Jakarta World Cinema: Festival plans return of international First Feature Competition

Shandy Gasella, the director of Jakarta World Cinema, announced that the festival will revive its First Feature Competition for the 2027 edition. The category will accept submissions from filmmakers worldwide and will be evaluated by a jury that includes members from outside Indonesia. This marks a shift from previous years, during which the panel consisted solely of local judges.

Gasella told Variety that the competition was put on hold for the current season because the team found it difficult to assemble a qualified international jury. The organizers intend to select next year’s judges based on strong filmographies. This approach is designed to ensure the competition serves a global audience of emerging directors rather than just those from the domestic market.

The festival operates in the gap between Jakarta Film Week in October and the Jogja-Netpac Asian Film Festival at the end of November. Frederica, the executive director of Jakarta World Cinema, stated that the lineup consists of 80 to 90 percent award-winning films from major international festivals. These include titles from Cannes, Berlin, Venice, and Sundance.

Frederica explained that the acquisition team travels to film markets in Berlin, Toronto, and Cannes to select these works. The goal is to present the year’s most important art films to local audiences. This year’s program includes 102 theatrical titles, which is the highest number in the festival’s history. The total program comprises 207 films.

Daniel Irawan, the programming director, said the team aims to expand the lineup further next year. They are working with their main venue, CGV Grand Indonesia, to increase audience capacity. The festival also features a short film competition that took place in June. That competition received more than 300 entries from professionals, amateurs, and students.

All 30 competition titles and 20 non-competition titles on the shortlist will screen during the festival. Awards for the best short film and the audience choice will be announced on the closing day. The winner of the best short film prize receives full funding from KlikFilm for the production and distribution of a debut feature.

Indonesian Culture Minister Fadli Zon confirmed that the festival is backed by Dana Indonesiaraya. This is a matching fund shared by the government and the film industry. The Jakarta edition closes on November 7. The same program will then travel to Bandung World Cinema and Malang World Cinema, where local extensions will run from November 14 to November 21.