Courtesy of Deborah Gabinetti

As the internationally acclaimed Indonesian actress embarks on a colorful tangent about shooting the film Eat, Pray, Love and how it will showcase Indonesia’s filmmaking opportunities internationally, the American gently nods and smiles in agreement.

A longtime resident of Indonesia, first in Jakarta in the early 1990s before moving to Bali 12 years ago, Gabinetti is a veteran of the marketing world and knows the importance of getting the message across, hitting the salient points and making the audience sit up and take notice. It is at the core of her activities with the festival, which aims to introduce Indonesia’s potential to international filmmakers.

“Indonesia is perhaps the most diverse location in the world, there is very little visual background that cannot be provided for any action or era,” Gabinetti said. “And being so vast and geographically and culturally diverse means the country has a wealth of untapped resources, hidden filming locations and a talented pool of creative individuals.”

The Balinale International Film Festival, with Gabinetti working with partner Inneke Indriyani since 2007, has been the sounding board to spread the word.

“I always believed that a film festival creates a positive image of a destination and that one on Bali would expose the island and Indonesia’s many potential film locations to the global film industry,” she said.

In the first year, the women started small, reaching out to local filmmakers and past acquaintances for permission to use their films, and trying in the process to network and gain recognition on the international film festival circuit.

But a chance encounter with Christine Hakim on a Bali-Jakarta flight added another dimension to the festival. Gabinetti says she has always believed in fate.

“We spent the 1.5-hour flight talking about the festival and she passionately shared her ideas about the local film industry and the benefits of bringing film projects to the country.”

The three women formed the Bali Taksu Indonesia Foundation with these shared aims, and in the past few years the festival has gained in prominence, Gabinetti says.

“Now we have many films submitted from around the world, and the festival is gaining a reputation as the caliber of films grows. With this comes a networking arena for international filmmakers and the potential for future productions. We not only have created this arena for others, but the festival is now being looked at as a platform of interest for upcoming films and filmmakers.”

Eat, Pray, Love, which will open this year’s festival on October 12, is another chapter in the festival’s story. Gabinetti said she flew to Los Angeles when she learned that Plan B Entertainment had bought the rights to Elizabeth Gilbert’s book. Producers reportedly weighed using other locations to substitute for Bali, and Gabinetti says it was crucial to get them to experience Bali first-hand.

Five months later, executive producer Stan Wlodkowski called to express interest in a visit, and the festival with the support of the Culture and Tourism Ministry scheduled his trip to coincide with the second Balinale.

“He had the opportunity to meet the local film industry, see quality Indonesian films and visit the Bali locations featured in the book. We knew that once we got him here we had him hooked, but it meant us taking the first step.”

A month later, Wlodkowski returned with other important members of his team to scout locations and determine the logistics of shooting.

One film will not a thriving industry make, of course, and the focus on Bali may lead some to think that the famed island will continue to get the lion’s share of close-ups. Gabinetti counters that the festival has always been about showcasing Indonesia in its entirety, with promotions at international film industry events, trade shows and film festivals, whether it is for feature films, documentaries, TV series or commercials.

The smooth filming of Eat, Pray, Love in Bali is reaping benefits, she adds.

“This is a small industry and word is already out that we were able to successfully service a major motion picture. Scripts are being sent, and several projects are in serious discussion.”

Gabinetti’s experience in the film world, and also in Indonesia, would be worthy of its own screen treatment. A native of Springfield, Massachusetts, she loved acting from an early age.

She went to New York City in the early 1980s to pursue her acting dreams, but realized her true talent was on the other side of the camera, beginning as a casting director.

A few years later, a director friend was set to shoot a movie in Jakarta, and Gabinetti says she joked to him to call her if he needed help. As luck would have it, he did — and Gabinetti has been in Indonesia ever since.

“I was overwhelmed by Jakarta,” she said. “Although I had come from a big city, the smells, the sounds and the people were all so foreign to me, every day was such a challenge. Slowly I met some Indonesians who became lifelong friends, they remain an extremely important part of my life.”

In 1998, during the Asian economic crisis, job opportunities became harder to come by and Gabinetti decided to move to Bali, crossing over from the stereotyped expat spheres of the stressed-out Jakartan to that of the laid-back Balinese.

“Bali was a place of escape during holidays, but I never thought I would make it my home, just that it would be temporary until I could move back to Jakarta. That never happened.”

Like Mr. Right-seeking author Gilbert, Gabinetti was entranced by the island.  She says that living in Bali has given her a newfound focus, outside of her own needs, although naturally a big part of it remains squarely on film.

“Personally, I want to continue to grow through the experiences that the festival gives me, the interactions I have with those involved, and to see Balinale become a player on the international film circuit,” she said.

The Balinale 2010 International Film Festival runs until Oct. 17.

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