Twenty-two people are recorded as having
produced fictional films in the
Dutch East Indies between 1926, when L. Heuveldorp released ''
Loetoeng Kasaroeng'', the colony's first domestically produced film, and 1949, when the Dutch formally recognised Indonesia's sovereignty after a
four-year revolution, leaving the Dutch East Indies defunct. Altogether, they are credited for 93 of
all known films produced in the Indies, and four of them remained active after independence. All were men; the first female film producer in Indonesia,
Ratna Asmara
Ratna Asmara (1913 – August 1968) was an Indonesian actress and film director. Originally active in theatre, in 1940 she starred in the romance film ''Kartinah'', which her first husband Andjar directed.
After appearing in several further ...
, produced her first film in 1953.
The colony's first producer, Heuveldorp, was of European descent. He was followed in 1928 by the
ethnic Chinese
The Chinese people or simply Chinese, are people or ethnic groups identified with China, usually through ethnicity, nationality, citizenship, or other affiliation.
Chinese people are known as Zhongguoren () or as Huaren () by speakers of s ...
businessmen Tjan Tjoen Lian and Liem Goan Lian, who began work on ''
Lily van Java
''Lilly van Java'' (''Lily of Java''), also known as ''Melatie van Java'' (''Jasmine of Java''), is a 1928 film from the Dutch East Indies directed by Wong brothers, Nelson Wong. Initially meant to be produced by South Sea Film and shot by an A ...
'' but soon pulled out, to be replaced by David Wong. By 1930 Chinese producers had dominated the industry. The most active of these,
The Teng Chun
The Teng Chun (; 18 June 1902 – 25 February 1977), also known by his Indonesian name Tahjar Ederis, was a Chinese Indonesian film producer. Born to a rich businessman, The became interested in film while still a youth. After a period as a ...
, made his debut in 1931 with ''
Boenga Roos dari Tjikembang''; he would go on to produce another 27 films before independence. No
native Indonesian
Native Indonesians, also known as ''Pribumi'' (), are Indonesians whose ancestral roots lie mainly in the archipelago, distinguished from Indonesians of known (partial) foreign descent, like Chinese Indonesians (Tionghoa), Arab Indonesians, Indi ...
film producers are recorded from this period, although several productions were credited only to companies.
Producers in the Indies would often handle multiple roles, such as director and cinematographer. When these positions were filled separately, the producer retained creative control. The Indonesian film historian
Misbach Yusa Biran
Misbach Yusa Biran (11 September 1933 – 11 April 2012) was an Indonesian writer, director and columnist who pioneered the Indonesian film archives.
Personal life
Biran was born in Rangkasbitung, in the Lebak Regency, to a Minangkabau ...
writes that works produced during this time were emphatically commercial, not paying attention to nationalistic or aesthetic values. However, the film scholars Thomas Barker and Charlotte Setijadi-Dunn suggest that the Chinese-produced films from the Indies offered the possibility of a heterogeneous national identity.
The following list is sorted alphabetically by default, with further sorting capability in certain fields; owing to differing naming conventions between cultures, not all entries are sorted by last name. The list only counts fictional films directed by the subjects and does not include films from other genres or films in which the person held other roles. The names of persons credited with an abbreviated name are written in full, where available.
__NOTOC__
Film producers
Explanatory notes
Footnotes
Works cited
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
{{featured list
*
Dutch East Indies