INDO 1011

SPRING 2009

Please fill this out while you watch the film. If you know Indonesian, you may write in
Indonesian as well.

REFLECTION ON FILMS

Date: February 5, 2009

Your name: Chandler Routman
The title of the film: Dream Wanderers of Borneo

Name the islands or ethnic groups that you remember from the film:
• The island that this film is on is Borneo. The ethnic groups that was mentioned
was the Buti and the Puanan, Diacks, Kenya,
What new information did you learn from this film?
• I learned about the Puanan Tribe, the Mahakam River, Bereyo the Old Rhino
Hunter, the last priest of the old religion; Aping and Nanyet. The bees and leeches
of Borneo are very dangerous and are a constant problem. The idea of a “Dream
Wanderer” is a very scared part of Puanan culture. Monkeys can be used as a food
source. Every new life experience is marked by a tattoo in the Puanan culture.
They are mainly a nomadic people, but during the rainy season they live in
longhouses made of trees. Hunting dogs are very important to the Puanans; they
are also an egalitarian community.
How did you relate this film to any other history of some countries that you know about?
Please explain.
• The people of Borneo still practice ancient principles and ideals. They are being
forced to give up their traditional way of life because of the encroaching logging
projects. All of the tribes of Borneo except for the Puanan were headhunters. In
the United States, a more traditional way of life is not very common; there are
only a few cultures that still practice it like the Amish and the Quakers. The
headhunters of Borneo are similar to the scalping Native Americans in the United
States.
What did you find interesting about this film?
• Learning about the different indigenous tribes of Borneo is fascinating. Their
culture and way of life is completely different from anything that I know.
If you follow any news about Indonesia at all, what are the things that remain the same as
what the movie portrays, and if there are some changes, what are they?
• I’m not sure; I haven’t heard anything recently about the people of Borneo.
What questions do you have about this film, or about today’s Indonesia?
• I would really enjoy learning what is currently happening with the Puanan Tribe,
and if they are fighting off globalization and social pressures to become more
modernize.

Margaretha Sudarsih
Department of Asian Languages & Civilizations
University of Colorado-Boulder