# The Science of Fictions

The Science of Fictions (Indonesian: Hiruk Pikuk Si Alkisah) is a 2019 Indonesian drama film written, directed, produced, and edited by Yosep Anggi Noen. Veteran theater actor Gunawan Maryanto stars as a man whose tongue gets cut off after discovering a film crew shooting a fake moon landing. For his performance, Maryanto won many awards, including the Citra Award for Best Actor and Maya Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

## Synopsis

During the 1960s, the quiet Siman encounters a foreign film crew filming a fake Moon landing in a desolate part of Indonesia. His tongue is cut out and after this traumatising incident he loses himself in dreams of becoming an astronaut. His muteness and strange, slow-motion gait make him a target for scorn and exploitation. Simultaneously, in the village, a colorful soldier parodies Suharto.

## Cast

* Gunawan Maryanto as Siman
* Ecky Lamoh as the actor
* Yudi Ahmad Tajudin as Ndapuk & Tupon
* Alex Suhendra as Wanto & Gun
* Lukman Sardi as Jumik
* Rusini as Sinak
* Asmara Abigail as Nadiyah
* Marissa Anita as kiosk owner
* Rachel Saraswati as Ermi
* Pritt Timothy as Hendri

## Production

Noen conceived the idea for the film in 2012 while visiting Gumuk Pasir, an area near Parangkusumo Beach in Bantul, Yogyakarta. The landscape reminded him of the Moon's surface and gave inspired him to write a story set in the 1960s, during which the first ever Moon landing was a major public interest. It took Noen seven years to realize the idea into a feature film, a time span which he spent to develop the screenplay and seek funding.

## Release

The film had its world premiere at the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland in August 2019. It went through months of festival runs abroad before making it to Indonesian theaters in December 2020.

## Reception

Upon its screening at Locarno, Marta Bałaga wrote for Cineuropa that the film "can’t quite match its ambitions, failing to keep up the interest and brought down by a terrible, sentimental ending" and that "there is no shaking off a certain feeling of melancholy about the entire thing." Reviewing the film for Screen Anarchy, Martin Cudlac was more positive, calling it "a socio-political parable for the age of fake news" that "approaches a hot topic from a slapsticky angle although satire never breaks through as Anggi Noen keeps tight control over the film´s message." Local critic Dwiki Aprinaldi of Cinema Poetica was more critical of the film. Calling Noen's screenplay "abstract", he wrote that the film "seems to say much while in reality it is just a pretentious oration that revolves around itself".

## Accolades

| Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result |
| 2019 | Locarno Film Festival | Golden Leopard | Yosep Anggi Noen | Nominated |
| 2019 | Locarno Film Festival | Special Mentions | Yosep Anggi Noen | Won |
| 2019 | Asia-Pacific Screen Awards | Achievement in Cinematography | Gay Hian Teoh | Nominated |
| 2019 | Singapore International Film Festival | Silver Screen Award for Best Asian Feature Film | The Science of Fictions | Nominated |
| 2020 | Beijing International Film Festival | Tiantian Award | Yosep Anggi Noen | Nominated |
| 2020 | 40th Citra Awards | Best Picture | The Science of Fictions | Nominated |
| 2020 | 40th Citra Awards | Best Director | Yosep Anggi Noen | Nominated |
| 2020 | 40th Citra Awards | Best Actor | Gunawan Maryanto | Won |
| 2020 | 40th Citra Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Yudi Ahmad Tajudin | Nominated |
| 2020 | 40th Citra Awards | Best Original Screenplay | Yosep Anggi Noen | Nominated |
| 2020 | 40th Citra Awards | Best Editing | Ahmad Fesdi Anggoro Yosep Anggi Noen | Nominated |
| 2020 | 40th Citra Awards | Best Sound | Hadrianus Eko Sunu Firman Satyanegara L. H. Aim Adi Negara Bagas Oktariyan Ananta Yasuhiro Morinaga | Nominated |
| 2020 | 40th Citra Awards | Best Art Direction | Deki Yudhanto | Nominated |
| 2020 | 40th Citra Awards | Best Makeup & Hairstyling | Anismcaw | Nominated |
| 2020 | 40th Citra Awards | Best Costume Design | Irmina Kristini | Nominated |
| 2020 | Maya Awards | Best Feature Film | The Science of Fictions | Nominated |
| 2020 | Maya Awards | Best Director | Yosep Anggi Noen | Won |
| 2020 | Maya Awards | Best Actor in a Leading Role | Gunawan Maryanto | Won |
| 2020 | Maya Awards | Best New Actor | Yudi Ahmad Tajudin | Nominated |
| 2020 | Maya Awards | Best Cinematography | Gay Hian Teoh | Nominated |
| 2020 | Maya Awards | Best Art Direction | Deki Yudhanto | Nominated |
| 2020 | Maya Awards | Best Sound | Hadrianus Eko Sunu Firman Satyanegara L. H. Aim Adi Negara Bagas Oktariyan Ananta Yasuhiro Morinaga | Nominated |
| 2020 | Maya Awards | Best Makeup & Hairstyling | Anismcaw | Nominated |
| 2020 | Maya Awards | Best Costume Design | Irmina Kristini | Nominated |
| 2020 | Maya Awards | Best Poster Design | Gandhi Setyawan | Won |