Elemental Productions

Elemental Productions is an independent documentary film production company whose mission statement is to produce films exploring issues on culture, mental health and personal experience in Indonesia and around the world. The company was founded in 2008 by cultural anthropologist and filmmaker, Robert Lemelson, and is based in Los Angeles, California.

Filmography

Film Title	Type	Release Date	Short Synopsis	TRT
40 Years of Silence: An Indonesian Tragedy	Documentary Feature	2009	40 Years of Silence: An Indonesian Tragedy is the first documentary to explore the personal effects of the mass killings 500,000 to over a million people in Indonesia in 1965-66. The film follows the testimonies of four individuals and their families as they break their silence for the first time.	96 min
Shadows and Illuminations	Documentary Short	2010	Shadows and Illuminations is part of the Afflictions: Culture & Mental Illness in Indonesia - Volume 1: Psychotic Disorder. The film follows Nyoman Kereta and explores how non-normative mental events and behavior, including auditory and visual hallucinations, can be understood or interpreted in multiple ways outside the confines of western psychiatric diagnosis.	35 min
Memory of My Face	Documentary Short	2011	Memory of My Face is part of the Afflictions: Culture & Mental Illness in Indonesia - Volume 1: Psychotic Disorder. The film follows Bambang Rudjito and illustrates how the residues of colonialism and the pervasive influence of globalization affects the subjective experience of mental illness.	22 min
Ritual Burdens	Documentary Short	2011	Ritual Burdens is part of the Afflictions: Culture & Mental Illness in Indonesia - Volume 1: Psychotic Disorder. The film follows Ni Ketut Kasih and questions how communal spiritual obligations may be folded into personal schemas of stress to trigger episodes of mental illness	25 min
The Bird Dancer	Documentary Short	2010	The Bird Dancer is part of the Afflictions: Culture & Mental Illness in Indonesia - Volume 2: Neuropsychiatric Disorders. The film follows Gusti Ayu Suartini and focuses on the social stigma of neuropsychiatric disorder and the human suffering it entails.	40 min
Family Victim	Documentary Short	2010	Family Victim is part of the Afflictions: Culture & Mental Illness in Indonesia - Volume 2: Neuropsychiatric Disorders. The film follows Estu Wardhani and examines the bi-directional influences between an individual considered to have a disruptive or troublesome personality and his social world.	38 min
Kites & Monsters	Documentary Short	2011	Kites & Monsters is part of the Afflictions: Culture & Mental Illness in Indonesia - Volume 2: Neuropsychiatric Disorders. The film follows Wayan Yoga from boyhood to manhood and discovers the influential and protective aspects of culture that may guide developmental neuropsychiatric processes.	22 min
Jathilan: Trance and Possession in Java	Documentary Short	2012	Jathilan: Trance and Possession in Java is a film about Jathilan, a folk dance practiced for centuries in Java that uses the power of music and dance to channel powerful and sometimes terrifying forces.	27 min

External links

• Elemental Productions (Official Website)
• 40 Years of Silence: An Indonesian Tragedy (Official Website)
• Afflictions: Culture & Mental Illness in Indonesia Film Series (Official Website)
• Jathilan: Trance and Possession in Java (Official Website)
• Documentary Educational Resources (Educational Distributor's Website)
• Robert Lemelson (IMDB)