Memories of My Body

In the 1980s, Wahyu Juno's father leaves him behind in a Banyumas village. He begins learning lengger from a local dance teacher and starts exploring his identity and sensations. This early period frames how the body becomes an archive of education, emotion, and trauma that shapes his life.

He witnesses a violent incident where a dance teacher kills Jok after a conflict involving a wife. The event reveals the harsh power dynamics surrounding sexuality within the community. It casts a long shadow over his formative years.

At his father's request, Juno is taken in by his aunt Atmo. She discovers his unusual sensitivity to bodies and the complicated, sometimes troubling boundaries this creates. The arrangement marks the start of a fragile guardianship in his life.

A teacher punishes Juno for spreading an odor and forces him to write an apology with chalk in his mouth, ending with the word MOM. The act leaves him with a poignant memory of authority and shame. It shows how young Juno is shaped by judgments about his body and behavior.

A dance teacher intervenes and begins teaching him lengger, guiding him through the craft and its gendered meanings. Under her mentorship, he learns to perform and navigate the complex social signals of body and performance. This period solidifies his path within the lengger tradition.

The dynamic between Juno and the teacher becomes controversial, and villagers report pedophilia, bringing public scrutiny and legal attention. The community's reactions reflect the fragile boundaries around sexuality and power. The incident drives further disruption in his guardianship.

Exhausted by the turmoil, Atmo gives Juno to his uncle, shifting the care and path of his life. The change ties him more closely to his extended family and the socio-economic pressures they face. It marks a transition from aunt to uncle as his guardian.

As an adult, Juno runs a clothing store and can measure a person's body with a heightened sense of touch and perception. This unusual talent becomes his professional edge and personal identity within the community. His work links body knowledge to clothing and expression.

A boxer commissions a traditional wedding costume and tests Juno's expertise. During the fitting, the boxer bleeds from a safety pin, and Juno realizes the man is gay. The moment deepens the complexity of their relationship and Juno's own understanding of gender and sexuality.

Because he is the eldest of many siblings, the boxer has little time for his family and comfort, and they share a kiss in a moment of closeness. The kiss signifies a frank, intimate connection within their strained circumstances. It adds emotional weight to their fragile alliance.

The boxer loses a crucial match, cutting off financial hope for a wedding and triggering intervention from a controlling boss. Fixers are brought in to separate the pair, enforcing social boundaries and threatening their future plans. The separation marks a turning point in Juno's life and career.

After the uncle's death, Juno learns from him that his father left the family due to trauma tied to a river near home, where the family faced slaughter amid rumors of involvement in the 30 September Movement. The revelation links personal loss to national political violence. It deepens the sense of interwoven memory and trauma.

Juno moves to Jati village to become the costume designer for a lengger group, continuing his lifelong involvement with the art and its performers. The move widens his circle within the performance community and reinforces his craft. It marks a shift from guardian to independent artist.

As election season approaches, a regent candidate under shaman Pesisiran's advice seeks a mate to secure victory. Juno is chosen as that mate, though he initially rejects the idea and resists being pulled into the political spectacle. Tensions rise as performance, power, and sexuality collide with village politics.

The regent's wife hires fixers to remove Juno and the lengger group from the village, fearing a photo of the regent and Juno would hurt votes. A relative challenges her abuse of power, insisting she will be lonely. The group decamps, and Juno hitchhikes away, smiling as he steps out of the closet and into his truth.