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ATAM: The Indonesian Film Festival (FFI) will bring more visitors to Batam during its next edition from Nov. 29 to Dec. 4, a local tourism official says.

Batam Tourism Agency head Guntur Sakti said the appointment Batam as the festival’s host was good news for the local population — and an honor, given that several cities wanted to host the event.

“A team is still surveying where to hold the gala in Batam. We are still perfecting our proposal. The actors and actresses who will come to Batam will certainly be a magnet for promoting tourism,” he said on Tuesday.

According to reports, the festival, which is the Indonesian film industry’s equivalent of the Academy Awards, will exhibit more than 50 local films. The FFI plans to exhibit three films in Bintan, Karimun and Batam, he added.

“The exhibition will be organized at housing complexes. It has never been held at previous film events,” he said. — JP