Indonesian film portrays Obama's early years

[alienlovechild 75]

BANDUNG, Indonesia (AP) - Young Barry Obama is struggling with his pingpong shot.

Or rather, 12-year-old Hasan Faruq Ali is struggling to play left-handed in imitation of the character he is portraying in a new Indonesian film, "Little Obama."

"Hasan has the walk, he has the posture of Barry," said Slamet Djanuadi, a consultant on the film and a childhood friend of President Barack Obama when he lived in Indonesia from 1967 to 1971.

The movie, produced by Multivision Plus, Indonesia's largest production company, will premiere in Indonesia on June 17, the week of Obama's anticipated visit to the country. The president postponed a planned visit in March to push through health care legislation.

The film tells the story of Obama's childhood in Jakarta, where he lived with his mother and Indonesian stepfather from age 6 to 10.

"It's about his friendships, his hobbies, just a childhood story," said screenwriter and co-director Damien Dematra. "It's not about politics, it's just the story of a boy."

Hasan, who was born in America in Questa, New Mexico, but has lived in Indonesia since he was about 2 years old, was an obvious casting choice to play the young Obama. Fluent in English and the Indonesian language, and the son of a white mother and African American father, Hasan fit the bill.

The movie is taken from Dematra's book "Obama Anak Menteng"—"Obama, the Menteng Kid"—a fictionalized biography based on interviews with about 30 old friends and neighbors. It is the first in a planned trilogy about Obama in Indonesia. The second book is to focus on his education at a Catholic school and the third on his relationship with his mother.

Shakur Ali, Hasan's father, watched from a window. He said the first time he watched Hasan act, it brought tears to his eyes.

"I was shocked to see the change, to see him become this person," said Ali, who doesn't follow U.S. politics and said it doesn't matter to him that his son is playing Obama but just that he is following his dream of being a performer.

The directors hope to finish shooting on June 3 in time for its scheduled premiere. Everyone hopes Obama will watch it, including the directors, actors and the childhood neighbors he spent hours playing pingpong with.

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9FQMC405&show_article=1

[Darnell 8,479]

PingPong rocks.