Usmar Ismail (20 March 1921 – 2 January 1971) was an Indonesian film director, author, journalist and revolutionary of Minangkabau descent.

During this time, he was a co-founder of a newspaper called Rakyat, meaning "people" or "populace" in Bahasa Indonesia.

He became active in a number of film and theater groups, including the Yogyakarta Union of Playwrights, the Indonesian National Academy of Theater, and the National Film Industry Conference Body (Indonesian: Badan Musyawarah Perfilman Nasional).

His 1962 film Anak Perawan di Sarang Penyamun (English: The Virgen in the Robber's Nest) was boycotted by the Communist Party of Indonesia (Indonesian: Partai Komunis Indonesia, or PKI), as the film was judged take a position too supportive of Malaysia.

It remained blacklisted by the New Order government after the 1965-66 Communist purges due to one of the leading actor's links to the PKI.

He was perhaps best known internationally for his 1961 film Fighters for Freedom, which documented Indonesian independence from the Dutch and French.