Chris CF’s observational documentary Aluk, which follows three generations of a family in Tana Toraja, Indonesia over a seven-year period as they grapple with the loss of their patriarch and the uncertain future of their community, was selected as a work-in-progress for the JAFF Future Project.
The Australian-Indonesian co-production, directed by Chris CF and produced by Sam Hewson and Wahy Al Mardaani through their production company Cut by Dog Productions, is one of 10 Asia-Pacific titles selected as a JAFF Future Project at this year’s JAFF Market in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.
“Arc” depicts four members of the Tana Toraja family. My grandfather, Ne Minda, and my grandfather, Ne Minda. Ma Adele, mother. Pon Kenny, uncle. and son Marcel. The film follows Marcel’s childhood over seven years as his grandfather uncovers the way his ancestors lived: the Arc to d’Oro, a way of life rooted in maintaining environmental equilibrium.
Ne Minda shows how these practices affect the functioning of close-knit communities. This community is one of the last villages in Tana Toraja where the Arc to d’Oro is still observed. There are many changes facing their communities. The majority of the region’s population has converted to Christianity, many young people have left for neighboring islands in search of prosperity, and climate change is already taking a toll on local agricultural production.
The story of Marcel’s mother and uncle depicts the two paths their generation followed: staying in or leaving the village, and the sacrifices each path required. An immersive exploration of labor, love, and loss, the film culminates with the death of Ne Minda as the family mourns the death of their patriarch.
For Chris CF, the project began with an investigation into how people die around the world. “My interest in this perhaps morbid subject was not born out of a desire to confront sensationalized images of corpses or to confront others,” says the director. “I became interested in how we deal with death after attending my grandfather’s funeral, where he opened his casket.”
The director’s grandfather was released from a German concentration camp and fled communist Poland to start a new life in Australia. “This was the first time I was faced with the physical reality of death,” he says. “In Australia, it is an area almost entirely confined to medical professionals, industrialized and sanitized. That period spent with his lifeless body had a deep and lasting impact on me. Toraja is a place where people actively extend this period spent with loved ones who have passed and celebrate their lives in the most celebratory way.”
Chris CF first visited Toraja in 2017 with producer Sam Hewson and cinematographer John Hewson and met Ne Minda at her funeral. “Unlike most of the people I met in Toraja who converted to Christianity, he was a believer in Arc to Doro,” the director says. Ne Minda invited them to her home to film the new rice barn ceremony, and they met her daughter Ma Adele and her children.
The team returned for two months in 2019 and met Makassar-born filmmakers Wahyu Al Mardani and Tasha Amalia, who became close collaborators. Due to COVID-19, borders were closed and work on the project was suspended until 2022. The staff returned for another two months in 2022, but Chris CF returned on his own in 2023, remaining with Ne Minda and continuing to work with Wahyu, but sadly that was the last time he saw Wahyu.
Director Ne Minda passed away at the end of 2023. The family invited the team to his funeral in early 2024 and encouraged them to continue filming. “We feel very privileged to have been invited into the lives of Ne Minda and her family and to have had the opportunity to form a strong bond with them over the past eight years,” says the director.
“‘Aluk’ is both an ode to Ne Minda, who passed away unexpectedly and peacefully at the end of 2023, and a dedicated exploration of his community’s land and ancestors,” says Chris CF. “Arc does not rely on the mystical or magical, but instead focuses on the importance of daily labor and interaction, the symbols of Toraja and their deep meanings, their harmonies of sound and joy, and the relationships that save us in the face of hardship and loss. It is a film about love.”
At the JAFF market, the team would like to meet potential collaborators. “We are very much looking forward to meeting the Indonesian producers we have long admired, as well as producers and distributors from around the world who may help us chart a new path for this film,” say the filmmakers.
The JAFF Future Project is designed to serve as a development platform and co-creation hub, advancing independent works towards completion and distribution. The initiative will run from November 29th to December. It was held at Yogya Expo Center in Yogyakarta as part of the broader 20th anniversary celebrations of the Yogya Netpac Asian Film Festival.
