Film Dukun Magang Showing June 18, Presents Comedy Horror with Local Myths

JAKARTA - The film Dukun Magang produced by Dens Vision Multimedia together with Wahana Pictures will greet Indonesian film enthusiasts with a premiere screening at the cinema on June 18.

With a comedy horror genre, the film directed by Chiska Doppert presents a fresh viewing option that is ready to shake your stomach while triggering adrenaline.

The story of Dukun Magang is woven through a script written together by Endik Koeswoyo, Mo Sidik, and Adi Nugroho.

Under the direction of producers Sahrul Gibran and Jems Sumartumin, this film highlights the clash of reality between modern logic and the thickness of the mystical tradition of urban society.

The story centers on Raka Mahardika (Jefan Nathanio), a final-year student who was initially very skeptical of the supernatural.

As a result of his draft script being rejected back and forth by his thesis advisor, Raka was forced to take a bold path to graduate from college. He chose the research topic that he hated the most and considered it a gossip, namely the world of shamanism.

Raka is not alone. He brought Boiman (Fajar Nugra), a timid but loyal friend, and Sekar (Hana Saraswati), a local student who understands local customs.

Their journey of observation shifts to Kalimati Village, a remote area that still holds on to mystical rituals.

The original intention, which was originally purely for academic interests, turned into a disaster. Raka accidentally disturbed the existence of the Black Kuntilanak, a high-powered supernatural entity that had been tightly sealed in the village.

The supernatural terror that follows forces Raka to question the limits of his reason.

Even though it presents tension through the appearance of supernatural beings, the presence of other actors such as Mamang Osa, Dodit Mulyanto, Wira Nagara, to Adi Sudirja who plays the eccentric shaman Mbah Djambrong, is a strong guarantee that the humor aspect in this film will be very dominant.

Fajar Nugra said that the comedy portion in this film had been prepared thoroughly since the pre-production phase, so that the actors could execute the scene to the maximum at the shooting location.

"All the comedy was made before filming, in the writing process and in the reading process. Shooting just walks in what has been made. So during filming you can focus on acting and how to bring the character, because the comedy is mature before filming," said Fajar at a press conference in Setiabudi, South Jakarta, Saturday, June 13.

On the other hand, Jefan Nathanio feels a different challenge. In addition to having to delve into the character of Raka who is sarcastic and ambitious, he had to race with the natural conditions during the shooting process.

"The biggest challenge is more in the shooting time which is quite dense, because there we shoot outside the city, where we don't know what the weather is like. That's one of the biggest challenges, but the rest is really enjoyable," said Jefan.

Another attraction of Dukun Magang lies in the exploration of local myths regarding the hierarchy of supernatural beings, especially the figure of the Black Kuntilanak who is rarely brought to the big screen.

"For the kuntilanak, it turns out that all this time we know that the kuntilanak is like that. The color is white, the hair is long, it is on the tree. But after we studied it further, it turns out that the kuntilanak can be different colors according to its strength. There are red ones, there are black ones," said Hana.

He added that the color differentiation represents the magical energy level of astral beings.

"The color black is the highest level in the power of kuntilanak. If it's red, it's number two if it's not wrong," he added.

With the spice of a close friendship conflict, a fresh comedy cover, to the surprise of the plot, Dukun Magang is a cinema recommendation that is ready to entertain and stimulate the audience's adrenaline at this mid-year holiday moment.