Wawan, an autistic boy from Kalimantan, must travel across the Indonesian archipelago to find suitable education and therapeutic support. As he matures into a teenager, he ultimately builds connections and earns respect through his skills in music and prayer. 

Wawan is an autistic boy from Banjarmasin, Indonesia. Struggling to meet his needs at home, his parents make the difficult decision to send him to a brand new school on another island to receive specialized education and therapeutic support.

Together Wawan and his teacher, Yasin, learn how to build an inclusive community for youth on the spectrum that accommodates their differences and celebrates their abilities. As the school grows, Wawan matures into a young man respected for his skill in prayer recitation.

SUBJECTS

Wawan

Wawan was born in Banjarmasin, on the island of Kalimantan. He was diagnosed with autism at an early age, but his family could not find adequate education or therapy for him close to home. Yasin’s friend and colleague was a teacher at Wawan’s local school, and she recommended the boy travel the 800 miles to Yogyakarta to attend Bina Anggita, while boarding at Yasin’s residence. Wawan has an exceptional memory and can accurately name the day of the week for any date, even if long past. He excels at Quran recitation; he has won first place in both district and province-wide competitions and competed at the national level.

Rauda

Rauda has a daughter and three sons, of which Wawan is her oldest. She manages her  family’s tire shop in Banjarmasin. 



Gazali

Gazali is Wawan’s father. He owns a used tire shop in a suburb of Banjarmasin. 

Gallery

Crew

Robert Lemelson

Director/ Producer

Robert Lemelson is a cultural anthropologist, ethnographic filmmaker and philanthropist. Lemelson received his M.A. from the University of Chicago and Ph.D. from the Department of Anthropology at UCLA. Lemelson’s area of specialty is transcultural psychiatry; Southeast Asian Studies, particularly Indonesia; and psychological and medical anthropology. He currently is a research anthropologist in the Semel Institute of Neuroscience UCLA, and an adjunct professor of Anthropology at UCLA.

CHISAKO YOKOYAMA

Director/ Editor

Chisako Yokoyama has worked as an editor and assistant editor on studio motion pictures, independent features and narrative and documentary films. Her credits as editor include the English and Japanese language films “Saki,” “Takamine” and “Goemon” and as first assistant editor, “American Gangster”, “Memoirs of a Geisha”, “Black Hawk Down”, “Gladiator”, and “Good Will Hunting.”

Ninik Supartini

Co-Producer/ Field Producer

Ninik Supartini has assisted Dr. Lemelson in several research projects about community mental health in Java and Bali. In 2004, she returned to school at Gadjah Mada University to earn her Masters Degree in Developmental Psychology. Since 2006, Supartini has served as a mental health and psychosocial consultant for international humanitarian organizations working in post-disaster and conflict areas in Indonesia and Myanmar.

Annie Tucker

Co-Producer/ Researcher

Annie Tucker is a translator, writer, and educator specializing in contemporary Indonesian culture, literature, arts, and health. She received her PhD from UCLA’s Department of World Arts and Cultures. Her dissertation addressed the treatment of autism in Java with a particular focus on the therapeutic use of traditional arts and the philosophies of development embedded within them.  She is an adjunct lecturer for UCLA’s Disability Studies minor.

Darwin Nugraha

Director of Photography

Darwin Nugraha has directed, filmed and edited feature and short documentaries in Indonesia. He has produced a TV series and is currently working on a feature length documentary.

Bella Stasia

Assistant Camera

Bella Stasia has filmed commercial music, wedding and lifestyle videos in addition to documentary and feature work.