About Us

Wayang Cinema is an association of young puppeteers from the Special Region of Yogyakarta, established in 2014 by Ki Aneng Kiswantoro, M. Sn. The founding of Wayang Cinema was inspired by the modern performing art environment that grows increasingly sophisticated and diverse in media, which is a challenge to wayang to survive as a traditional performing arts. In this regard, this phenomenon is also directly linked to the wayang's appeal to younger generations. Wayang Cinema is an innovative approach to address this challenge, where wayang performance meets modern cinematic concepts and is processed and performed with modern tools.

Wayang Cinema is a wayang performance in which the presentation mimics a movie presentation in a cinema with the following characteristics: the audience is in a dark place or room, and the only thing visible is a white screen that stretches wide as a visual place for the wayang's shadows and a set of visual effects. The performance is equipped with an adequate sound system to play audio that has been digitally processed, both the music and dialogue. The design of shadow shows and audio settings suited to the scene's atmosphere is intended to arouse the imagination and stimulate the concentration of viewers in enjoying the show.

Wayang Cinema was first performed by Ki Aneng Kiswantoro, M. Sn. in 2014 at Institut Seni Indonesia Yogyakarta. This work was done as a lecturer's assignment in the Department of Puppetry, FSP, ISI Yogyakarta. After the first Wayang Cinema performance in 2014, its performance is in great demand. The great demand shows the public's appreciation for the puppet show with the Wayang cinema's concept. However, Wayang Cinema is intended to be one of the alternatives to puppet shows that educate youths and children. To expand its educational purpose towards younger generations, Wayang Cinema does not only present puppet stories but also other educative stories such as the history of Diponegoro, Serangan Oemoem 1 Maret (the General Attack of 1st March), etc.