FROM Samarinda was time to take off towards the heart of Borneo Island with Happy and Dimas (the newly formed team without experience), starting from zero for me, but I knew this was about. For Tanah Airku will not be easy. On the road, we start to see the failures and weaknesses, Happy getting lost, not listening or not understanding, me getting angry, Dimas shooting wrong or bad footages and so on, but were on the road.

Leaving Samarinda, the road drew us deeper into the heart of Borneo. With Happy and Dimas, my newly formed team, still untested and raw, I knew the journey would not be easy. We carried the weight of Tanah Airku, but also our own weaknesses: Happy often lost or distracted, Dimas struggling with footage, and I losing patience. Yet we pressed forward.
Muara Mutai opened its quiet beauty to us, but soon the road ended, swallowed by mining sites. The jungle closed in, paths vanished, and the three of us stumbled, lost. Responsibility pressed heavy for them, for the project, for myself. Just as despair grew, a lone truck appeared, like an angel on wheels, pulling us back onto the road. Nights sleeping by the roadside, hours of mud and rain, and finally, after days of endurance, we reached Banjarmasin. Here, Felina joined, adding strength to our fragile team. With her came community: local Cineas Community offering shelter on their floors, their generosity humbling. Together, we captured stories, rode bikes, and shot films that breathed with life. Yet my health worsened. I ignored it, but my body refused to. Felina eventually left, leaving me, Happy, and Dimas to continue southward. Kuala Kapuas opened the gates to Central Kalimantan and Dayak traditions. In Palangkaraya, we stayed for weeks filming, healing, and learning. Here I witnessed dances, games, and weddings where laughter and drink spilled endlessly. The Dayak spirit was freedom itself. But I was crumbling. Four months on the road, one month for my young team, too little money left, and a body failing me.
Yet, even in exhaustion, miracles arrived: strangers pointing us away from danger, officials offering shelter, food, and guidance. September closed like a storm breaking. The road forward was unclear, but the story continued.

ROAD-BLOCKS