Festival to raise moviemakers' eyes to Bali

Andra Wisnu ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Sanur   |  Wed, 10/22/2008 10:52 AM  |  Bali

For the Indonesian soapopera-actress-turnedmovie-star Marshanda,the 2008 Balinale International Film Festival gives her the rare opportunity to work with some of the most highly respected minds in the industry.

"There's going to be so many people from the U.S. and European movie industries here. It's going to be a great chance for me to learn more about the industry," said the 19-year-old thespian affectionately called Caca.

"And I want to ask every young aspiring moviemaker to come here and learn as much as you can from them."

Marshanda's enthusiasm is exactly what the Balinale committee members wanted.

Deborah Gabinetti from the Bali Taksu Foundation, one of the sponsors for the event, said the festival aims to educate Indonesians about movies besides Hollywood-made blockbuster films and to introduce filmmakers to the beauty of Bali.

"Bali is so untapped in respect to moviemaking," she said during a press conference at Hotel Mercure in Sanur on Tuesday.

"I think this festival will be a great opportunity for a lot of aspiring and established filmmakers to set their sights on this beautiful island and start thinking about making movies here."

The event, which started Tuesday and will run until Oct. 30, will conduct free workshops including an introduction to photojournalism with Syamsul Hadi and a film production seminar with New Zealand film producer Catherine Madigan and Australian filmmaker Richard Todd.

Catherine said she looked forward to rousing the creativity of Indonesian filmmakers and to introduce Bali to international filmmakers.

"It would be very good for Bali indeed if a hit movie was produced here, "she said, citing the Lord of the Rings movies that made New Zealand a center of attention for filmmakers looking for settings.

"And really, all it takes is just one good movie,"she said.

Richard Horowitz, who is best known for his golden globe award winning score for the 1990's movie The Sheltering Sky, will also bring his expertise to the festival. He has asked Indonesian composers to contribute their cultural sensitivity to Hollywood movies.

Asia's real music remains untouched by many Hollywood composers, Horowitz said. When they try to evoke the image of an Asian culture in their music, he said, it "like throwing a dart at a map.

"(Asians) have a musical sensibility that has really evolved, which would not have come from people who only think about bombing other people,"he said.

The workshop will further screen nine students films produced in conjunction with the 2008 Ubud Writers and Readers Festival.

"I'm really proud of these children and I hope that people will come and see it," said Ananta Wijaya, a Balinese filmmaker who worked with the students during the filmmaking process.

This is the second Balinale film festival, known as the Bali Taksu film festival at its debut last year.

This year's program will include never-before-seen footage of acclaimed comedian Charlie Chaplin during his three-week visit to Bali in 1932.

"Charlie was actually under a lot of stress at the time because he felt that his miming style of theatrics was in danger of expiring due to the introduction of sound to movies," said Kate Guyonvarch from the Parisbased Association Chaplin, who is attending the festival.

"But from the extensive notes he wrote about Bali, it seems that he rediscovered his passion for film. Bali's also the only place he ever shot footage, which we'll see in the festival,"she said.

The festival will also feature a number of groundbreaking films, including Son of a Lion, the first movie by Australian filmmaker Benjamin Gilmous, which documents his journey into the remote northwest of Pakistan.

Another highlight will be the Asian premier of Taking Root: The Vision of Wangari Maathai, a movie about the Nobel Prize winner's work in replanting trees to revitalize the environment in her Kenyan homeland.

From Indonesia, critically acclaimed movies like Opera Jawa (Requiem from Java) by Garin Nugroho and Perempuan Punya Cerita (Chants of Lotus) by Ayu Utami, will be part of the roster.

Indonesian actress Dian Sastrowardoyo has been scheduled to take part in an exhibition of her new movie Drupadi.

Further information on movie and seminar schedules can be found at www.balinale.com or by calling 0818355544.

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved.