Homebound & Rasa dan Asa

Homebound (2022)

Tari longs to return home to Indonesia after more than 10 years working abroad in Taiwan. When the Covid-19 pandemic struck her plans unraveled, revealing a lack of rights for vulnerable migrant workers and systemic misinformation. Tari narrates her own journey and reveals personal stories related to her decision to work in Taiwan, her strained family relationships, the risks involved in working abroad and the traps she has fallen into. Tari shares intimate details of how her relationship with her son has suffered, revealing the guilt she has felt for leaving him behind. Homebound is an intimate animated documentary portrayal of a migrant worker’s experience abroad and is an urgent wake up call for those who have contributed to a system that takes advantage of 1000s of women each year.

Runtime: 17 mins
Country: Indonesia
Film Language: Indonesian, Mandarin
Subtitle Language: English

Director 
Ismail Fahmi Lubis

Ismail is considered one of Indonesia’s foremost documentary film directors. He enrolled in the Institut Kesenian Jakarta (IKJ) in 1993, majoring in Film and Directing. Upon his graduation, he directed several Indonesian television drama series before switching his focus to documentary in 1998. As a cinematographer, Ismail has worked with notable filmmakers including Dutch filmmaker Leonard Retel Helmrich (Shape of the Moon, 2004) and Australia’s Cathy Henkel (The Burning Season, 2008). He has directed three feature documentaries including “Masked Monkey”, “Tarling Is Darling” and “Help Is On The Way”. His films have screened at Rotterdam IFF, Busan IFF, Jean Rouch IFF, Doc Point Documentary Film Festival and Taiwan IFF amongst others. His films have been broadcast on PTS Taiwan, EBS South Korea, Al Jazeera and GoPlay Indonesia. With Ismail’s first two documentaries nominated for Indonesia’s Best Feature Documentary Award at Festival Film Indonesia, his film Help Is On The Way won the award in 2019.

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Rasa dan Asa (2022)

Indonesian domestic workers Ningrum and Binti could not return home to their families when the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Together with other domestic workers from PERTIMIG (Indonesian Migrant Domestic Workers Association in Malaysia), they find support and hope by learning to document their lives on their handphones. In their own voice, they share their experience working and living in Malaysia during the lockdown. Rasa dan Asa celebrates their solidarity and persistence to advocate for their rights.

Runtime: 27 mins
Country: Malaysia
Film Language: Indonesian, Malay
Subtitle Language: English

Director
Okui Lala

Okui Lala is an artist and cultural worker. Her practice spans from video and performance to community engagement. Her work explores themes of identities, diaspora and belonging through the performances of vocational labor. Okui also facilitates photos and video workshops with nonprofit organizations, unions and different communities in Malaysia and Japan.

Nasrikah

Nasrikah is an Indonesian migrant worker who has been living in Malaysia since 1997. She is an advisor for PERTIMIG and a field facilitator for IDWF (International Domestic Workers Federation). Her advocacy focused on campaigning for migrant domestic workers to be treated with the same respect, status and access to justice as workers. Nasrikah is also a poet and coordinator for arts and cultural events.

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