Work on what was to become Ruma Maida began in 2008, when Utami was approached by Lamp Pictures and asked to write a nationalism-themed script; she completed the task in six months, with input from Soeriaatmadja.

Ruma Maida, which uses different filming styles for scenes in the past and present, deals with the importance of education, history, and pluralism.

A young history student, Maida (Atiqah Hasiholan), a Christian, runs a free school for street children in Jakarta.

The school is in a house that once belonged to Ishak Pahing (Nino Fernandez), a Christian Indo composer and pilot, and his Muslim wife Nani Kuddus (Imelda Soraya); Pahing wrote the song "Pulau Tenggara" ("The South-Eastern Island"), which inspired President Sukarno to help form the Non-Aligned Movement, while living in the house.

One day her class is interrupted by the young Muslim architect Sakera (Yama Carlos), who has been told to evict Maida's school by his employer, the developer Dasaad Muchlisin (Frans Tumbuan).

[2][18] The Indonesian band Naif covered several songs for Ruma Maida's soundtrack, including songs from the 1940s such as "Juwita Malam" ("Beauty of the Night", by Ismail Marzuki[19]), "Di Bawah Sinar Bulan Purnama" ("Under the Light of the Full Moon", by R. Maladi[20]), and "Ibu Pertiwi" ("Motherland").

[23] In Media Indonesia, Yulia Permata Sari wrote that Soeriaatmadja seemed to be promoting the need to remember and respect history through the plot and characterisations.

[27] Triwik Kurniasari, writing in The Jakarta Post, described the inclusion of the May 1998 riots and subsequent fall of Suharto as touching on pluralism issues.

[4] Utami, in an interview with the Jakarta Globe, stated that she had meant to show diversity by giving the characters different ethnic, religious, and socio-economic backgrounds,[2] and later explained that the film was meant to show Indonesia's motto Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity) as it is applied in the country.

[32] In Tempo magazine, Kurie Suditomo wrote that Ruma Maida intertwined several sub-plots, including the depiction of the 1928 Youth Conference, the education of street children, and a scene where Sakera discusses architecture with Muchlisin; the review stated that these detracted from the film's comprehensibility.

[26] Jakarta Globe reviewer Armando Siahaan noted that several plot lines run parallel, including riots following the Japanese surrender in 1945 and those in May 1998.

[34] That August Ruma Maida had three screenings in the "Education" category of the Indonesian Film Festival in Melbourne, Australia.

[29][35] In November it was screened at the Asiatica Film Mediale in Rome, Italy, under the title La Casa Di Maida.

[29] Siahaan wrote that the film "may have limitations in its execution and presentation, but is highly commendable for its ability to raise social questions and delve into the nation’s history.

[25] The film was released on VCD and DVD in Indonesia on 14 July 2010 by EZY Home Entertainment, after passing through the censorship board in February.