Wiro Sableng (Courtesy of Lifelike Pictures)

Anticipation is high for action film Wiro Sableng 212, set to hit cinemas at the end of this year.

In addition to the legendary, fictional Indonesian hero himself with his strong fan base, the movie is also the first coproduction project in Southeast Asia for Fox International Productions (FIP), a division of Los Angeles-based 20th Century Fox Film Corporation. 

Lifelike Pictures producer Sheila Timothy said when she met with FIP, the company was considering entering three countries in Southeast Asia, namely Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia.

However, Wiro Sableng managed to lure FIP as the intellectual property was very familiar to several generations, including millennials.

“Gen X read the books, Gen Y watched the television series and millennials like to watch superhero films,” said Sheila during a discussion titled “Local IP Breakthrough in International Market” at Multimedia Nusantara University (UMN) in Serpong, Banten, on Tuesday.

As a partner, FIP was involved from the beginning of production. Sheila told the sharing session’s participants that the advantages of international coproduction were not only related to money. It gave filmmakers the opportunity to transfer knowledge and technology and, at the same time, allowed the movie to travel to other parts of the world.

“Lifelike Pictures will handle local distribution, while FIP will handle worldwide distribution,” said Sheila.

The sharing session also gave attendees a glimpse into the film industry.

Caravan Studio founder Chris Lie presented the works he created for Wiro Sableng, showing the opportunities available for graphic design students to be involved in movie production.

Meanwhile, Wiro Sableng director Angga Dwimas Sasongko enlightened students about the filmmaking process, addressing the importance of preproduction.

Angga said planning was crucial as it helped to ensure the film stayed on budget and on schedule.

Movie poster designer Alvin Hariz and Wiro Sableng production designer Adrianto Sinaga also shared how they developed the supporting visuals for the movie.

With regard to intellectual property, Sheila suggested to aspiring filmmakers who want to pitch their ideas to use email.

She explained that an email could be evidence of intellectual property belonging to them.

“However, you need to ensure that the intellectual property really belongs to you [prior to introducing it to other parties],” stressed Sheila.

The attendees, who were mostly students, eagerly participated in the sharing session.

Illustrator and comic artist Jasmine Hanny Surkatty told The Jakarta Post that the sharing session was insightful, hoping that once she sees the movie, she will be able to understand more about the intricate filmmaking process.

Besides the sharing session, the event also announced the winners of the Wiro Sableng poster competition.

The competition opened on Oct. 12 last year and closed on Feb. 6. Among the 350 posters submitted by students and professionals, Kevin Insan, Alodia Yap and Nalta 097 came out as winners.

First-prize winner Kevin Insan won an iPad Pro and a trip to Hewlett-Packard (HP)’s headquarters in Singapore.

Creative Economy Agency (BEK) head Triawan Munaf said he attended the event after seeing Wiro Sableng posters on Instagram, adding that it was the first time in Indonesia a movie involved public participation. 

Prior to the competition, Lifelike Pictures has been building up hype to the flick by releasing new posters for the movie, as well as introducing some of the warrior and villain characters. 

Among the stellar cast of actors and actresses set to be featured in the film are Vino G. Bastian, Marcella Zalianty, Rifnu Wikana, Yusuf Mahardika, Aghniny Haque, Lukman Sardi, Dwi Sasono, Happy Salma, Marcel Siahaan, Andy/Rif, Yayan Ruhian, Marsha Timothy and Sherina Munaf.

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