{"id":316483,"date":"2025-11-30T13:35:18","date_gmt":"2025-11-30T13:35:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/316483\/"},"modified":"2025-11-30T13:35:18","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T13:35:18","slug":"kanya-iwanas-ibu-explores-generational-trauma-at-jaff-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/316483\/","title":{"rendered":"Kanya Iwana’s ‘Ibu’ Explores Generational Trauma at JAFF Market"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tKanya Iwana<\/a>, an Indonesian multidisciplinary artist making her feature directorial debut, has \u201cIbu<\/a>\u201d selected for the JAFF Future Project, about three generations of women wrestling with inherited identity in 2011 Yogyakarta.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Indonesia-U.S. co-production, directed by Iwana and produced by Zack Rice through production company Feed You Films, is among 10 titles selected for the JAFF Future Project at this year\u2019s JAFF Market<\/a> in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIbu\u201d follows Maya, a formidable Javanese woman who once dreamed of becoming a writer but subsumed her ambitions under obligation and tradition. Now a widow, she parents through manipulation disguised as protection, resenting her daughters for chasing freedoms she was taught she could never claim.<\/p>\n

\n\tHer eldest daughter Tash fled to Los Angeles years ago, juggling single motherhood with an uncertain creative career. When Maya\u2019s husband Arief dies, Tash returns home to face not only her domineering mother but her commanding grandmother Dewi and half-sister Inez, a 16-year-old navigating the same emotional minefield Tash fled. Everything ruptures during Arief\u2019s Seventh-Day Prayer Ceremony when Maya publicly unravels, confessing fears she has never voiced.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI\u2019ve always been so interested in exploring the atlas of family dynamics, whether it is a traditional Indonesian family (often inspired by my own upbringing) or a tenuously liberal American family,\u201d Iwana says. \u201cAs I become a parent myself and have to do a lot of inward thinking, I\u2019ve become more inspired to explore narratives that surround the complications of parenting \u2014 to break generational curses while maintaining valuable customs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe director is inspired not just as a mother, but also as a daughter. \u201cAt 16, I moved away from home and has been away ever since,\u201d she says. \u201cThis story mirrors so much of my feelings towards that part of my life and my experiences of homecoming: from grief to pride. Writing such strong and complex female characters as the core of \u2018Ibu\u2019 has become somewhat of a beautiful, nostalgic, and healing process.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201c\u2018Ibu\u2019 illustrates the nuances of how loss, traditions, and stigma can lead to generational trauma,\u201d Iwana says. \u201cIt explores the consequences violent secrets can have as they are kept from each other in a family unit. \u2018Ibu\u2019 zeroes in on our protagonist, Tash, as she works towards escaping that trauma \u2014 although it catches up to her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBreaking the cycle isn\u2019t always smooth and perfect. \u201cHer desperation to break that cycle actually puts her in the position she wants to avoid, which is a flawed but relatable human experience,\u201d she says. \u201cBreaking the cycle isn\u2019t always smooth and perfect, but the journey to giving yourself grace is a beautiful one. At the end of the day, \u2018Ibu\u2019 showcases an array of different textures that spotlight the same thing: the desire to be loved.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tProducer Rice adds, \u201cI launched Feed You Films with my producing partner, Christine Woods, to champion debut features from experienced directors who have the craft and vision \u2014 but haven\u2019t yet been given the support or resources to make their first feature. Kanya Iwana is exactly the filmmaker we built this company for.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tRice was first introduced to Iwana through her work as a photographer and commercial director. \u201cShe demonstrated a singular aesthetic and a cinematic eye that touches your soul,\u201d he says. \u201cBut it wasn\u2019t until I read her screenplay for \u2018Ibu\u2019 that I truly understood the scope of her talent. The honesty and emotional precision in her writing floored me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tTo validate the vision, Feed You Films produced a proof-of-concept short titled \u201cHome.\u201d \u201cKanya once again exceeded every expectation,\u201d Rice says. \u201cShe arrived prepared, intentional, and completely in command of her set \u2014 capturing every shot she needed without wasting time or resources on unneeded coverage. She led a mostly female crew with sensitivity, kindness, and total clarity, and everyone on set rallied behind her vision.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAt JAFF Market, the team\u2019s top priority is securing remaining production equity to greenlight the film. \u201cThe JAFF Future Project program is uniquely positioned to connect filmmakers with investors who understand Southeast Asian stories and want to champion bold new voices,\u201d the filmmakers say.<\/p>\n

\n\tThey\u2019re also seeking distribution and sales partners who understand both the Indonesian market and international art-house space. \u201cAs the only U.S.-based filmmakers selected for the Future Project program this year, joining the Indonesian film community is essential to us,\u201d they say. \u201cThis film can only succeed as a true cross-cultural collaboration.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tJAFF Future Project functions as both a development platform and co-production hub, designed to advance independent works toward completion and distribution. The initiative runs Nov. 29-Dec. 1 at the Jogja Expo Center in Yogyakarta as part of the broader 20th-anniversary celebration of the Jogja-Netpac Asian Film Festival<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Kanya Iwana, an Indonesian multidisciplinary artist making her feature directorial debut, has \u201cIbu\u201d selected for the JAFF Future…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":316484,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[49,48,75,140939,140615,140616,140940,337],"class_list":{"0":"post-316483","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-movies","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-ibu","12":"tag-jaff-market","13":"tag-jogja-netpac-asian-film-festival","14":"tag-kanya-iwana","15":"tag-movies"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316483","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=316483"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316483\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/316484"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=316483"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=316483"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=316483"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}