Penumbral Zone

Tetapi, saat subjek kontrol telah hidup dengan kesadaran tentang media, atau setidaknya dapat memosisikan diri di jalur komunikasi sebagai komunikator, maka canggihnya kamera pun bisa menghasilkan tandingan bagi sistem kontrol utama dalam berwacana. Ia bisa menciptakan lebih banyak perspektif tentang persoalan-persoalan, sebab di saat yang sama zona-zona penumbra baru pun tercipta.

INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION 05

Anggraeni Widhiasih

In zones farthest from the center of the power system, control tends to be more challenging to exercise. There are small corners that are usually not easy to enter for big systems. There, other smaller systems will usually emerge and have a greater chance of blending in with people’s daily lives, thus allowing them to continue to exist.

The zones where one system meets another systems are vague zones. When a big system encounters small systems and aims to override them, the small systems may not disappear completely while they are in the penumbral zone; zones that are difficult to reach fully by major system authorities. In this zone, various perspectives can more easily emerge because control is at its weakest. The perspective of small systems tends to gain momentum more easily to communicate itself. When that perspective is not aligned with the perspective of the big power system, it can be interpreted as a distraction. The main perspective

to be communicated can be hindered, distorted, and even completely lost. Thus, the message did not arrive.

On the other hand, problems related to the non-delivery of messages in a communication process are also related to the smoothness and security of the communication line. The smooth transportation of goods and messages through this route often determines the effectiveness of system controls. In the military, the term ‘communication line’ is also used to refer to a route that serves as a command delivery route and a transportation route for military supplies and assistance in operation. It is on this route that messengers or despatch riders work to deliver logistics and essential messages. In times of war, the speed of breaking the cipher and conveying information and logistics plays a crucial role in determining victory. It’s no wonder that the wars in the modern era have pushed the world’s information and communication network technology revolution.

In this communication technology, visual communication is increasingly finding its momentum of glory. From it, visual production seems to be accelerated and reaches its zenith, especially when everyone can produce and enjoy visuals at the same time. This is made possible by the revolution in camera technology as an image production technology that is increasingly accessible for the wider public. The mechanism of camera work that takes place by capturing light to form images is inseparable from work that produces perspective. As an optical phenomenon and as a social phenomenon, perspective always has double potential: distortion or clarity. Even seemingly trivial issues can come with or/in a certain perspective as the camera evolves to its simplest form, allowing it to fit into the smallest nooks in life. The intensity of a problem can be further emphasized or even disguised when the camera frames it and montaged into a single work. The perspective built by the frame and depth of camera shots also often creates illusions. Jean Rouch through his work titled Chronicle of A Summer (1961), offers cinematic language that shows his participation and interruption to the construction of reality in films. He does this by presenting himself and the camera in the film itself. This action allows the film to express the position that the reality in the film is not just pure reality. Instead, this language reminds us of the position of power behind the camera that can control the flow of an issue.

The relationship between camera and power is inseparable from the control system matters. The camera’s sophistication is a necessity for the authority control system that is increasingly able to monitor the landscape of its power. However, when the control subject has lived with an awareness of the media or at least can position themselves in the line of communication as a communicator, then the camera’s sophistication can produce a counter-discourse for the main control system. It can create more perspectives on issues because, at the same time, there emerge new penumbral zones.

HUT (GUBUK)

Country of production Taiwan, Indonesia Language Indonesian Subtitles English 54 min, stereo, color, 2019

Dibuka dengan dering suara telepon, perjalanan durasi filem ini mengantarkan pada intensitas komunikasi para buruh migran dalam sebuah ruang. Komunikasi menjadi semakin sulit seiring dengan kedatangan orang-orang yang melebihi kapasitas ruang. Intaian kamera yang menyeruak hadir di keramaian seakan tidak berimplikasi banyak. Saat ruang semakin penuh dan ricuh, alur komunikasi pun mencapai titik rusuh yang mengaburkan pesan tentang buruh migran. The ringing sound of a telephone opened the scene. Film’s duration leads us to the intensity of communication among migrant workers in a small room. Communication becomes more difficult as an exceeding number of people arrive and fill the room. Camera observation that interrupts the crowd does not seem to impact much. When space becomes more crowded and chaotic, communication flow must reach a chaotic point that obscures migrant workers’ message.

So Ye-hen (Taiwan)

Anggraeni Widhiasih

So Yo-Hen (1982, Tainan, Taiwan) menempuh studi di Graduate Institute of Plastic Arts, TNNUA. Karya-karyanya kerap membahas tentang kelompok yang kurang terwakili dalam masyarakat, budaya, dan sejarah, serta kemungkinan pemberdayaan melalui imajinasi. Karyanya pernah dipresentasikan di Heard and the Unheard-Soundscape Taiwan di Taiwan Pavilion, 54th Venice Biennale 2011. So Yo-Hen (1982, Tainan, Taiwan) studied at the Graduate Institute of Plastic Arts, TNNUA. His work often addresses the underrepresented in society, culture, and history, and the possibilities of empowerment through whimsy. His works were presented at the Heard and the Unheard-Soundscape Taiwan at the Taiwan Pavilion at the 54th Venice Biennale 2011.