10 Facts About Garin Nugroho

Garin Nugroho Riyanto was born on 6 June 1961 and is an Indonesian film director.

Garin Nugroho was the fourth child of postal workers Soetjipto Amin and Mariah, who eventually had seven children.

Garin Nugroho's father owned a lending library and enjoyed writing, leading Nugroho to start writing from a young age; he later quit writing because he felt his father to be too critical.

Garin Nugroho enjoyed exploring, and would bathe in the Code River fed by the cold lahar runoffs from Mount Merapi; he notes that the sulfur, which was brought to the river by the lava, was good for his skin.

Garin Nugroho made his directorial debut with 1991's Cinta dalam Sepotong Roti, overcoming bureaucracy caused by his refusal to join the Indonesian filmmakers' union.

Garin Nugroho was later commissioned by the government of Austria to make a film for the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth.

In 2008 Garin Nugroho returned to theatre with The Iron Bed, adapted from Opera Jawa.

The Jakarta Post writes that Garin Nugroho's films emphasize aesthetics, but contain sociopolitical messages.

Joko Anwar, writing for The Jakarta Post, notes that dialogue written by Garin Nugroho tends to lack believability.

Garin Nugroho enjoys gardening and travelling, both in Indonesia and abroad.