Jakarta, March 14, 2025 — After releasing the official trailer and poster, which were enthusiastically received by Indonesian audiences, the latest film from writer and director Joko Anwar, “The Siege at Thorn High” (international title), has released a behind-the-scenes video series showcasing how the production designer and crew built the world of the film. Set in Indonesia in 2027, the film depicts a chaotic atmosphere when Jakarta undergoes a decline.
The setting for the “Thorn High” school in the film, one of the key locations in The Siege at Thorn High, was built on a historic building, Laswi Heritage in Bandung. In the story, the Thorn High school was originally a prison, so the artistic team had to design it twice—first as a former prison and then as a school. The production designer built around 22 sets, including classrooms, the principal’s office, hallways, and the security room.
“The school set in The Siege at Thorn High is a school that, in the story, was originally a prison, which was renovated and repurposed to become a school,” said Joko Anwar, the writer and director of the film.
“The total set days took around two weeks, with 60–70 set builders. Each room was carefully constructed to reflect the story,” said Dennis Sutanto, the production designer for The Siege at Thorn High.
Meanwhile, another set shows an underground Chinatown setting, which signifies a decline, even though it is set in Indonesia’s future. There is trash scattered around, graffiti on public spaces, and the outside world is even more chaotic.
“It’s more disorderly, with more people expressing themselves, but not in the right way. So there’s a lot of destruction everywhere,” added Dennis Sutanto.
The cinematographer of The Siege at Thorn High, Jaisal Tanjung, revealed that contrast was the key choice for determining the film’s color palette. The chosen colors were aligned with the characters and the director’s vision.
“It’s more about storytelling rather than creating excessive styles. As natural and organic as possible, that’s what we wanted to achieve. The hope is that when people watch this film, they focus on the characters and the story,” said cinematographer Jaisal Tanjung.
Joko Anwar added that no character is portrayed as purely evil. They are just trapped in a situation of misfortune. Despite the dark atmosphere in the film depicting Indonesia in the future, he wants to invite the audience to reflect on the current situation in Indonesia.
“The world in this film is not far from Indonesia today. But we amplify the message about what might happen if trauma is left untreated and leads our nation toward a worse direction. We want to create a film that tells the story of how a nation can fall apart because people no longer respect each other,” concluded Joko Anwar.
The Siege at Thorn High is a joint production between Hollywood studios Amazon MGM Studios and Come and See Pictures, set to be released in Indonesian cinemas on April 17, 2025. The film stars Morgan Oey, Omara Esteghlal, Hana Malasan, Fatih Unru, Satine Zaneta, Dewa Dayana, Florian Rutters, Faris Fadjar Munggaran, Sandy Pradana, Raihan Khan, Farandika, Millo Taslim, Sheila Kusnadi, Shindy Huang, Kiki Narendra, and Landung Simatupang.
The Siege at Thorn High follows the story of Edwin (Morgan Oey), an art teacher at a high school. Before his brother’s death, Edwin promised to find his missing nephew. His search leads him to become a teacher at Thorn High, a school for troubled kids. There, Edwin must face the most rebellious students while looking for his nephew. When he finally finds his brother’s child, riots break out across the city, and they are trapped in the school, fighting against brutal children who now threaten their lives.
Stay updated with the latest information and developments about The Siege at Thorn High on Instagram @comeandseepictures.
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