George Krugers
Dutch East Indies film director and cinematographer (1890–1964)
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George Edward Albert Krugers (24 November 1890 – 10 August 1964) was a filmmaker active in the Dutch East Indies (modern Indonesia) during the early 20th century. Born in Banda Neira, he migrated to Java in the 1920s. Working with L. Heuveldorp in Bandung, he made his directorial debut in 1927 with Eulis Atjih. The following year, he established the Krugers Film Company. Under this banner, he joined the Hajj in 1928 to produce Het Groote Mekka-Feest (The Great Mecca Feast), considered the first documentary film about the pilgrimage.
24 November 1890
George Krugers | |
|---|---|
Krugers in 1928 | |
| Born | George Curious Albert Krugers 24 November 1890 Banda Neira, Dutch East Indies |
| Died | 10 August 1964 (aged 73) The Hague, Netherlands |
| Occupation | Filmmaker |
| Years active | 1924–1933 |
In 1930, Krugers began producing sound films, with his Karnadi Anemer Bangkong (Karnadi the Frog Contractor, 1930) thought to have been the first domestic sound film in the Indies. After this failed commercially, Krugers began working for Tan's Film, with whom he made two films. Amidst the Great Depression, Krugers moved to Hong Kong, hoping to find work. The move was unsuccessful, and Krugers spent the remainder of his life in the Netherlands, frequently experiencing financial difficulties. Aside from Het Groote Mekka-Feest, all of his films are considered lost.
Biography
Early life and career
Krugers was born in Banda Neira, Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), on 24 November 1890.[1] The son of Johan Krugers, a Dutch-born schoolmaster, and Aline Burgemeestre, whose family had resided in the Indies since the 1700s,[2] Krugers was raised within the island's large Christian community.[1] Little is recorded about his childhood. He showed an early interest in technology, and is known to have studied architecture while also familiarizing himself with photography, film, and sound recording.[3] Imported films had been introduced to the Indies as early as 1896, and from 1911 documentary films were produced in the archipelago.[4]
Krugers migrated to Surabaya in eastern Java, where he spent time as a water engineer.[1] He moved to Bandung in western Java around 1925,[1] where he married Elisabeth Schut, the daughter of a shipping dynasty.[5] He also led the laboratory at N.V. Java Film.[6] According to the scholar of postcolonialism A. Budi Susanto, Krugers may have been one of its founders, together with the Dutchman L. Heuveldorp.[7] The company exclusively produced documentaries until 1926,[6] when Heuveldorp directed the colony's first feature film, Loetoeng Kasaroeng. Krugers served as a cameraman for the film, which was based on a Sundanese folktale, and also processed the film in his laboratory.[8] Although the film was criticized for its technical quality, it received a private screening for Governor General Andries Cornelis Dirk de Graeff.[9]
The following year, Krugers directed his own film, titled Eulis Atjih; he also served as scriptwriter and cinematographer.[10] Based on the novel by Joehana,[11] the film followed Eulis Atjih as she falls into poverty after being left by her husband.[12] Produced with a limited budget and using amateur actors,[10] the film was commercially successful in its domestic screenings. International screenings, which emphasised the film's ethnographic aspects, were less successful.[13] For his work on the film, Krugers was complimented by the Dutch film pioneer Willy Mullens, which the historian Rukayyah Reichling cites as Krugers's motivation for leaving Java Film.[3]
Krugers established his own company, Krugers Filmbedrijf (Krugers Film Company), in 1928.[6] He reportedly worked on film adaptations of the folktales Roro Mendut and Prono Tjitro, although it is not known if he finished them.[14] He did, however, complete a documentary entitled Het Groote Mekka-Feest (The Great Mecca Feast), which followed Hajj pilgrims from the Indies during their trip to Mecca.[15] Krugers performed the pilgrimage himself, likely receiving support from the Islamic scholar Agus Salim as well as the Dutch passenger lines that handled the Hajj.[16] After screening in the Indies,[17] the film premiered in Leiden, the Netherlands, on 8 November 1928. This showing was attended by numerous Dutch socialites, including Princess Juliana, and introduced by the Dutch Orientalist Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje.[15]
Sound films and later life
The first sound films shown in the Indies, Fox Movietone Follies of 1929 and The Rainbow Man, came from the United States and were screened in late 1929.[18] The arrival of imported sound films encouraged Krugers to make Karnadi Anemer Bangkong (Karnadi the Frog Contractor),[a][13] also known as Een Moderne Indonesische Don Juan (A Modern Indonesian Don Juan) in Dutch, in 1930.[19] A comedy adapted from the novel by Joehana and Sukria,[b] this film was made with a single-system camera that Krugers had obtained with the help of his Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers membership. It is generally considered the first locally produced sound film released in the Indies.[c][20] Criticized for having poor technical quality,[21] the film was also controversial for its plot; contemporary director Joshua Wong suggested that this poor reception was partly owing to the main character eating a frog, something which is forbidden for Muslims.[13]
Following this failure, Krugers made the documentary Atma de Vischer (1931), which followed Queen Wilhelmina and Prince Hendrik on a trip through the Hague.[13] He then signed with Tan's Film,[22] with which he made two films. First he directed and produced Huwen op Bevel (Forced to Marry; 1931),[d] which was advertised as featuring songs and comedy. The film was a commercial failure, leading to all rights being acquired by Tan's. He was later tasked with cinematography on Bachtiar Effendi's 1932 sound film Njai Dasima,[23] an adaptation of G. Francis's 1896 novel Tjerita Njai Dasima (Story of Njai Dasima).[24] Tan's Film closed after the release due to rising production costs.[25] Krugers is recorded as planning a further two films, De Nona (Of Ladies) and Raonah, but neither was made.[13]
During 1934 and early 1935, all feature films released in the Dutch East Indies had been produced by The Teng Chun.[26] The Great Depression had led to the Dutch East Indies government collecting higher taxes, advertisers asking for more money, and cinemas selling tickets at lower prices; this ensured that there was a very low profit margin for local films. During this period cinemas in the country mainly showed Hollywood productions.[27] Amidst these economic pressures, which had led him to declare bankruptcy on 12 October 1932,[28] Krugers also faced criticism for the quality of his sound films,[29] as well as a court case wherein he was charged with and acquitted of subverting the film censorship bureau by reinserting excised scenes into Karnadi Anemer Bangkong.[30]
In 1935, Krugers left the Indies with his family. He travelled to Hong Kong, where he entered negotiations to join a local film production company. However, his prospective business partner died during the dinner at which they were to sign the contract. Facing financial hardship, Krugers and his family quickly left for the Netherlands aboard a Nippon Yusen steamer,[31] using the remainder of their savings to ensure passage.[32] In the Netherlands, Krugers operated his own construction and contracting agency,[33] but continued to experience financial difficulties,[34] again declaring bankruptcy in 1945.[33] He died in The Hague on 10 August 1964.[6]
Legacy
All but one of Krugers's films are lost. Due to the rapid change in circumstances that resulted in his family leaving Hong Kong, the materials he had brought from the Indies were abandoned. However, Het Groote Mekka-Feest survived. Krugers had kept a copy of the film in Amsterdam, intending to give it to Queen Juliana.[35] In 1988,[36] Elisabeth donated this copy to the EYE Film Institute.[29] The Krugers family archive is held by the Leiden University Library.[35]
Discussion of Krugers in academia has been sparse.[32] Krugers was recorded in Indonesian history books as early as 1986. However, the information provided was inconsistent, with the film archivist Misbach Yusa Biran recording two distinct names and cataloguist J. B. Kristanto providing Hong Kong as Krugers's place of birth.[37] In western academia, Krugers's work has received little scholarly attention. It gained increased prominence in 2015, following a screening of Het Groote Mekka-Feest at Leiden University;[38] the film has been identified as the first cinematic documentation of the Hajj.[39]
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 | Loetoeng Kasaroeng (The Mystical Monkey) |
Cinematographer | [40] |
| 1927 | Eulis Atjih | Director | [40] |
| 1928 | Het Groote Mekka-Feest (The Great Mecca Feast) |
Director | [40] |
| 1930 | Karnadi Anemer Bangkong (Karnadi the Frog Contractor) |
Director and producer | [40] |
| 1931 | Atma de Vischer | Producer, sound director, and cinematographer | [40] |
| 1931 | Huwen op Bevel (Forced to Marry) |
Director, producer, sound director, and cinematographer | [40] |
| 1932 | Njai Dasima | Sound director and cinematographer | [40] |
Notes
- Based on contemporary reporting, Woodrich (2017) writes that the release title was Roesia Gadis Priangan (Secret of the Girl from Priangan). This title is also paired with Een Moderne Indonesische Don Juan in contemporary advertising (De Indische Courant 1930, Centraal-Theater).
- It is unclear who Sukria was, or if this was not one of Joehana's pen names. According to Rasiah nu Goreng Patut, Soekria wrote the story, and Joehana served only as an editor. Rosidi (2013, p. 12) writes that the language in the book is clearly that of Joehana, and if someone named Sukira did come up with Rasiah nu Goreng Patut, it was only the core plot elements. However, he questions whether Sukria existed: the name had previously been used for the son of Eulis Atjih in Tjarios Eulis Atjih (The Story of Eulis Atjih).
- Suryadinata (1995, p. 43) writes that The Teng Chun's 1931 production Boenga Roos dari Tjikembang was first, while Biran (2009, p. 137) suggests that The's film was released after the Wong brothers' Indonesia Malaise, and therefore after Karnadi Anemer Bangkong.
- The film was also advertised with the Malay-language title Terpaksa Menika (Forced to Marry) (De Indische Courant 1931, Centraal-Theater).