Jakarta Film Week 2024 Closes with A Prestigious Awarding Ceremony and Screening of Closing Film Don’t Cry, Butterfly

Jakarta, 27 October 2024 – Jakarta Film Week 2024 closes on Sunday, 27 October 2024, full of celebratory spirit through the Closing Ceremony attended by key figures in cinema, filmmakers, and hundreds of enthusiastic viewers. Fadli Zon, the Minister of Culture in Indonesia opens the ceremony with a speech of appreciation and support for this festival. 

“The new government has a commitment to drive our cultural endeavours forward, especially in cinema. Jakarta Film Week has become a great forum for introducing Indonesian films to the international scene,” he says. “We from the Ministry of Culture will support and facilitate the development of Indonesia’s film industry, so that films become an integral part of our culture as well as an international diplomatic tool,” he adds.

The Head of Tourism Industry of DKI Jakarta, Iffan, also praises the festival. “Jakarta Film Week can be summarized in two words: absolutely amazing. The audience have given us nothing less than their biggest welcome for the whole week. Seeing this, we can hope for a much more enthusiastic energy next year,” he says.

Ever since the festival’s debut, there has been a steady increase in enthusiasm. It is no wonder that in this fourth year, film practitioners and cinephiles look forward to Jakarta Film Week.

Rina Damayanti, the Festival Director, highlights the young crowd’s enthusiasm towards Jakarta Film Week has grown. “This year, we are seeing more than 6,000 visitors attending the festival during its five days, showing how important this space is for new generations to learn, watch, and find meaning in films,” she explains.

A Prestigious Awarding Ceremony at Jakarta Film Week 2024

After the opening ceremony of that night, the awarding ceremony makes a stage for achieved filmmakers in various categories, such as Global Feature Award, Global Short Award, Global Animation Award, Direction Award, Jakarta Film Fund Award, and Series Of The Year. Industrial applied programs also announce the awardees for the Producers Lab and Pitching Forum.

The Global Feature Award falls to Memories of a Burning Body by Antonella Sudasassi Furniss, from Costa Rica and Spain. “This film connects the lived experience of a woman with cinematic courage to amplify a woman’s voice in a world that seeks to stifle it. The judges have decided to award this film due to its powerful endeavor to touch its audience and encourage them to be reconnected with familial values,” explains the team of judges, composed of Bradley Liew, Dominique Welinski and Silvia Wong.

The Jakarta Film Fund Award is given to If You’re Happy, I’m Happy by Mauliya Maila, from Indonesia. According to the judges, “This film is about a family drama with universal elements in a local context, complex but also told in a simple, beautiful manner. Judges have called this film an honest family drama and full of hope, able to touch its audience’s hearts with a strong, yet down-to-earth approach.”

Other than that, here are the other awardees at Jakarta Film Week 2024: Global Short Award is won by An Orphanage of Memories; Global Animation Award won by It Shouldn’t Rain Tomorrow; Direction Award won by Yohanna; and Series of The Year won by Cinta Pertama Ayah. Special Mention Direction Award falls to Suzzanna: The Queen of Black Magic.

This year there have been 3 Selected Participants Producers Lab who will receive the opportunity to attend Platform Busan in Busan International Film Festival 2025, who are:

• Push Rank – Producer: Andreas B. Sihombing
• To My Dearest, My Dear – Producer: Bela Nabila
• Resepsi Pertama Bapak – Producer: Wildan Aji Gumelar

The Development Grant is awarded to the project Father Figure which is produced by Muhammad Athhar Amputra who will receive funding for their project’s development. Yulia Evina Bhara and Tan Si En, mentors in Producers Lab, say, “We are seeing a growth in young producers today and how they’ve flourished within the short amount of time. And the winner of this development grant is a young producer who innovatively engages with the theme of parent-child relationships.”

In addition to the Producers Lab, the Pitching Forum program, presented by the Directorate of Film, Music, and Media of the Ministry of Culture, also awarded five selected projects. Two selected projects received a Development Grant from the Directorate of Film, Music, and Media of the Ministry of Culture, one project received a Development Grant from the National Talent Management, and two other selected projects received a Talent Development Grant from the National Talent Management.

Three of these projects received a Development Grant, which supports the project’s development, while the other two projects received a Talent Development Grant, a grant given to individuals with talent in order to support them developing their projects. Here is the list of award-winning projects:

•   Talent Development Grant:

○        Maria – Filmmaker: Manuel Alberto Maia, Damar Ardi, Perlita Desiani

○        Happy Happy Family – Filmmaker: Andrew Kose, Evi Cecilia

•   Development Grant:

○        The Heirlooms – Filmmaker: Devina Sofiyanti, Giovanni Rahmadeva

○        First Breath After Comma – Filmmaker: Jason Iskandar, Florence Giovani Chandra

○        Senior’s Spells – Filmmaker: Hilman Mutasi, Robby UI Pratama

“We hope this support can help filmmakers produce more of the supporting materials needed to access larger forums, markets, and secure co-production deals in the coming year,” said the Pitching Forum jury, which includes Edwin Nazir (Indonesian Film Producers Association), Jongsuk Thomas Nam (Bifan Plus, Bucheon International Film Festival), and Gayatri Nadya (Festival Manager, Jakarta Film Week).

Closing Film Jakarta Film Week 2024: Don’t Cry, Butterfly

The highlight of the closing ceremony was the screening of Don’t Cry, Butterfly, directed by Duong Dieu Linh. This film, which previously won an award at the 2024 Venice Film Festival, has a special connection to Jakarta Film Week, as Yulia Evina Bhara, a mentor of the Producers Lab, also served as a co-producer on the film. The screening of Don’t Cry, Butterfly provided a perfect ending, drawing extended applause from the audience.

Family Program and Other Collaborations

In addition to the Closing Ceremony, the final day of Jakarta Film Week was filled with exciting family activities thanks to a collaboration with Pinkfong. The screening of Bebefin and activities like face painting, temporary tattoos, and colouring entertained families attending the festival.

The festival also featured a collaboration with the Directorate of Film, Music, and Media of the Ministry of Culture through the Family Time screening program, showcasing Desa Timun (Indonesiana TV), a program focused on family-friendly content.

Jakarta Film Week 2024 concluded with gratitude and hopes for a brighter future for Indonesian cinema. This festival served as a meeting point for the younger generation and industry professionals, opening doors to global collaborations and proving that Indonesian films have the strength to compete on the international stage.

For more information about Jakarta Film Week 2024, visit www.jakartafilmweek.com and follow us on social media @jakartafilmweek. See you next year!

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