It stars Nicholas Saputra and Ayushita in the starring roles.[10] The film is a romantic drama involving characters with different types of disabilities.[11] The film performed poorly at the box office but received positive reviews from critics, with The Hollywood Reporter's Duane Byrge calling it a "touching and brilliantly envisioned story of a young, nearly blind teen's first love."[12]

Surya then released her third feature film Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts in 2017. It premiered at the Directors' Fortnight event of the 2017 Cannes Film Festival in May before receiving a domestic release later in November.[13] A revenge drama-thriller, the film was only the fourth Indonesian film ever to make the festival's official selection after Eros Djarot's Tjoet Nja' Dhien and Garin Nugroho's Leaf on a Pillow in 1998 as well as Nugroho's Serambi in 2006.[14] While Surya co-wrote the screenplay with husband and collaborator Rama Adi, Garin Nugroho is credited with the original story, which he shared with Surya while they were part of a Citra Award jury panel.[4] Marsha Timothy stars as a young widow who is raped and violated by local thugs and sets out to take revenge on her attackers.[15]

In a review for Variety following its Cannes screening, Maggie Lee gave the film a rave review, praising Surya's ability to "build nail-biting tension" with a climax that "rivals any of [Quentin] Tarantino's high concept violence".[16] Lee's description of the film as having "pioneered a new genre" called the "Satay Western" in reference to the film's Western style but told from a female perspective while incorporating Indonesia's traditional values.[16] The term "Satay Western" has since been used in multiple media coverage of the film.[17][18][19]

At the 38th Citra Awards the following year, Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts received 14 nominations, breaking Teguh Karya's Mother's record of the most nominations received by a film ever with 11 in 1986.[20] The record was later broken by Joko Anwar's Impetigore which received 17 nominations in 2020.[21] It went on to win 10 awards, including Best Picture, a second Best Director for Surya, Best Actress for Marsha Timothy, Best Supporting Actress for Dea Panendra, and Best Original Screenplay for Surya and Adi.[22] The film was selected as Indonesia's official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film category at the 91st Academy Awards, but failed to get a nomination.[23]

2019–present: Upcoming projects

In May 2020, Netflix announced that Surya will helm the action-thriller film Trigger Warning with a screenplay by Josh Olson (known for David Cronenberg's A History of Violence) and John Brancato (known for David Fincher's The Game) that is currently in pre-production.[24] Jessica Alba was announced to star as a traumatized vet who inherits her grandfather's bar and soon discovers the truth behind his death.[24]

Personal life

Surya is married to Rama Adi, who co-founded their production company Cine Surya and has been involved in her first three films.[5] They won a Citra Award together in 2018 for co-writing Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts.[5]

Filmography
Year Film Director Writer
2008 Fiksi. Yes Yes
2013 What They Don't Talk About When They Talk About Love Yes Yes
2017 Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts Yes Yes
2021 Trigger Warning Yes No

Awards and nominations
Year Award Category Work Result Notes
2008 Jakarta International Film Festival Best Director Fiksi. Won
2008 Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival Golden Hanoman Award Nominated
2008 28th Citra Awards Best Director Won
Best Screenplay Won shared with Joko Anwar
2013 Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize What They Don't Talk About When They Talk About Love Nominated World Dramatic Cinema Competition
2013 Hong Kong International Film Festival Golden Firebird Award Nominated
FIPRESCI Prize Nominated
2013 Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival Golden Hanoman Award Nominated
2013 Cinemanila International Film Festival Lino Brocka Award Nominated International Competition
2013 International Film Festival Rotterdam Lions Film Award Nominated
NETPAC Award Won
2013 2nd Maya Awards Best Director Won
Best Original Screenplay Nominated
2013 33rd Citra Awards Nominated
2014 Las Palmas Film Festival Best New Director Won
2017 Cannes Film Festival Queer Palm Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts Nominated
2017 Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival Special Mention Won Asian Features Competition
2017 American Film Institute Fest Audience Award Nominated World Cinema Competition
2017 Five Flavours Film Festival Best Film Nominated New Asian Cinema Competition
NETPAC Award Won
2017 Tokyo Filmex Grand Prize Won shared with The Seen and the Unseen
2017 Asia-Pacific Screen Awards Achievement in Directing Nominated
2017 QCinema International Film Festival Pylon Award for Best Picture Won Asian Next Wave Competition
2017 1st Tempo Film Festival Best Director Nominated
Best Screenplay Nominated shared with Rama Adi
2017 6th Maya Awards Best Director Nominated
Best Original Screenplay Nominated shared with Rama Adi
2018 International Film Festival Rotterdam NETPAC Award Nominated
2018 Luxembourg City Film Festival Grand Prix Nominated
2018 Göteborg Film Festival Dragon Award Nominated International Competition
2018 Asia-Pacific Film Festival Best Director Nominated
2018 Asian Academy Creative Awards Best Original Screenplay Nominated shared with Rama Adi
2018 International Istanbul Film Festival Golden Tulip Nominated International Competition
2018 38th Citra Awards Best Director Won
Best Original Screenplay Won shared with Rama Adi

References
  1. Senin, 10 Desember 2018 16:30 Penulis: Galuh Esti Nugraini. "Ulang Sejarah di FFI 2018, Mouly Surya Ngaku Deja Vu - Berat Bawa Piala Citra". KapanLagi.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  2. Silvia Wong (8 December 2004). "Indonesia's Oscars return after 12-year gap". Screen International. Retrieved 30 March 2012. (subscription required)
  3. "Cerita Soal Film Trigger Warning yang Dibintangi Jessica Alba, Mouly Surya: Target Syuting Awalnya Tahun Ini, Tapi.... - Semua Halaman - Grid.ID". www.grid.id (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  4. "Ketika Mouly Surya Bicara Tentang Filmnya dan Kemungkinan Gabung BCU - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  5. Djaya, Andi Baso. "Pasutri sehati dalam film". Lokadata.ID (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  6. Surya, Mouly (2008-06-19), Fiksi. (Thriller), Ladya Cheryl, Donny Alamsyah, Kinaryosih, Soultan Saladin, Cinesurya Productions, retrieved 2021-02-01
  7. antaranews.com (2008-12-13). "Pemenang Festival Film Indonesia 2008". Antara News. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  8. Kambing Jantan (2009) - IMDb, retrieved 2021-02-01
  9. "Rombongan "What They Don't Talk About When They Talk About Love" Disambut Hangat di Sundance Film Festival 2013". archive.tabloidbintang.com. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  10. Surya, Mouly (2013-01-19), Yang tidak dibicarakan ketika membicarakan cinta (Drama, Romance), Nicholas Saputra, Ayushita, Karina Salim, Anggun Priambodo, retrieved 2021-02-01
  11. Surya, Mouly (2013-01-19), Yang tidak dibicarakan ketika membicarakan cinta (Drama, Romance), Nicholas Saputra, Ayushita, Karina Salim, Anggun Priambodo, retrieved 2021-02-01
  12. Byrge, Duane. "What They Don't Talk About When They Talk About Love". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  13. Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts (2017) - IMDb, retrieved 2021-02-01
  14. "Indonesia's "Marlina" Debuts at Cannes". Prestige Online - Indonesia. 2017-05-29. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  15. Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts (2017), retrieved 2021-02-01
  16. Lee, Maggie; Lee, Maggie (2017-05-26). "Film Review: 'Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts'". Variety. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  17. "Satay Western 'Marlina the Murderer' to Represent Indonesia at the Oscars". Jakarta Globe. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  18. "JPNN". www.jpnn.com (in Indonesian). 2017-09-26. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  19. Saraswati, Dyah Paramita. "Mengulik Genre Satay Western di 'Marlina si Pembunuh dalam Empat Babak'". detikhot (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  20. "Film Marlina si Pembunuh Dalam Empat Babak Tercatat sebagai Peraih Nominasi Terbanyak di FFI 2018". Tribunnews.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  21. Post, The Jakarta. "'Perempuan Tanah Jahanam' dominates 2020 FFI Awards with 17 nods". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  22. antaranews.com (2018-12-09). "Daftar lengkap pemenang Piala Citra FFI 2018". Antara News. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  23. "Marlina Gagal Masuk Nominasi Piala Oscar 2019". kincir.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  24. Post, The Jakarta. "Mouly Surya to helm Netflix action thriller starring Jessica Alba". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.