The 21st Jogja-Netpac Asian Film Festival (JAFF) will open with the Indonesian premiere of Lawrence Fajardo’s Filipino drama “Silenced Nights” on opening night. The festival will conclude with Ueda Makoto’s Japanese comedy-drama “You Are the Film,” which received the White Raven Award at this year’s Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival.
Running from Nov. 28 to Dec. 5 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, the festival will feature 254 films from 34 countries across various competitive and non-competitive sections. The event is organized under the theme “Influx.” Budi Irawanto, the festival president of JAFF, stated that the theme aims to explore how currents of change affect lives and mutual understanding. He noted that amid a social climate of uncertainty and instability, cinema provides a way to listen to different experiences and see issues from other perspectives.
Ten features will compete for the Golden and Silver Hanoman Awards in the main competition. The jury for this section includes Dita Gambiro, Riar Rizaldi, and Shan Zuolong. The contenders include two first features from women filmmakers: Zou Jing’s “A Girl Unknown,” which won the Fipresci Prize in Cannes’ Critics’ Week this year, and Priscilla Ang Geck Geck’s “Ah Girl,” which took the Youth Jury Award at Rotterdam. Other films in the main competition are Sompot Chidgasornpongse’s “9 Temples to Heaven,” Jeremias Nyangoen’s “Black Coffee,” Kawajiri Masanao’s “Cherry and Virgin,” Aung Phyoe’s “Fruit Gathering,” Lê Bảo’s “Hearing,” Arvin Belarmino’s “Ria,” and Mejbaur Rahman Sumon’s “Roid.”
For local Indonesian cinema, 10 films will compete in the Indonesian Screen Awards across 10 categories, including best film, director, original music, and poster design. The jury for this category consists of Sharifah Amani, Tanigaki Kenji, and Yoon Ga-eun. The field includes Eddie Cahyono’s “Ibuku,” which won the Busan Award Special Jury Prize at the 31st Busan International Film Festival, and Ravi Bharwani’s “Secrets,” which will have its world premiere in Yogyakarta. Other entries include Ferdinand Almi’s “Shattered Vows,” Ariani Darmawan’s “Jani Be Good,” and Andrew Kose’s “Mate’s Rate.”
