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Indonesian movies: Step to center stage
A massive campaign to instill pride in Indonesian movies starts this month, syncing up filmmakers and the creative industry with the government, businesses and moviegoers
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A massive campaign to instill pride in Indonesian movies starts this month, syncing up filmmakers and the creative industry with the government, businesses and moviegoers.
The campaign named 'Ayo! Nonton Film Indonesia' (Let's Watch Indonesian Films) brings together efforts to find solutions for the film industry, which has been slow in its development.
'It is the onset of strategic programs tailored to give solutions to the problems the industry is currently facing,' said movie director Lance Mengong, who chairs the organizing committee of the campaign.
In a joint press conference at the Culture and Elementary and Secondary Education Ministry, the committee presented the yearlong plan and plans for the more distant future.
The highlight of the campaign would coincide with the commemoration of the National Film Day on March 30 with the screening of Cahaya dari Timur: Beta Maluku (Light from the East: I'm Maluku) at the State Palace in Jakarta.
President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo would be in the audience.
The movie won Citra Award for Best Film at the Indonesian Film Festival last year.
'All major cinemas nationwide, Indonesian embassies, cultural centers and movie communities will screen Indonesian movies on that day,' said Lance. 'Airline crews will also promote Indonesian movies available in the in-flight entertainment options for the passengers.'
Lance's colleague Robby Ertanto Soediskam said that during the ceremony at the Palace, the committee would give out grants to 10 people from the film industry.
Director of culture and film development at the ministry Endang Caturwati said that 60 mobile cinemas would be dispatched to far-flung regions from March 23 to 30 for free screenings.
'Actors and filmmakers will also visit 21 schools that were the recipients of the government's cultural art and film laboratory facilities,' she said.
The campaign comprises four programs with the common goal of promoting Indonesian movies.
Aside from the 'Ayo! Nonton Film Indonesia' program, which aims to bring people back to the cinema and enjoy the experience of watching Indonesian movies, the committee has also insigated the 'Ayo! Stop Pembajakan Film Indonesia' (Let's Stop Indonesian Film Piracy) program.
For the antipiracy program, people from the film industry will raise people's awareness on copyright issues and advocate for more regulations.
Lucky Kuswandi, who leads the antipiracy program, said the committee had named the winners of the antipiracy themed short movie competition whose works would be screened at cinemas.
'We also circulated posters on the theme in various social media platforms,' he said.
In the longer run, the committee plans to translate at least 10 books on filmmaking into Indonesian this year alone and more for the coming years while writing up a series of eight textbooks to be written by seven practitioners in the field.
Other than the book project, the 'Ayo! Maju Film Indonesia' (Let's Improve Indonesian Film) will also hold a string of workshops for aspiring filmmakers.
'Many film and directing schools are centered in Jakarta. The book project will bring the aspiring filmmakers closer to the masters,' said movie director Joko Anwar, the program chair.
The ministry's director general for culture, Kacung Marijan, said the office would soon propose that the Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Ministry establish a new directorate on film.
'The directorate would focus on endorsing regulations regarding the film industry and facilitating creative people. The current office has limited tasks on documentation and film appreciation.'
He said that the government would also set up a national film museum to preserve the history of Indonesian film.
The last but apparently most arduous task of all was the preservation and restoration of film archives.
'A quality restoration may cost Rp 2 billion per film,' said actress and producer Wulan Guritno, who will be in charge of crowd-funding efforts to cover the expenses that included asking donors to 'adopt' a film.
'This program will take a long time to complete,' she said.
According to Lance, at least 70 movie titles from the archives would be digitized in the 'Ayo! Rawat Film Indonesia' (Let's Look After Indonesian Films).
Joko underlined that the programs were expected to continue in the long term.
'I expect the government to review and revise existing laws and policies regarding the film industry as a way to expedite the development of the industry,' he added.
'All shareholders have to work together and focus on problem-solving programs and be transparent about the programs.'
For more information, visit ayofilm.org
' Images courtesy of National Film Day
