Jakarta Globe, Tunggul Wirajuda, Jul 14, 2014
 |
| Filmmaker David Metcalf will host a fundraiser exhibition in August to fund his film ‘The Journey Home’, which aims to raise awareness about the importance and wisdom of indigenous culture in Indonesia and around the world. (Photo courtesy of David Metcalf) |
To foreign
observers the 800 inhabitants of the village of Setulang live in a rustic idyll
at the edge of a pristine forest. But these members of the Kenya Dayak that
live in the North Kalimantan district of Malinau yearn for a paradise steeped
in the traditions of their tribe.
“I left our
original homelands when I was a small boy. But I have happy memories of my time
growing up in the forests and playing in the rivers,” says Pilius, a village
elder, who last saw his ancestral lands in 1969.
The land
that Pilius remembers is an area of forests which they call Tala Olen , or “the
forbidden forest.”
The tribesmen,
particularly the elders, feel a spiritual connection to Tala Olen’s forests,
rivers and land, located in an area called Long Saan, which is an eight-day
journey by canoe up the Kayan River.
There are
strict cultural rules about cutting down the trees in the forest or damaging it
in any way, a reverence that has not changed despite their move to Setulang for
economic reasons. The draw of Tala Olen is also felt by their descendants who
are charmed by the elders’ stories of paradise.
“My
grandfather told me many stories of growing up [in Tala Olen ] and how they
lived back then. His description of it made it look like paradise,” says
Herman, a young villager. “I would love to visit and pay my respects to him.”
But the
Kenya Dayak’s ancient way of life and their culture of preserving the forest is
under threat. Here in Kalimantan, logging and dam projects are destroying huge
swathes of the forest.
Environmentalists
estimate that over 52 percent of Kalimantan’s forests has already been lost.
“We don’t
exactly know what will happen in the future. Will the next generation keep our
agreement [to conserve the land], or will they damage it, and open new land to
loggers to serve their self interest?” Kenya Dayak elder Kole Adjang asks.
“ We hope
that by example [sic], our great grandchildren will also take care of our land
and Tala Olen.”
Taking the
Dayak’s home
In the face
of these threats to Borneo’s cultural history, photographer David “Dayak Dave”
Metcalf is seeking to help reunite the Dayak with their ancestral homelands.
As with
many indigenous peoples throughout Indonesia, such as the Asmat and Kamoro tribes
of Papua or the Badui in Java, the Kenya are hampered by poverty. As such, they
can’t afford the cost of the journey to Tala Olen .
Metcalf
seeks to provide the means for the villagers to revisit their homelands, a
journey that he intends to chronicle in a film he will title “ The Journey Home
.”
“I came up
with the idea of granting the tribe their dream of visiting their ancestors’
burial grounds deep in the heart of the forest,” says the Bali-based New
Zealander, adding that the journey entails more than the just the nostalgia of
homecoming.
“We need to
raise funds to make the film. As things currently stand, the logistics are only
sufficient to take six elders to Long Saan,” says Metcalf, who is also the
author of “ Indonesia’s Hidden Heritage: Cultural Journeys of Discovery ,” a
chronicle of his travels through Indonesia.
Metcalf is
putting on a fundraiser at the opening of an exhibition on indigenous
photography in Jakarta’s Kunstkring Paleis cultural exhibition hall on Aug. 12.
The
evening, which will feature eminent Indonesian designer Harry Darsono and New
Zealand Ambassador David Taylor, will include performances of traditional Dayak
dances.
“We hope
that through raising funds to bring the elders back to their ancestral village
and making a multimedia documentary about the journey, we can raise awareness
of the threats to their unique way of life,” Metcalf says.
He adds
that similar events will also be held at the American Club. To date, Metcalf
has raised about $2,000 of the estimated $25,000 that he needs for project.
Collective effort
 |
| Filmmaker David Metcalf will host a fundraiser exhibition in August to fund his film ‘The Journey Home’, which aims to raise awareness about the importance and wisdom of indigenous culture in Indonesia and around the world. (Photo courtesy of David Metcalf) |
Collective effort
“The
Journey Home” will be shot by a film crew from seven nations; among them New
Zealand, Australia and South Africa. They include American documentary
filmmaker Jason Houston, who was known for his work with the Dayak in the
Malaysian side of Borneo, Robby, a member of the Indonesian world music group
Navicula, and Bali-based artist Wolfgang Widmoser, whose work inspired much of
the look for the Hollywood blockbuster “Avatar.”
Native
American Kevin Locke, an elder from the Lakota Sioux tribe, will also be taking
part. While the cultural connection between the Dayak and native Americans is
very strong, Locke’s participation marks the first time that a connection
between these two cultures has been undertaken.
“One of the
primary purposes of [“The Journey Home”] is to raise awareness in Indonesia and
other countries about the importance and wisdom of indigenous cultures around
the world. This journey is about connecting cultures through art, dance, song
and ancient wisdom,” Metcalf says.
“By
creating a wider expression and voice for indigenous cultures globally, we can
find common ground through music and dance and ancestral prayers.”
Most of
all, the film will showcase Kalimantan and its place in the world.
“Kalimantan
is Asia’s Amazon, representing 1 percent of the earth’s surface but 5 percent
of its flora and fauna, including untold numbers of trees and plants still
undiscovered by mankind. As one of the most ecologically diverse landscapes on
the planet, we want to raise awareness about the Dayak people that live in
Kalimantan’s forests and rivers,” Metcalf says.
“This is
all the more imperative, as Kalimantan is also facing the fallout from coal and
gold mining, the latter which is poisoning its streams, aside from better known
problems like illegal logging and deforestation.”
Metcalf and
his team of filmmakers plan to release “The Journey Home” in Indonesia and
abroad by the end of this year. He also plans to pitch the film to Discovery
Channel and National Geographic.
To help
Metcalf and the Kenya Dayaks in their quest, contact him at www.fundrazr.com.
Related Articles:
"Soul Communication" - Feb 22-23, 2014 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Text version Part 1, Text version Part 2)
"... Some of you will walk into the forest and you'll feel it. It surrounds you with its love and beauty. Gaia speaks to you. The trees are pushing out oxygen with a benevolent system of photosynthesis. The plants give you oxygen and you give them carbon dioxide. What a system! Look around. Science will say that system happened by accident - a random occurrence. Do you believe that? What a beautiful system! The trees themselves know who you are. You walk into the forest and you feel it hug you, but perhaps another is next to you who came with a chainsaw. They don't care and they don't feel it. To them, the forest is only a resource. What's the difference between the two of you? There's no judgment here, I'm just asking you. What do you think the difference is? The answer: You're letting multidimensional awareness in and they are not. You see, you are becoming more aware of multidimensional soul communication. In this case, it's your enormous soul energy communicating with the other parts of the planet who are also multidimensional.
When you make the decision that it's OK to feel this energy, it will be there. Most of humanity so far has not made that decision. They block it. The law is this - this communication will come to you only with your allowance. The moment you open the door of allowance, you may begin to feel it. Those are our rules.
It's not just allowance for communication from the creative source, but also from an amazing number of what we would call other benevolent energies. These others are represented by groups with names that you have given them. They also cannot get through to you unless you allow it. That's their rule as well. Your names for them are Pleiadians, Arcturians, Sirians, Hathors or those from Orion. There are many more, but unless you open to the possibility of them, they can't communicate either.
Most of humanity will stand next to you as you communicate and think you're not well. That's the way it looks to them. Listen, dear ones, the benevolent groups who represent your DNA essence [your seed biology] and who know who you are are many. The amount of help you have on this planet is staggering, yet the majority of humanity will not allow awareness of it or let the possibility into their reality.. ..."
Most of humanity will stand next to you as you communicate and think you're not well. That's the way it looks to them. Listen, dear ones, the benevolent groups who represent your DNA essence [your seed biology] and who know who you are are many. The amount of help you have on this planet is staggering, yet the majority of humanity will not allow awareness of it or let the possibility into their reality.. ..."
No comments:
Post a Comment