BackFOOTAGE: Semi-Journal of Video and Film
Submitted by Forum Lenteng
As a visual medium, video emerges at the phase where film has long established its history of existence and visual potency. The power of film led to an overlapping condition that might reduce the potency of video as an opener for the sphere of individual participation to express their subjectivity toward the environment and self-existence.
The emergence of video as a visual medium is an outcome of technological development and digitalized system. It becomes more familiar as its ability to be accessed and operated individually. While film is different thing, as a visual medium it uses analogue system and takes in more element of production including human capital and abundant funds. It is common that the practice of film with all aspect of production process turn out to be a condition of more monologues like in content (theme) and also in the aesthetic construction of its visual medium.
The emergence of video in Indonesia can be understood as market logic of visual culture development as its history in conjunction with the appearance of private television in the 1990’s. The practice of this private television brings a large number of identities that can be access by public in their daily perception. The phase indicates the shift of monologues era of a country’s visual culture, toward multiple practice of television visual culture that construct by market law.
The variety of cinema electronic appearance and infotainment (information + entertainment) in television create a simulacrum to guide society awareness in representing their reality. In Foucaltian’s conception, this homogenize procedure create an intensity between the ruler and the public so that the public unable to represent their own reality. They are giving them all (including their own reality) to the ruler and the market.
The development of technology in essence is a result of civilization’s development that should be address positively by the society. The emergence of video that opens the possibility of individual participation and appreciation basically is the initiate of new democratization chance in visual culture. This state indicates video as a means of cultural strategic to construct society in the middle of a powerful mainstream culture. Video should be return to the context of subject-individual in its efforts to represent the self toward reality amid the entrenched film mentality that left no area of participation to expose social consciousness. The connection between video, television and film as a system of visual culture require a specific discourse reference about ‘what’ is video that finally can be praxis in the subject-individual consciousness as ‘who’ is video. On the basic of this background, we are setting up to publish Footage.
Footage is a semi-journal of video and film that publish by Forum Lenteng, an egalitarian non-profit organization that found in July 2003. The Forum works to develop social and cultural studies as a vehicle to examine problems of culture in society, in order to support and broaden chances for empower social and cultural studies in Indonesia. Forum Lenteng work in collecting data of social and cultural aspects that include historical and current in a frame of study that along with the development of an era and offer several solving re-approach for various social and cultural problems in Indonesia and the world.
The activities of Forum Lenteng comprise research about social and cultural problems with a particular viewpoint on visual culture history and phenomenon; making video documentary, both individually and/or collaborate, on the subject of specific selected problems in order to portray and criticize the changes of social and cultural phenomenon in a massroom; presenting a workshop for film/video, photography and book writing; assemble cooperation network between film/video communities in Indonesia and international.
OBJECTIVE
- Develop the discourse of audio-visual media (video and film) in a way of giving room for objective criticism to the public concerning the development of those media.
- This journal also becomes one of many methods to elaborate the development of audio-visual media in text, theoretical and factual.
- Footage also become a recommendation for actors and enthusiasts of audio visual media as a reference material in seeing the possibilities of subjects that provided in this medium; historically and contemporary.
ABOUT FOOTAGE
Footage emerges as an answer to the undeveloped discourse and criticism of audio visual media (video and film) in Indonesia. This six monthly journal is created by Forum Lenteng as one of a learning process about social and cultural problems, especially problem of visual language with a method of collecting and analyzing data. The problems comprise historical and current aspects, both in Indonesia and the world. Footage will be running by team consist of researchers, actors/ artists and communication/journalism students.
Footage will view several aspects in film and video media, e.g.; The History of Film and Video. In this context, Footage will observe the development of film and video in Indonesia, Asia and the world; The Aesthetic of Film and Video. In this context, Footage will try to comprehend the aesthetical development of film and video phenomenon in Indonesia, Asia and the world; The Ideology of Film and Video. In this context, Footage will examine the contestation of film and video ideology and its development; The Debate of Film and Video. In this context, Footage will try to read the debate between film and video in historical and current perspective; The Spreads of Film and Video Medium. In this context, Footage will look on the spreads of film and video medium in society with its social and cultural impact.
IMPLEMENTATION
1. Footage Journal in print (Six Monthly Journal), is a collection of writings about history of film and video, the aesthetics of film and video, the ideology of film and video, the debate of film and video, and the spreads of film and video medium in historical and current perspective in Indonesia, Asia and the world. The writings that collected in this journal will include the writings of Footage editors that are based on the research. The research itself is taken from the limited discussion on the main issue that is elevated by Footage editors in every edition. Footage will also collect the writings of critics and film and video analyst regarding to its phenomenon in the society. The printed journal will be distribute to all level of society in Indonesia and internationally, as an effort of building the discourse development on the progress of film and video, and also as
an education media for all level of society.
2. Footage Journal Online (www.jurnalfootage.net), is an online media which collect all writings in the printed Footage journal that consist of history of film and video, ideology of film and video, the debate of film and video, and the spreads of film and video medium in Indonesia, Asia and the world together with its social and cultural effect. Footage online will circulate the information about the development of film and video in Indonesia and the world in real time online internet base. It also socializes the tradition of documenting and archiving the cultural matters in Indonesia and the world. The online media will also be use as a tool to widen network between community in Indonesia and the world.
Footage Journal will divide in several rubrics, that is;
- Discourse
Discourse is a main theme in every edition of Footage that come from a limited discussion and research of a team of editors on the film and video phenomenon in Indonesia and the world.
- History
History is a snip of film and video development in Indonesia and international in accord with the main theme in every edition.
- Interview
Interview is a critical conversation with actors/analyst/critics of film and video.
- Essay
Essay is an open writings that involve opinion on film and video matters, both historical and current perspectives.
- Film and Video Critics
Film and Video Critics is a writings about film and video from well-known writers.
- Space for Creativity and Phenomenon
It contain with activities of film and video in Indonesia and international in six months time.
- Interactive (Footage online)
Is an open mail list to express critics and suggestions about the film and video phenomenon in society.
TIME FRAME
- Footage journal in print will publish in every six months. The first edition will be published on may 2008. the second edition will be on December 2008.
- Footage Online (www.footagejournal.net) will be launched for the first time on May 2008 and will be updated every month.
PROJECT OUTPUT
- Footage journal in print will contain 200 pages in Bahasa Indonesia and English, 2000 copies and will distributed to cultural communities in Indonesia and international.
- Footage will also conducting a specific themes monthly discussion on film and video matters that will inviting certain sources (artists, critics, analysts and students).
- www.jurnalfootage.net will distribute information on film and video development
from all perspectives through the internet network. It also socializes the tradition of documenting and archiving the cultural matters in Indonesia and the world. The online media will also be use as a tool to widen network between community in Indonesia and the world.
TARGET OF AUDIENCE
Public, artists, students, critics, social and cultural studies institutions, professionals in the field of information technology and professionals in mass media
DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION
- Footage will be distributed freely in public especially at universities, research institutes for social and cultural studies, art communities in Indonesia and international (ruangrupa–Jakarta, Boemboe Forum-Jakarta, KINE FORUM–Jakarta, Jakarta International Film Festival, KONFIDEN, Belanak-Padang, Gardu Unik, Cirebon–West Java, Komunitas Videot, Semarang–Central Java, Insominium, Malang–East Java, Komunitas Saidjah, Serang–Banten, SERUM, Jakarta, Komunitas Labschool, Pekanbaru, Komunitas Bidar, Pontianak–West Kalimantan, Komunitas KiriDepan, Makassar–South Sulawesi, Komunitas Lateariduni, Bone–South Sulawesi, EL DESPACHO–Mexico, PARKING Project–Malaysia).
- Website, and links to other websites in Indonesia and International.
- Footage will have collaboration with local cultural media that publish by art and culture communities in Indonesia.
- Footage will scatter posters and flyers to the public as an effort for spreading information about this journal.
IMPACT
The emergence of Footage is expected to be the medium of knowledge sharing and expected also to have several impacts. The impacts expected are:
- The public will more concern about the power of audio-visual medium, particularly film and video.
- The growth of discourses and criticism about film and video in public.
- The public will comprehend various theory, history and aesthetic in film and video in Indonesia, Asia and the world.
- The public can explore their criticism power and express their creative idea in the form of critical writing in this journal.
- Offer consciousness to the public that film and video media is a medium of expression that can record life, history and the search for intensity, especially the intensity of the mind.