THE little girl looks anxious, pacing back and forth in the house. She is eager to leave so she can show off her new shoes at school. The rain, however, has other ideas.

Impatient, she decides to try out an old-school superstition by throwing her underwear onto the roof. The tactic works, and the rain stops.

This is one scene from Sepatu Baru ('New Shoes'), a 2013 film from the Makassar, South Sulawesi-based director Aditya Ahmad.

Despite its si