here are listed some people and informants who -among many others- gave us interviews and helped us to make this movie

Dédé Oetomo

is a leading activist for LGBT rights in Indonesia. He founded Lambda Indonesia, the first LGBT rights organization in the country, later renamed Gaya Nusantara. 

He was a lecturer of political science at Airlangga University between 1984 and 2003. He resigned when the Faculty's program in sexuality studies was blocked by management. 

Dédé has been actively involved in the pro democracy movement and the HIV response for over 20 years. Dédé received the Felipa de Souza Award from the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission in 1998, and the Utopia Award for Pioneering Gay Work in Asia in 2001.

Julia Suryakusuma

is currently known as one of Indonesia’s leading and most outspoken opinion-makers – columnist, author, activist, pioneer feminist, cultural critic. 

As a columnist (writing for the Jakarta Post, the International Herald Tribune, The Daily Yomiuri, NRC Handelsblad, among others), she always tries to “generate a debate” on the most pressing social, political and cultural issues affecting Indonesia.
 She is the author of “Sex, Power and Nation: an Anthology of Writings, 1979-2003", and “Julia’s Jihad”.

http://www.blogyouris.com/nu_gender_excellence/meet-julia-suryakusuma

http://www.juliasuryakusuma.com/

Didik Nini Thowok

 

carries on a venerable tradition of Javanese female impersonation by a male dancer.  As a specialist of asian mask- and cross-gender performance which he calls "mystical gender" , Didik is most known Indonesian artist worldwide.

 

http://www.didikninithowok.info/

Yulianus Rettoblaut 

 

aka Mama Yulie is Indonesian Transgendered People Communications Forum chairperson. 

 

She is graduated from the Faculty of Law, Islamic University At Tahiriyah, Jakarta. 

 

In 2007 she was nominated to serve on the Indonesian Human Rights Commission representing the transgender community. However, she failed a test conducted by the House of Representatives, possibly due to her sexual orientation.

Ibu Maryani

 

Maryani was raised as a Catholic boy in Yogyakarta, Java. She grew up up be waria and for many years was a sex worker and drank alcohol. She then converted to Islam. 

 

She has since adopted an eight-year old girl, and in 2008 turned her house into Indonesia’s (actally the world's) first Islamic school specifically for waria. As mosques are gender segregated, there is no place for waria to pray. In Pondok Pesantren they can pray and study the Koran and also baking and beauty therapy to provide employment opportunities other than sex work.

Merlyn Sopjan

 

is an activist, chairman of the Malang branch of the Association of Transgendered people, writer and Putri Waria (Miss Transsexual) 2007. 

 

Merlyn’s first book was titled "Don’t Look At My Genitals!" a frank account of her feelings as a woman. Her second is titled "Woman Without V" (as in vagina). 

 

In 2003 Merlyn tried to register as a candidate for mayor in Malang. Her application was denied by city officials on the ground that she missed the filing deadline by five minutes. It was not an explicit rejection on the basis of gender, though Merlyn suspects that had something to do with it.

Lenny Sugiharto

 

is director of Srikandi Sejati Foundation running HIV information, education and communication programme for transgender sex workers.

 

Ienez Angela

 

activist and member of Forum Komunikasi Waria, an organization for transgender individuals, was our fabulous host in Jakarta and one of the leading informants during the study. Ienes have said that while they are regularly shunned publicly, warias also experience greater economic disadvantage due to their lifestyle choice.From her own experience she can tell that warias are often turned down at job interviews because of their physical appearance.

Shinta Ratri

 

is a legendary waria.