List of film producers of the Dutch East Indies explained

Twenty-two people are recorded as having produced fictional films in the Dutch East Indies between 1926, when L. Heuveldorp released Loetoeng Kasaroeng, the colony's first domestically produced film, and 1949, when the Dutch formally recognised Indonesia's sovereignty after a four-year revolution, leaving the Dutch East Indies defunct. Altogether, they are credited for 93 of all known films produced in the Indies, and four of them remained active after independence. All were men; the first female film producer in Indonesia, Ratna Asmara, produced her first film in 1953.

The colony's first producer, Heuveldorp, was of European descent. He was followed in 1928 by the ethnic Chinese businessmen Tjan Tjoen Lian and Liem Goan Lian, who began work on Lily van Java but soon pulled out, to be replaced by David Wong. By 1930 Chinese producers had dominated the industry. The most active of these, The Teng Chun, made his debut in 1931 with Boenga Roos dari Tjikembang; he would go on to produce another 27 films before independence. No native Indonesian film producers are recorded from this period, although several productions were credited only to companies.

Producers in the Indies would often handle multiple roles, such as director and cinematographer. When these positions were filled separately, the producer retained creative control. The Indonesian film historian Misbach Yusa Biran writes that works produced during this time were emphatically commercial, not paying attention to nationalistic or aesthetic values. However, the film scholars Thomas Barker and Charlotte Setijadi-Dunn suggest that the Chinese-produced films from the Indies offered the possibility of a heterogeneous national identity.

The following list is sorted alphabetically by default, with further sorting capability in certain fields; owing to differing naming conventions between cultures, not all entries are sorted by last name. The list only counts fictional films directed by the subjects and does not include films from other genres or films in which the person held other roles. The names of persons credited with an abbreviated name are written in full, where available.

Film producers

Key
Indicates continued activity after 1949
+ Film producers of the Dutch East IndiesNameFeature film debutDebut yearFilms produced before 1949Total films producedRef(s).
Ang Hock LiemKedok Ketawa194066
Pareh193511
De Stem des Bloeds193033
Loetoeng Kasaroeng192611
Jo Eng SekSi Tjonat192966
Jo Kim TjanPoei Sie Giok Pa Loei Tay193566
Karnadi Anemer Bangkong193022
Liem Goan LianLily van Java192811
SI LiemDjantoeng Hati194111
Tan Boen SoanSetangan Berloemoer Darah192811
Tan Khoen YauwNjai Dasima19291515
Boenga Roos dari Tjikembang19312830
Tjan Hock SiongKris Mataram194022
Tjan Tjoen LianLily van Java192811
Tjho Seng HanPantjawarna194022
Ikan Doejoeng194135
Lily van Java192811
Lari ke Arab193044
Si Tjonat192866
Lari ke Arab193045
Djantoeng Hati1941421

Works cited

. . History of Film 1900–1950: Making Films in Java . Indonesian . Misbach Yusa Biran . Jakarta . Komunitas Bamboo working with the Jakarta Art Council . 2009 . 978-979-3731-58-2 .

. George McTurnan Kahin . 1952 . Nationalism and Revolution in Indonesia . Cornell University Press . Ithaca, New York . 978-0-8014-9108-5 .

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