''Arisan!'' (English: ''The Gathering'') is a

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

directed by

Nia Dinata Nurkurniati Aisyah Dewi (born 4 March 1970 in Jakarta, Indonesia), better known as Nia Dinata, is an Indonesian film director. Her movies are known for tackling subjects controversial or "risky" in Indonesia such as homosexuality, migrant workers ...

, who also co-wrote the screenplay with then-unknown

Joko Anwar Joko Anwar (born 3 January 1976) is an Indonesian film director, Film producer, producer, screenwriter, and actor. Prior to becoming a filmmaker, he worked as a journalist and Film criticism, film critic. Anwar first rose to prominence for co-w ...

. At the 2004 Indonesian Film Festival, it won the

Citra Awards The Indonesian Film Festival (Indonesian: Festival Film Indonesia, 'FFI') is an annual awards ceremony organised by the Indonesian Film Board and the Ministry of Culture to celebrate cinematic achievements in the Indonesian film industry. During ...

in five major categories:

Best Picture The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Bes ...

, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Editing. ''Arisan!'' was the first Indonesian film to feature two men kissing, portrayed by the characters Sakti (Tora Sudiro) and Nino ( Surya Saputra). In May 2006, a television series based on the film premiered on

ANTV ANTV (abbreviation from Andalas Televisi, stylized antv, alternatively spelled ANteve which was also known as a brand before 2003) is an Indonesian free-to-air television broadcaster based in South Jakarta. It is owned by Visi Media Asia (Viva ...

. A sequel, ''

Arisan! 2 ''Arisan!'' ''2'' (English: ''The Gathering'' ''2'') is a 2011 Indonesian comedy drama film directed by Nia Dinata. The story was sequel of '' Arisan!'' and television series with the same name. Synopsis Eight years after the events of ''Arisa ...

'', was released in December 2011, continuing the story after the events in the television series.

Synopsis

A successful architect, Sakti (

Tora Sudiro Taura Danang Sudiro or better known as Tora Sudiro (born in Jakarta, Indonesia on 10 May 1973) is an Indonesian actor, and comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by ma ...

), is uncertain about his

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

, but when he meets magnetic and gay Nino ( Surya Saputra), he realizes he prefers men. When Meimei ( Cut Mini), one of Sakti's closest female friends, reveals she's attracted to Nino, it causes complications in their social circle. Weighing whether or not to come out of the closet, Nino is mindful of fragile Meimei, who's dealing with the breakup of her marriage.

Cast

* Cut Mini as Meimei * Surya Saputra as Nino *

as Sakti *

Aida Nurmala ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is a tragic opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 Dece ...

as Andien *

Rachel Maryam Rachel Maryam Sayidina (; born 20 April 1980) is an Indonesian actress, model and politician of Sundanese people, Sundanese descent who became a member of the House of Representatives (Indonesia), House of Representatives (DPR) of Indonesia, Rep ...

as Lita * Lili Harahap as Grace * Aurora Yahya as Fanny * Wilza Lubis as Nuri *

Nico Siahaan Christa Päffgen (; 16 October 1938 – 18 July 1988), known by her stage name Nico, was a German singer, songwriter, actress, and model. Nico had roles in several films, including Federico Fellini's ''La Dolce Vita'' (1960) and Andy Warhol's ' ...

as Ical *

Tika Panggabean Tika or TIKA may refer to: * Tika (crater), a crater on Saturn's satellite Rhea * Tika, Estonia, village in Võru County * Apache Tika, content analysis software * Tika Waylan, a character in the ''DragonLance'' series of fantasy novels * Tika ...

as Massage Therapist *

Jajang C. Noer Lidia Djunita Pamontjak or better known as Jajang C. Noer (born 28 June 1952 in Paris, France) is a France-born Indonesian actress and film producer of Minangkabau people, Minangkabau descent. She is also the only daughter of Indonesian national i ...

as Psychiatrist * Ria Irawan as Yayuk Asmara *

Indra Birowo Indra Birowo (born 9 January 1973) is an Indonesian actor and comedian, who made his television debut in the comedy show ''Extravaganza''. Indra is the third child of Wargandi Suryo and Farida Yusuf. He was educated at Canisius College in Jakar ...

as Rama *

as Restaurant Manager

Production

During an interview with ''

The Jakarta Post ''The Jakarta Post'' is a daily English-language newspaper in Indonesia. The paper is owned by PT Bina Media Tenggara and based in the nation's capital, Jakarta. ''The Jakarta Post'' started as a collaboration between four Indonesian media ...

'' film critic

asked him to co-write a screenplay about a group of friends in urban Jakarta after Anwar impressed her with his filmmaking aspirations. The two co-wrote the screenplay for what would become ''Arisan!'' and received a Citra Award nomination for Best Screenplay.

Dian Sastrowardoyo Dian Paramita Sastrowardoyo (born 16 March 1982), better known as Dian Sastro, is an Indonesian actress and model. She is known for her lead role as Cinta in the Indonesian 2001 film '' Ada Apa Dengan Cinta?'' Early life and education Sastro ...

and

Nicholas Saputra Nicholas Schubring Saputra (born 24 February 1984) is an Indonesian actor and film producer. He first rose to prominence as Rangga in the 2002 hit film '' Ada Apa dengan Cinta?'', a role he reprised in '' Ada Apa Dengan Cinta? 2'' in 2016. He ...

made an uncredited cameo as a man and a woman in an art gallery scene.

Reception

It is often credited with reviving the Indonesian film industry after a decade of setback along with ''

Ada Apa dengan Cinta? ''What's Up with Love?'' () is a 2002 Indonesian coming-of-age romantic drama film directed by Rudy Soedjarwo, starring Dian Sastrowardoyo and Nicholas Saputra. It was the most-watched Indonesian movie of all time at the time of its release, pe ...

'' and ''

Petualangan Sherina ''Petualangan Sherina'' () is a 2000 Indonesian family musical film directed by Riri Riza. The film stars Sherina Munaf, Derby Romero, Didi Petet, Mathias Muchus, Ratna Riantiarno, and Butet Kertaradjasa. The screenplay was written by Jujur Prana ...

.'' At the 2004 Citra Award, the film received 5 awards out of 11 nominations. ''Arisan!'' received much attention for being the first Indonesian film with a

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

theme as well as the first Indonesian film to use high-definition color enhancement. It uses a mixture of

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

, standard

Indonesian Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to: * Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia ** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago ** Indonesian ...

, and Jakartan urban

slang A slang is a vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in everyday conversation but avoided in formal writing and speech. It also often refers to the language exclusively used by the members of pa ...

. Upon release, it garnered controversy for its depiction of

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexu ...

in its home Muslim-majority country of

Trivia

'Arisan' is a common term for a regular social gathering between friends and relatives who chip in money to be won in turns through a lucky draw. From villagers in far-flung areas to urban professionals in big cities, arisan was initially born as a type of support network among

Chinese-Indonesian Chinese Indonesians (), or simply ''Orang Tionghoa'' or ''Tionghoa'', are Indonesians whose ancestors arrived from China at some stage in the last eight centuries. Chinese Indonesians are the fourth largest community of Overseas Chinese in th ...

merchants before becoming popular among general Indonesians, particularly housewives. In bigger cities, 'arisan' has also grown into a platform to exhibit wealth with strict criteria for participation.'Arisan!' tackles taboos
/ref>

Awards and nominations

Sequel

A sequel, written and directed by Dinata and featured the same principal cast, titled ''Arisan!'' 2, was released in December 2011.

References

External links

Official website
* {{Authority control Citra Award winners 2003 films 2003 comedy-drama films Best Film Citra Award winners 2000s Indonesian-language films Indonesian LGBTQ-related films Films shot in Indonesia Indonesian comedy-drama films Gay-related films 2003 LGBTQ-related films LGBTQ-related comedy-drama films