Curriculum Vitae
John H. McGlynn
CITIZENSHIPUSA
Residential AddressJl. Danau Maninjau No. 93
Jakarta Pusat 10210 Indonesia
Tel: H: 62 21 573-7904; O: 574-6880; Cell: 0816 4812155
E-mail:
ACADEMIC DEGREESM.A., Southeast Asian Studies, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (1981);
B.A., Southeast Asian Studies, University of Wisconsin, Madison (1975).
Synopsis
John H. McGlynn is one of only a few non-Indonesians in the world today who has devoted most of his professional life to the development, promotion and dissemination of knowledge of Indonesian language, literature and culture. With his sound academic background in the field of Indonesian Studies and his experience of having lived and worked in Indonesia, almost continually, from 1976 to the present, his knowledge of Indonesia is almost unmatched. He has played a key role (as editor, major contributor, project coordinator or translator) in the publication of more than one hundred books about Indonesia, with subjects ranging from classical Javanese poetry to the history of the New Order government to conflict-resolution. He is widely viewed among Indonesianist circles as the world’s foremost English-language translator of Indonesian literature. He has been instrumental in the establishment several prominent non-governmental organizations in the field of culture and has produced more than fifty documentary films on Indonesian writers and Indonesian performance traditions. He is a trustee of the Fulbright Commission in Indonesia and is an active member in the Indonesia-East Timor Studies Group of the Association of Asian Studies. He is a frequent speaker at seminars both in Indonesia and abroad. Through his prodigious and wide-ranging achievements he has facilitated, at the international level, a deeper and more balanced understanding of the world’s fourth-largest country.
PROFESSIONAL Background and History
Since 1987, when I founded the Lontar Foundation, a not-for-profit organization based in Jakarta, most of my energies have gone into the production of books on Indonesian language, literature and culture. Largely under my guidance, the Foundation has grown from a one-person show to a sustainable enterprise and the world’s preeminent institution in its field.
Outside the Foundation, I have served as an independent contractor for the World Bank, UNDP, and the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and other institutions.
°Chairman, Board of Trustees and Executive Director of the Lontar Foundation
In my changing position at Lontar—founder, director of publications, executive director, trustee—I have, over the past 24 years, overseen the planning, financing, translation, and publication of almost all titles that Lontar has thus far produced. Under its Lontar imprint, the Foundation publishes literary translations. Under its Amanah imprint, Lontar publishes Indonesian-language titles. Under its Godown imprint, the Foundation brings out books that were written in English on subjects related to Indonesian culture. (See Addendum 1 for a list of the books in whose production I have played a key role.)
°Independent Consultant
As a consultant to the World Bank, I was instrumental in the development of the Bank’s “Creative Communities Program,” a program focusing on the development of creative industries at the local level. I also produced a series of wayang kulit(shadow puppet) performances which were staged for the purpose of promoting PNPM – the National Program for Poverty Alleviation. In 2007 I was contracted by the University of Hawaii at Manoa to develop a college-level course on the theory and practice of subtitling – the first course of its kind ever in the United States. For UNDP, I have produced a series of five books on the subject of conflict resolution in Indonesia.
°Film Producer
For the purpose of producing educational videos on Indonesian writers and on Indonesian performance traditions, I established, in 1994, “On the Record,” a film production and documentation program. Since that time I have served as the program’s chief fundraiser, in addition to supervising script development. Thus far, the Foundation has produced 24 films on Indonesian writers and 30 films on Indonesian performance traditions. (See Addendum 2 for the list of these films.) A substantial part of my time during the past year has been spent on the production of an educational package on wayang kulit, Indonesia’s shadow theater, which will contain six complete shadow-puppet performances translated into Indonesian, English, French, and Japanese.
Related Experience
Prior to establishing Lontar I earned my living as a freelance editor, translator, and interpreter. I worked for the U.S. Department of State, providing simultaneous translation and interpreting services for Indonesian dignitaries visiting the United States; for the State Film Corporation and the National Film Council (PPFN) of the Republic of Indonesia, subtitling films; for the Department of Information of the Republic of Indonesia, producing informational brochures and magazines; for The Indonesian Economy, a monthly journal, translating economics-related articles; for PT Indulexco, translating technical materials and project feasibility surveys; for the Jakarta Arts Council, translating literary materials into both English and Indonesian; for the National Language Development Center, teaching translation theory; and for a wide range of other companies and institutions.
Today, as a result of my work at Lontar I often serve as the contract person for foreign private and governmental organizations that are operating programs in or hope to undertake work in Indonesia. I have worked with the Asian Cultural Council, the Association of American Publishers, the Ford Foundation, the Asia Foundation, the Magsaysay Foundation (of the Philippines), Amnesty International, the Index for International Censorship, Human Rights Watch, Fordham University, the Australian Cultural Council, the United Nations, USINDO (United States-Indonesia Friendship Foundation), and Family Health International to name but a few.
I have organized international speaking tours for Indonesian authors and been a primary mover behind the establishment of a number of international seminars and exhibitions, including the first Festival of Indonesian Oral Traditions, the first International Seminar on Indonesian Writing Traditions, the first Indonesian International Women’s Film Festival, a workshop and seminar on Censorship in Indonesia, three exhibitions of Indonesian manuscripts, and so on.
I am the Indonesian country editor for Manoa, an award-winning literary journal, published twice yearly by the University of Hawaii at Manoa. In that position I am responsible for contributing occasional translations of Indonesian literary works to the journal. I am also country-editor for Words Without Borders, an on-line literary journal focusing on translation.
ORGANIZATIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
I am currently a member of the Association of Asian Studies, PEN-New York, the Association for Indonesian Oral Traditions (Asosiasi Tradisi Lisan), and the Indonesian Manuscripts Foundation (and Yayasan Naskah Nusantara). I am also a member of the Board of Trustees of AMINEF (the American Indonesian Exchange Foundation), which oversees the Fulbright and Humphrey Scholarship programs in Indonesia. In both 2004 and 2005 I served as a member of the steering committee for the National AIDS Awareness Seminar funded by Family Health International with monies from USAID. In 2006 I founded a new organization called jakARTa kolektors, a loosely-knit association of art lovers whose goal is to promote the work of young Indonesian artists. I am a member of the International Commission of the Indonesian Publishers Association (IKAPI) and was instrumental in convening the first International Publishing Forum to be held in Indonesia in 2008. I am also an advisor to the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival.
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Addendum 1
Publications of John H. McGlyn
The following list of titles consists of book-size publication in which I played a determinant role, either as translator, editor, author, major contributor, or production supervisor. This list does not include papers (for academic seminars), opinion pieces, essays, or book reviews. Neither does it include Indonesian plays that I have translated and which have been performed but have yet to be published nor does it include forewords, introductions, and other lesser written contributions; individual translations of poems and short stories (numbering in the hundreds) that have appeared in various English language publications around the world; or translations into languages other than English of my own translations.
YearContributing Role and Publication Data
2012Production coordinator: (Forthcoming) Plaited Arts of the Borneo Rainforrest (Bernard Sellato, ed.). Jakarta: Lontar.
2011Editor:Never the Twain, a novel by Abdoel Moeis; Jakarta: Lontar.
2011Co-editor, co-translator:I Am Woman! — Stories from Jurnal Perempuan.Jakarta: Lontar.
2010Translator:Family Room, a collection of short stories by Lily Yulianti Farid. Jakarta: Lontar.
2010Translator, editor:Rainha Boki Raja: Sixteenth Century Queen of Ternate (Toeti Heraty, author). Jakarta: Komunitas Bambu.
2010Production coordinator: Invisible People: Poverty and Empowerment in Indonesia. Jakarta: Godown.
2010Production coordinator:Mereka Yang Tak Terlihat: Kemiskinan dan Pemberdayaan di Indonesia. Jakarta: Godown.
2010Translator: Rainha Boki Raja:
2010Senior Editor:Di Balik Kaca: Bunga Rampai Cerita Kaum Minoritas Seksual. Jakarta: Amanah-Lontar.
2010Senior editor, co-translator:The Lontar Anthology of Indonesian Drama, a three-volume series including translations of 34 Indonesian plays dating from 1895 until 1999: Volume 1: Indonesian Popular Theater; Volume 2: Art Theater in the Era of National Building; and Volume 3: Indonesian Drama during the New Order 1895-1930. Jakarta: Lontar.
2010Editor, co-translator:Menagerie 7—People Like Us (focusing on Indonesian sexual minorities); Jakarta: Lontar.
2008Editor:An Old Man’s Rules for Hitchhiking; Jakarta and the United States: Amanah.
2006Senior editor:Antologi Drama Indonesia, a four-volume series (in Indonesian) including 64 Indonesian plays dating from 1895 until 1999: Volume 1: 1895-1930; Volume 2: 1931-1945; Volume 3: 1946-1968; Volume 4, 1969-2000. Jakarta: Amanah.
2006Editor: Playwriting Workshop: Three Selected Plays. Jakarta:Jakarta Arts Council (Dewan Kesenian Jakarta).
2006Editor:Three Plays by Three Indonesian Women Playwrights.Jakarta:Jakarta Arts Council (Dewan Kesenian Jakarta).
2006Production consultant: Siak Sri Indrapura; Jakarta: Amanah.
2005Editor, production coordinator: Analisis Perdamaian dan Pembangunan. Jakarta: CPRU-UNDP.
2005Editor, production coordinator: Peace and Development Analysis: A Resource Pack. Jakarta: CPRU-UNDP.
2005Editor, production supervisor: Pandangan dari Pedesaan: Jalan Baru Menuju Pembangunan; Jakarta: Godown.
2005Editor, production supervisor: Picturing Indonesia: Grass Roots Views of Development; Jakarta: Godown.
2005Production coordinator: Overcoming Violent Conflict, a five-volume series on conflict in Indonesia: Volume 1: Peace and Development Analysis in Central Kalimantan, West Kalimantan and Madura; Volume 2: Peace and Development Analysis in Nusa Tenggara Timur; Volume 3: Peace and Development Analysis in Central Sulawesi; Volume 4: Peace and Development Analysis in Maluku and North Maluku; Volume 5: Peace and Development Analysis in Indonesia.Jakarta, CPRU-UNDP.
2005Senior Editor and project supervisor:Indonesia in the Suharto Years: Issues, Incidents, Images; Jakarta: Lontar.
2005Translator: Before Dawn: The Poetry of Sapardi Djoko Damono; Jakarta: Lontar.
2004Co-editor, production supervisor: The Dancer, a trilogy of novels by Ahmad Tohari.Jakarta: Lontar.
2004Editor, co-translator:Menagerie 6: Indonesian Fiction, Poetry, Photographs, and Essays (focusing on Indonesian Exile Literature); Jakarta: Lontar.
2004Editor, co-translator:The Birth of I La Galigo; Jakarta: Lontar.
2004Editor, translator:A Time, A Season: Selected Poems of Toeti Heraty; Jakarta: Lontar.
2004Production Coordinator:Menembus Tirai Asap: Kesaksian Tahun 1965. Jakarta: Amanah (Lontar).
2004Translator:All that is Gone, selected short stories by Pramoedya Ananta Toer; New York: Hyperion.
2003Editor, co-translator:Menagerie 5: Indonesian Fiction, Poetry, Photographs, and Essays (focusing on sexual violence towards women);Jakarta: Lontar.
2003Editor, production supervisor:Poetry Without Words, by Suwarno Wisetrotomo and Farida Srihadi; Jakarta: Amanah (Lontar).
2003Editor, production supervisor:Srihadi Soedarsono: The Path of the Soul. by Jean Couteau; Jakarta: Lontar.
2003Translation supervisor:Celebrating Indonesia: Fifty Years of the Ford Foundation in Indonesia; Jakarta: Equinox.
2003Translator:A Time, A Season: Selected Poems of Toeti Heraty.;Jakarta: Lontar.
2002Editor:Jazz, Perfume & The Incident, a novel by Seno Gumira Ajidarma; Jakarta: Lontar.
2002Editor:The Barber and Other Short Stories, short stories byGus Sakai (winner of the Lontar Literary Award); Jakarta: Lontar.
2002Editor:Trouser Doll, a collection of poetry byJoko Pinurbo (winner of the Lontar Literary Award); Jakarta: Lontar.
2002Editorial consultant, production supervisor:Di Negeri Orang: Puisi Penyair Eksil Indonesia; Jakarta: Amanah (Lontar).
2002Production supervisor:Voices of the Puppet Masters: The Wayang Golek Theater of Indonesia, by Mimi Herbert; Jakarta: Lontar; Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.
2002Translator:The Girl from the Coast, a novel by Pramoedya Ananta Toer; New York: Hyperion.
2001Editor, co-translator:Manhattan Sonnet: Indonesian Poems, Short Stories, and Essays about New York; Jakarta: Lontar.
2000Editor, co-translator:Menagerie 4: Indonesian Fiction, Poetry, Photographs, and Essays(focusing on stories about Bali); Jakarta: Lontar.
2000Editor, co-translator:Silent Voices, Muted Expressions: Censorship in Contemporary Indonesian Literature; a special publication of Manoa; Honolulu: University of Hawaii.
2000Editor: In a Jakarta Prison: Life Tales of Women Inmates, compiled and written by Sujinah; Jakarta: Lontar.
1999Editor:The Rape of Sukreni, a novel by A.A. Pandji Tisna; Jakarta: Lontar.
1999Translator, editor:The Mute’s Soliloquy, a memoir by Pamoedya Ananta Toer; New York: Hyperion.
1998Editor, contributor:The Language and Literature of Indonesia; Singapore: Edition Didier Millet.
1998Editor: Blossoms of Longing: Love Poems and Laments from the Old Javanese; Jakarta: Lontar.
1997Editor, co-translator:Menagerie 3: Indonesian Fiction, Poetry, Photographs, and Essays (focusing on the short stories of Idrus); Jakarta: Lontar.
1997Editor, production supervisor:Dede Eri Supria; Jakarta: The Jakarta Stock Exchange.
1997Translator, editor:This Room of Mine: The Paintings of Agus Suwage; Jakarta: Galeri Lontar.
1997Translator:Square Moon: Four Short Plays by Iwan Simatupang; Jakarta: Lontar.
1997Translator:To Love, To Wander: The Poetry of Sitor Situmorang; Jakarta: Lontar.
1995Co-editor, contributor, production supervisor: Illuminations: The Writing Traditions of Indonesia; Jakarta: Lontar.
1995Editor, production supervisor:Former Points of View: Postcards & Literary Passages from Pre-Independence Indonesia; Jakarta: Lontar.
1993Editor, co-translator:Menagerie 2: Indonesian Fiction, Poetry, Photographs, and Essays; Jakarta: Lontar.
1992Co-translator, editor: Time Bomb & Cockroach Opera: Two plays by N. Riantiarno; Jakarta: Lontar.
1992Editor, co-translator: Menagerie 1: Indonesian Fiction, Poetry, Photographs, and Essays; Jakarta: Lontar.
1992Editor: The Bottomless Well: A Four Act Play by Arifin C. Noer; Jakarta: Lontar.
1991Editor, production supervisor:Shadows on the Silver Screen: A Social History of Indonesian Film, by Salim Said; Jakarta: Lontar.
1991Editor: The Weaverbirds, a novel by Y.M. Manunwijaya; Jakarta: Lontar.
1991Production supervisor: Golden Letters: Writing Traditions of Indonesia by Annabel Gallop; London; The British Library; Jakarta: Lontar.
1990Co-translator, editor:Walking Westward in the Morning: Seven Contemporary Indonesian Poets, Jakarta: Lontar.
1990Editor, co-translator:New Writings from Indonesia, a special issue of Manoa; Honolulu: University of Hawaii.
1990Translator, editor: On Foreign Shores: American Images in Indonesian Poetry, Jakarta: Lontar.
1990Translator:The Fugitive, a novel by Pramoedya Ananta Toer; New York: William Morrow & Co.
1989Translator:Shackles (revised edition); Jakarta: Lontar, .
1988Translator:Suddenly the Night: the Poetry of Sapardi Djoko Damono, Jakarta: Lontar, .
1987Translator:And The War is Over, a novel by Ismail Marahimin; Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press.
1986Translator:Water Color Poems ; Jakarta: PT Temprint.
1985Translator:Anthology of ASEAN Literatures: Oral Literature of Indonesia; Jakarta: The ASEAN Committee on Culture and Information.
1985Translator:Shackles, a novel by Armijn Pane; Athens (USA): Ohio University Center for Southeast Asian Studies.
1983Translator:Reflections on Rebellion: Stories from the Indonesian Upheavals of 1948 and 1965; Athens: OhioUniversity.
1980Translator:A Taste of Betel and Lime: An Anthology of Poetry by Indonesian Women; Jakarta: Pustaka Jaya.
1979Translator:The ASEAN Poetry Collection: Poems from Indonesia and Other ASEAN Countries; Jakarta: Jakarta Arts Council.
1976Translator: “Song of the Night Owl: A Partial Translation of Syair Burung Pungguk,” published in Review of Indonesian and Malaysian Affairs; Sidney: University of Sydney, June.
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Addendum 2
Documentary Films Produced by John H. McGlynn
A.Indonesian Writers (Arranged by Author)
No. / Author / Title / DirectorA.A. Navis / Satiris dan Suara Kritis dari Daerah
(A.A. Navis: Satirist and Critic) / Enison Sinaro
Agam Wispi / Pulang (Coming Home) / M. Rivai Riza and John H. McGlynn
Danarto / Sastra Sufisme Danarto (Danarto: Literary Sufism) / Andy Nugraha
Darmanto Yatman / Penyair Dalam Lintasan Budaya (Poet at Culture’s Edge) / Erlan Basri
Goenawan Mohamad / Potret Penyair Si Malin Kundang (Portrait of a Poet) / Arswendy
H.B. Jassin / Yang Duduk di Kursi Imaginasi (In the Court of the Imagination) / Hanny R. Saputra
Nh. Dini / Sosok Pengarang Wanita dan Dunianya
(A Woman Writer and her World) / Edi Mandala
Pramoedya Ananta Toer / Mendengar si Bisu Bernyanyi (Hear the Mute’s Song) / Srikaton Mindarwanto
Putu Oka Sukanta / Merajut Harkat (Weeaving Dignity) / Agni Ariatma
Ramadhan Kh. / Dari Mata Ramadhan K.H.
(In the Eyes of Ramadhan K.H.) / M. Rivai Riza
Rendra / Si Burung Merak (The Peacock) / Maruli Ara
Selasih / Namaku Selasih (My Name is Selasih) / Jajang C. Noer
Sitor Situmorang / Rindu Kelana (The Need to Wander) / Edward Pesta Sirait
Sutan Takdir Alisjahbana / Dan Hidup Berjalan Terus... (And Life Goes On...) / M. Rivai Riza
Soeman Hasibuan / Soeman Hs. / Arswendi Nasution
Taufiq Ismail / Tyranny and Poetry / Panji Wibowo
Toeti Heraty / Sosok Penyair (Portrait of a Poet) / Jajang C. Noer
Umar Kayam / Refleksi Kehidupan (Reflections) / Eddy Pras
Achdiat K. Mihardja / Suara dari Jaman Pergerakan
(Voice from the Revolution) / Tinuk Yampolsky
Ahmad Tohari / Kesaksian Tanpa Batas (Eternal Witness) / Shanty Harmayn
Gerson Poyk / Nostalgia Nusatenggara (Nostalgia for Nusatenggara) / Chandra Tanzil
Hanna Rambe / Hanna Rambe (Hanna Rambe) / Tonny Trimarsanto
Kuntowijoyo / Dua Dunia Kuntowijoyo (The Two Worlds of Kuntowijoyo) / Chandra Tanzil
Sapardi Djoko Damono / Aku Ingin (I Want) / Tonny Trimarsanto
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B.Indonesian Performance Traditions (Arranged by Island and Region)
No. / Tradition / Island Group / Island RegionWayang Babad / Bali / Bali
Wayang Kulit Luk-Luk / Bali / Bali
Hikayat Betawi / Java / Jakarta (Betawi)
Dalang Jemblun / Java / East Java
Mocoan Pacul Goang / Java / East Java
Wayang Gremeng / Java / Central Java (Yogyakarta)
Kentrung / Java / East Java
Janaka Sunda / Java / West Java (Sunda)
Pantun Sunda / Java / West Java (Sunda)
Takna Lawé / Kalimantan / Dayak-Kayan, Kalimantan
Mamanda / Kalimantan / East Kalimantan
Mendu / Kalimantan / West Kalimantan
Amarasi / Nusa Tenggara / East Nusa Tenggara
Cepung / Nusa Tenggara / West Nusa Tenggara (Sumbawa Besar)
Sakeco / Nusa Tenggara / West Nusa Tenggara (Sumbawa Besar)
Bonet / Nusa Tenggara / Timor
Wor / Papua / Biak
Mak Yong / Riau / RiauIslands
Badenda / Sulawesi / Southeast Sulawesi
Dade Ndate / Sulawesi / Central Sulawesi
Sinrilik / Sulawesi / South Sulawesi (Maccasar)
Maengket & Kolintang / Sulawesi / North Sulawesi (Manado)
Bati-Bati / Sulawesi / South Sulawesi
Didong (1) / Sumatra / Aceh
Didong (2) / Sumatra / Aceh
Perkolong-kolong / Sumatra / North Sumatra (Batak)
Dul Muluk & Seloko / Sumatra / South Sumatra (Jambi)
Rebab Pariaman, / Sumatra / West Sumatra (Minangkabau)
Tan Bentan / Sumatra / West Sumatra (Minangkabau)
Shalawat Dulang / Sumatra / West Sumatra
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