“Love Lost” screening at Jogja-Netpac Asian Film Festival

Just came back from the Jogja-Netpac Asian Film Festival in Yogjakarta, Indonesia!

My latest short film “Love Lost” was shown to a sold-out audience! It was a very good experience.

What is special about this festival is that there were a lot of student filmmakers from the different communities and regions of Indonesia. They all came to the festival to show their short films in a side bar program call “Forum Community”. There were about 100 of them and Garin Nugroho (the festival president) had to put them up at a hostel. The community filmmakers even invited me to screen my film at the hostel. It was a great experience even though they just had a projector, a loud speaker and a DVD player in the courtyard to screen my film. What I felt is that there is something bubbling among these student filmmakers. They don’t depend on anyone to make their films. I think this is a very good way of nurturing the next generation of Indonesian filmmakers. Below are some highligts from the festival:

The Opening Ceremony at the main festival venue, Taman Budaya

Forum on “Dream of a Nation: Cinema, Identity & Nationalism”. The speakers are L~R: Dharmasena Pathiraja (Sri Lanka Master Director), Sivamohan Sumathy (Sri Lanka Writer), Anis Baswedan (Indonesian Lecturer), Nuraini Juliastuti (Moderator), Garin Nugroho (Indonesian Director), Paolo Bertolin (Programmer from Venice International Film Festival)

During the screening of my film “Love Lost”

Some of the audiences at the screening of my film “Love Lost”

Photo op at Borobuda, the biggest buddhist temple in the world. From L~R: Warren Sin (Curator from National Museum of Singapore), Myself, Paolo Bertolin, Frida Farid (Hospitality from JAFF), Fadli Al-Akiti (Malaysian writer & film critic) & Yuni Hadi (From Objectifs Films Singapore)

Warren trying to touch the Buddha statue inside the Pagoda for good luck. It’s not easy!

Yuni also giving it a go!

Yuni & Garin Nugroho on a trishaw. The pic is quite blur but they seems to be having a blast!

Community screening for Indonesian Short Filmmakers at JAFF

The community filmmakers invited me to their hostel where they were put up to show my film! It was a great experience as it was just shown in their courtyard with a DVD player, a OHP screen and a beat-up speaker. We had a very lively discussion afterwards.

Having dinner at a traditional Javanese restaurant. The person sitting next to Warren is Azhar Rudin (Malaysian Filmmaker)

Waiting to get on the bus. Sitting next to Fadli is Ridla An-Nuur Setiawan (Producer from Bundung)

Myself and Frida

Press Conference for JAFF. From L~R: Budi Irawanto (JAFF Festival Director), Christine Hakim (Indonesian Actress) & Garin Nugroho

Myself & Garin Nugroho

More photo op at the last day of the festival

Closing Party_JAFF

►

JAFF Closing Party!