Not Wanting to Exploit Torture, Joko Anwar Writes the 'SIKSA KUBUR' Scenario Based on Hadith and Teachings - Involving People Who Understand Religion

The director from Medan admitted that when writing the screenplay and shooting scenes, he referred to what is written in the teachings and hadith. He did not try to exaggerate in order to make his film more exciting.

"From the visual aspect, we follow the depiction that already exists in hadiths and teachings of people who understand religion. We follow what is taught by religion, not more, not less," said Joko when met in the Cipete area, South Jakarta, some time ago.

During the script writing process, SIKSA KUBUR apparently went through three drafts before entering the filming process. In the second draft, he invited people who understood the script and religion to give advice and criticism. From there, improvements were made on what should and should not be included in the film.

"So in script writing, there are three drafts. The first draft is discussed internally. After we are confident, we invite people who understand script writing and religion," he said.

"They give notes and as a writer, I am not allowed to respond if they criticize. After that, we have an internal discussion about what to include and what not, and it really helps. Because sometimes we feel good about writing a scenario, but others don't," explained Joko.

Joko Anwar said he did not want to make SIKSA KUBUR (GRAVE TORTURE) as an exploitative presentation of torture. He wants to make people believe in religious teachings through visuals that have never been imagined before.

"We are not talking about the torture. If we talk about torture, we are talking about torture porn and there are many good films like HOSTEL, SAW," he explained.

"We are making a film about one of the religious teachings but made it believable through visualizations that have never been imagined before," he concluded.