Mira Lesmana facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mira Lesmana
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Mira Lesmana in September 2020
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| Born |
Mira Lesmanawati
8 August 1964 |
| Nationality | Indonesian |
| Other names | Mira Lesmana |
| Alma mater | Jakarta Institute of Arts |
| Occupation | Director Producer |
| Years active | 1995 - present |
| Spouse(s) | Mathias Muchus (1990 - present) |
| Children |
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| Parent(s) | Jack Lesmana (father) Nien Lesmana (mother) |
| Relatives | Indra Lesmana (younger brother) Sophia Latjuba (younger sister-in-law) Eva Celia (niece) |
Mira Lesmana (born August 8, 1964) is a famous Indonesian film director, producer, and songwriter. She was born in Jakarta, Indonesia. Mira is known for helping to bring the Indonesian film industry back to life. She is also the older sister of the well-known Indonesian jazz musician, Indra Lesmana.
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Growing Up and Early Life
Mira Lesmana was born in Jakarta. Her father, Jack Lesmana, was a musician, and her mother was Nien. Her younger brother, Indra Lesmana, also became a famous jazz pianist.
When she was five, Mira started kindergarten at Cikini School. She continued her primary and middle school education there. As a child, Mira dreamed of becoming a scientist or a detective. She was often one of the best students in her class.
Mira once said that watching George Lucas' Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope in 1977 really amazed her. This movie might have inspired her to work in filmmaking later on.
Starting Her Creative Journey
At 16, Mira wrote her first song. Her brother Indra used this song to get a scholarship to a music school in Australia. In 1979, because Indra was still young, their family moved to Australia with him.
Mira continued her schooling in Australia. Even though she had studied English in Indonesia, she found the Australian accent a bit tricky at first. While there, she also started watching many movies. After two years, she moved to the Australian International Independence School.
After graduating, the Lesmana family returned to Indonesia. Mira then joined the Jakarta Art Institute in 1983 and finished her studies in 1985. Her very first experience producing a film was for a public service announcement. This was a short film made to share an important message.
On February 14, 1990, Mira married Mathias Muchus, who was a popular actor. They have two sons named Galih Galinggis and Kafka Keandre. In the early 1990s, Mira kept writing songs. She wrote some for her brother and even one for the famous singer Chrisye.
In 1995, Mira started her own film company called Miles Productions. It was later renamed Miles Films. In 1996, she directed a successful documentary series called Anak Seribu Pulau (which means Children of a Thousand Islands).
Making Movies: Mira's Film Career
In 1999, Mira Lesmana made her first full-length movie, Kuldesak. She co-directed this film with Riza Mantovani, Riri Riza, and Nan Triveni. The next year, she produced Petualangan Sherina (Sherina's Adventure).
At that time, the Indonesian film industry was not doing very well. Many filmmakers thought new movies couldn't make money. But both Kuldesak and Petualangan Sherina were successful!
In 2002, Mira released Ada Apa dengan Cinta? (What's Up with Love?). She was a co-producer for this film with Riri Riza. Many people say that these movies, Petualangan Sherina and Ada Apa dengan Cinta?, helped to restart the Indonesian film industry.
Creating Inspiring Stories
In 2005, Mira produced Gie. This movie was about the life of a student activist named Soe Hok Gie. Even though critics loved it, the movie didn't earn back all its costs.
The next year, in 2006, Mira helped start the Indonesian Film Society. This group worked to change the laws about film censorship in the country. Even though their efforts didn't fully succeed, they tried hard to make a difference.
Also in 2006, she produced Garasi (Garage). The actors from this film later formed a band called Garasi in 2007. This band was one of the first to sign with Mira's new music company, Miles Music. That same year, she produced 3 Hari Untuk Selamanya (3 Days for Forever). The music for this film was made by Float, another band from Miles Music.
In 2008, Mira produced Laskar Pelangi (Rainbow Troops). This movie was based on a very popular book by Andrea Hirata. In the same year, she continued to push for new film censorship laws. This led to the government passing a new law in 2009.
The next year, in 2010, she produced Sang Pemimpi (The Dreamer). This was a sequel to Laskar Pelangi, also based on a book. In 2010, Mira also wrote twenty songs for a musical stage show of Laskar Pelangi. She worked with other talented artists like Erwin Gutawa on this project.
New Projects and Successes
In 2012, Mira started filming Atambua 39° Celsius. This movie was about refugees living in Atambua. Part of the money for the film came from crowd-funding, where many people donate small amounts. The movie first showed at the Tokyo International Film Festival.
The next year, in 2013, she released Sokola Rimba. This film won the Best Film award at the Maya Awards.
One of Mira Lesmana's most expensive movies to date was Pendekar Tongkat Emas (The Golden Cane Warrior). This martial arts film was released in 2014 and had a budget of about 25 billion rupiah. It starred actors like Eva Celia, Nicholas Saputra, and Reza Rahadian.
In 2016, Mira produced Ada Apa dengan Cinta? 2 (What's Up with Love? 2). This was a sequel to her earlier hit movie. Just like the first one, it was very popular. By June 2016, over 3.6 million people had watched it.
Also in 2016, Mira released Athirah (Emma' (Mother)). This film was inspired by the life of the mother of Indonesia's Vice President, Jusuf Kalla. Athirah won awards for Best Film at both the Citra Award and the Maya Award. It was also shown at several international film festivals and received good reviews.
