Usmar Ismail

Usmar Ismail born March 20 1921 January 2 1971 was an Indonesian film director producer and screenwriter He is dubbed the godfather of Indonesian films The date of Indonesias National Film Day March 30 is dated from the first day of shooting Darah dan Doa 1950 Ismails third film His talents further developed while working at Keimin Bunka Sidosho the Japanese Cultural Center Headquarters There he collaborated with Armijn Pane and other cultural figures to stage theatrical performances In 1943 he founded and became the chairman of the theater group Sandiwara Penggemar Maya along with Abu Hanifah Rosihan Anwar Cornel Simanjuntak Sudjojono HB Jassin and others After the proclamation of independence Usmar served in the military and became actively involved in journalism in Jakarta When the Dutch returned with Allied forces he joined the Indonesian National Army TNI in Yogyakarta with the rank of major Along with his colleagues Sjamsuddin Sutan Makmur and Rinto Alwi they established a newspaper named Rakyat In the field of editorial work and journalism Usmar was one of the founders and editors of Harian Patriot the editor of the monthly magazine Arena in Yogyakarta 1948 and Gelanggang in Jakarta 19661967 He also served as the chairman of the Indonesian Journalists Association 19461947 During his time as a journalist Usmar was imprisoned by the Dutch for allegedly engaging in subversive activities At the time he was working as a political reporter at Kantor Berita Antara and was covering the DutchIndonesian negotiations in Jakarta This incident occurred in 1948 In his later career Usmar developed a more serious interest in filmmaking He became actively involved in organizations related to theater and film He served as chairman of the Yogyakarta Cultural Deliberation Body 19461948 chairman of the Yogyakarta Artists Theater Association 19461948 chairman of the Indonesian National Theater Academy in Jakarta 19551965 and chairman of the National Film Deliberation Body BMPN BMPN played a key role in urging the government to establish the National Film Development Policy in 1967 He was known as a cofounder of the Indonesian National Film Company with Djamaluddin Malik and other film entrepreneurs eventually becoming its chairman from 1954 to 1965