The 20th Indonesian Film Festival is set to take place from 8 May to 10 May at Melbourne’s ACMI. The subtitle for this year’s festival is Arunika: The Ascending Light of Cinema, foregrounding the continued evolution of Indonesian stories, history and culture through the medium of cinema. 

The Main Screening events will be accompanied by panel discussions between Indonesian filmmakers, industry experts and academics to discuss how Indonesian cinema has—and will continue to—evolve. There will be opportunities for Q&As and exclusive behind-the-scenes access to the filmmakers and their projects.

The Main Screening will begin with the Short Film Competition, for which submissions closed earlier this year. The winning short film will have the opportunity to be shown as part of the Main Screening and a monetary prize will be awarded to the winning filmmaker.

8 May will feature a screening of the film Rangga & Cinta, a musical retelling of Ada Apa Dengan Cinta? (What's With Love?) a classic Indonesian adolescent love story. 

9 May will feature a screening of Tunguu Aku Sukses Nanti, a family drama revolving around a main character confronting questions about his future after becoming employed as a luxury real estate agent.

On 10 May, the festival will close out with a screening of Agak Laen: Menyala Pantiku! The comedy film, which recently became Indonesia’s biggest box office success of all time, follows a band of inept detectives embarking on one final undercover mission to infiltrate a nursing home. 

The Indonesian Film Festival is a non-for-profit organisation strengthening relations between Indonesia and Australia through the medium of cinema, enriching our understanding of Indonesian history, art and culture through meaningful dialogue and exposure to the richness of Indonesia’s film industry.

Tiickets and more information are available here.