The film 'SHUTTER' makes Niken Anjani fall in love with dance

"Honestly, at first I had no expectations of delving into the art of dance at all. So purely at the beginning when I joined the Shutter project, it was explained that my character's background, named Lilis, is indeed a dancer. So in order to delve into her character, one of the things I did was learn Jaipong dance," she revealed when met at the event From Stage to Screen, Exploring the Cinematic Body, a Talkshow & Workshop on Japati Kembang Kota Dance in Jakarta recently.

The learning process is not just about movements, but also touches on the emotional and philosophical aspects. Niken realizes that dance has a depth of meaning that captivates her even more. "But it turns out along the way, it feels really comfortable, right? I really like dancing because dance is not just about moving, but there is a philosophy behind it," she explained.

In the film, Niken not only plays one side of the character. She has to portray three different dimensions, namely as a human with a love conflict, a dancer, and a supernatural figure.

"Actually, there are a lot because I have about three characters there. One is a human with the drama of his love life, and then there's the one with a background as a dancer, and the other one is like a demon," she said.

To support her role as a dancer, Niken underwent training for eight sessions over the course of about a month. The training had to be divided with various other preparations, including choreography for scenes and character deepening. "As for the intensity of the dancing itself, we had eight sessions. Why only eight? Because at the same time I also had to practice sling, I also had to practice choreography for the movements that become the demon, and I also had to participate in the reading process for deepening the character as Lilis, who is an ordinary human," she explained.

After the shooting process was completed, Niken's interest in dance did not stop there. She even made dance one of the activities she wants to continue pursuing amidst her busy schedule as an actress. "Honestly, I now feel like I have placed dance as my new sport," she said.Furthermore, Niken admitted to being fascinated by the rich culture of Indonesia, especially traditional dance. She feels that the art of dance not only trains the body but also sharpens the senses and emotions.

"Why did I choose to continue? Because our culture is actually very rich. This is my first time honestly learning traditional dance," she concluded.