Representing Socioeconomic Inequality in Pangku: An SDG 10 Perspective

Abstract

Socioeconomic inequality extends beyond income disparities to include constrained employment
choices, discriminatory treatment, and unequal access to essential services. This study examines
how socioeconomic inequality is represented in Pangku and explains its relevance to Targets
10.2 and 10.3 of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 10. It employed an interpretive
qualitative approach and media text analysis informed by Stuart Hall’s constructionist theory of
representation. Primary data were collected through repeated viewings and systematic
documentation of the entire film. Two key scene sequences were selected based on their depiction
of constrained opportunities, unequal treatment, and the strength of their narrative and
audiovisual elements. The data were analyzed through data condensation, data display, and
conclusion drawing and verification. The findings show that Sartika’s occupational transition
represents the constrained employment choices available to economically disadvantaged women
and the commodification of the female body. Meanwhile, the rejection of Bayu’s school
enrollment represents administrative exclusion that restricts equal access to education. Together,
these sequences construct inequality as a multilayered process operating through gender,
employment, family status, administrative requirements, and education, with consequences that
may persist across generations. SDG 10 is used as a contemporary interpretive framework for a
film set during Indonesia’s 1998 economic crisis rather than as a direct measure of policy
achievement. This study contributes to research on film representation by linking the experiences
of vulnerable groups to the principles of inclusion and equal opportunity.