Clashes between long-held traditions and modern-day practices are by their nature common-place, but this powerful new documentary examines the harsh reality of life on the Indonesian island of Sumba where slavery is still an abominable fact of life. History and culture still play their part, with society structured into clear classes – the nobility (Maramba), commoners (Kabihu), and slaves (Ata) – but despite legal abolition, for some the practice of slavery continues.
Local activist and filmmaker Jeremy Kewuan begins to follow the lives of three enslaved children kept by their ‘master’ Lucky. Furthermore, the film, co-directed by Jimmy Hendrickx, attempts to confront tradition while also interrogating challenges in Kewuan’s own life.
Sumba was once famous for its slave markets, run by royal families, and Kewuan is determined to try and expose an awful injustice. He meets Lucky, who proudly defends his right to own slaves, commenting how ‘slaves are human, but they think like animals. When a cat does something wrong, we hit it, but we still love it.” He adds: “It is engraved in their skin where they came from. Thieves…their ancestors and blood are filled with bad energies.”
Together with Mama Lina, who was enslaved by Lucky as a child, Kewuan starts to feel a responsibility for the well-being of the three children working for Lucky: Witta, Rangga and Kedo. The youngsters all have physical scars and quietly admit to having been beaten, and when eight-year-old Witta disappears after Kewuan has returned her to Lucky following a trip to the city, he feels very guilty.
With help, he goes on a quest to find the girl. To begin with he thinks she might have been killed, but then he hears about a small girl seen stealing clothes and vanishing into the bushes within a nearby village. Apparently Lucky has also been hunting for her, but Kewuan eventually finds her – she had been living in a cave – and she quietly cries when ask she had been hurt…
Lucky’s sister is a nun, but feels a lack of power over what her brother does. Ultimately, along with Mama Lin and her family they decide to confront Lucky and try and hold him accountable. The film eventually seems to end on a positive tone…both for Witta and for Jeremy.
With the filmmakers favouring close-ups and dramatic silences Slave Island feels at times like a moody drama, but at its core the dark haunting ‘drama’ is very real. There are moments of reflection and quiet – as well as lovely drone shots of the landscape – and while there is perhaps a little confusion as to whether this is Kewuan’s story or that of the children, ultimately it is a powerful and moving story about a tradition that has no place in the modern world.
Belgium-Estonia-Taiwan-Italy, 2025, 94mins
Dirs: Jimmy Hendrickx, Jeremy Kewuan
Production: Harald House Belgium, Baltic Film Productions, Flash Forward Entertainment, Samarcanda Film
International sales: Filmoption International
Prod: Kristian van der Heyden
Scr: Jimmy Hendrickx, Jeremy Kewuan, Kristian van der Heyden, Terje Toomistu
Cinematography: Jimmy Hendrickx, Jeremy Kewuan, Allwyn Wawyn
Editor: Raquel Ferreira, Jimmy Hendrickx
Music: Thomas Foguenne, Timo Steiner
