Wong brothers

The Wong brothers were three ethnic Chinese film directors and cameramen active in the cinema of the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia). The sons of an Adventist preacher, the brothers – Nelson (1895–1945), Joshua (1906–1981), and Othniel (born 1908–1986) – received much of their education in the United States before going to Shanghai and establishing The Great Wall Productions.

By 1927, Nelson had arrived in the Dutch East Indies and was working with Miss Riboet's Orion, a theatrical troupe. When its owner Tio Tek Djien suggested he make a film with the troupe's star, Nelson insisted that his family be brought to the Indies. Although this initial film was not realised, the brothers made numerous feature films with different studios under the banner Halimoen Film, starting with Lily van Java (1929). After a two-year hiatus, during which Nelson fell ill, Joshua and Othniel worked with Albert Balink and Mannus Franken to produce Pareh, a commercial failure which bankrupted its producers.

The Wongs collaborated again with Balink on Terang Boelan in 1937, a commercial success which left the brothers rich. They began working with Tan's Film afterwards, making another five films with the company. After the Japanese occupation Joshua and Othniel became merchants, returning to film in 1948 with the Tan brothers. Their new company produced 45 films, although the Wongs were not involved in all of them.

The Wong brothers were the sons of Wong Siong Tek, an Adventist clergyman. Nelson was born in 1895, Joshua in 1906, and Othniel in 1908. The Indonesian film historian Misbach Yusa Biran writes that the brothers were born in China and later went to the United States, Nelson in 1920 and his family some time afterwards; however, the Sinematek Indonesia publication Apa Siapa Orang Film Indonesia (Who and What: Indonesian Filmmakers) indicates that Nelson was born in San Francisco and raised in China, and lists the brothers as attending several American schools as early as 1916.

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