Following the world premiere of Mike Wiluan’s Orang Ikan, a Gala Selection of the 37th Tokyo International Film Festival on October 30, the audience was treated to a riveting, deep-diving Q&A session that was nearly as fast-paced as the film itself. The director appeared with star Dean Fujioka, who is famously multilingual and on stage, often switched midsentence between English and Japanese, as the men interrupted each other, finished each other’s sentences and emphasized each other’s points — like old friends who’d considered the questions before.
 
And indeed, they probably had. The session began with Wiluan, a Singaporean writer-director-producer who often works in Indonesia, calling Fujioka, a Japanese actor with massive Asia-wide appeal and international credits, a “great collaborator and someone I respect very much. I look forward to working with you again.”
 
“Thanks, Mike. Love you, bro,” responded Fujioka. (Switching to Japanese) “I went onboard the film as a producer halfway through production, and here we are, able to present it to you, which makes me very pleased.”
 
TIFF Programming Director Ichiyama Shozo, on hand as moderator, pointed out that Eric Khoo is also one of the producers of the film and recalled, “He recommended it to me, saying only that it was a monster film. I didn’t know anything else going in, so it was a real surprise.”
 
“Eric and I are big monster fans,” Wiluan explained. We started Gorylah Pictures together to make films like the ones we were fans of. We’re always looking for something that has a mythology in Indonesia, a folklore that’s not as well known. When I started researching this, I found reports of Japanese soldiers who saw something on an island. We didn’t want to make something that was just bloody or gory. We’re using WWII as a backdrop to tell a story of humanity, of brotherhood.”
 
Fujioka nodded, adding, “When I first saw the script, I had this image of horror or panic or a war film genre. But as soon as I started reading, it became grabbing, and I knew that it went beyond that.”
 
Wiluan continued, “Every region and country has their own mythology. I think [the presence of] a fishman is something that we have accepted universally, as a creature we haven’t discovered. There’s this fear of the unknown, and there are stories that get passed on through generations. This mythology was backed up by the Japanese soldiers in Indonesia, so Orang Ikan is a blending of history and mythology together, with an Asian twist.”
 
The film opens on a Japanese “Hell Ship” in 1942, which is transporting prisoners of war back to Japan to work as slave labor. Saito (Fujioka) is brought before an officer, who declares him a traitor to the Japanese and says he’s being taken back as an example to others. He’s to be put to death in a public spectacle. Saito is then shackled by the ankle to a British POW, Bronson (Callum Woodhouse of “All Creatures Great and Small”), but suddenly, the ship is torpedoed by Allied submarines. Next thing they know, the two have washed ashore on a deserted island. But as they come to and immediately begin pummeling each other — they’re enemies, after all — it’s clear that they are not alone. Almost immediately, Bronson finds himself in the clutches of a monstrous creature, and Saito is forced to help him or succumb himself.
 
We soon learn from an Indonesian POW who also washed ashore and lives long enough to make it clear that the creature is known as an “Orang Ikan.” Whatever its motives (they don’t seem to be food), it will stop at nothing until both men are dead. This forces them to work together if they want to survive… although they soon discover a secret that makes the monster even more terrifying, even as it also makes it seem more human.
 
The discovery reveals the soldiers’ different worldviews. While Bronson wants only to eradicate, Saito sees what Wiluan describes as “a cycle of nature here that we have to respect.” Fujioka interjected, “He’s got a moral compass.” Wiluan nodded. “Saito is in his own world of pain, condemned to die for being a traitor. Bronson is more straightforward, he’s very brash. Saito thinks more deeply.” Said Fujioka, “He’s got strength and depth.” Finished Wiluan, “The film keeps reminding us what’s important. We find that the Orang Ikan is not just a creature and at the end (no spoilers here!), has a very human quality.”
 
Fujioka was asked about his impetus for working on the film, and told the audience, “Last time I came to TIFF, it was 2007 or 2008 when I was living in Hong Kong, and I wasn’t sure whether I was going to continue acting. But after a series of encounters and some traveling, I started working with filmmakers in Singapore and Indonesia. We put our hearts and souls into this and we’re so happy to share it with you.”
 
Wiluan sent thanks to the members of the Singapore/Indonesia/Japan/UK production team who were in the audience and noted, “It was a very international team, and it allowed us to produce a film that has a universal language. We’re all from a different background and everyone brought in their own flair.
 
“We were in the middle of nowhere in the mountains of Indonesia, we didn’t even have cellphone signals” — “We didn’t even have proper housing,” laughed Fujioka, “I had to cover my mouth when I slept to keep the bugs out!” — “It was such a tough shoot every day,” continued Wiluan, “climbing the mountain, wading through the river. That’s why I appreciate Dean’s strength and attention to detail. He came to the set and we would have our moment together, even after trekking for such a long time.”
 
Said Fujioka, “I really wanted to make sure that Saito’s lines and actions [felt authentic to the 1940s]. Mike and I had our own creative room, wherever we were, and over the course of the shoot, we built our trust. It was really tough, but it added another layer to this film. I’m just so happy we could be here today.”
 
Q&A Session: Gala Selection
Orang Ikan
Guests: Mike Wiluan (Director/Screenplay), Dean Fujioka (Actor)