Max Yuswardy

SUMPAH PEMUDA (YOUTH PLEDGE) is an experimental documentary exploring self and state-crafted conceptions of Indonesian national identity of young Indonesians in the U.S.. Composed of scans of personal identification documents and participants’ objects of ‘Indonesian-ness’, recitations of the Youth Pledge, digital video of the Indonesian consulate in New York, and 16mm footage of self-identified Indonesians dressed and posed for a U.S. visa-compliant photo, the film is an exploration of what it means to be ‘Indonesian’ beyond national borders, whether here by choice, necessity or otherwise. SUMPAH PEMUDA is a reflection on migration and displacement in an age of rising authoritarianism and fascism.