Discoveries from Indonesia World Cinema

Tony and Enny start up a car repair shop and develop a sibling-like bond. After winning a race with Ronggur, Tony gets Ronggur's girlfriend Lidya as prize.

Three office workers were terrorized by the sudden sound of gamelan in their office. Uneasy, they approach the source of the sound and have to deal with something.

Hasya, a vocational high school graduate who is ambitious about her dreams. In the midst of her shortcomings, it is not an obstacle to pursuing her dreams. Being paralyzed and disabled is a challenge for her, to be able to continue pursuing her dreams. Ups and downs are no longer new, they have become food for her.

Leqost is a short promotional film that captures the everyday struggle of students searching for a place to live in an unfamiliar city. What begins as a simple need quickly turns into a tiring journey filled with uncertainty, limited options, and wasted time. Through a grounded and realistic visual approach, the film presents Leqost as a digital solution that connects students with affordable, comfortable, and reliable boarding houses. More than just a platform, Leqost becomes a bridge between people and the spaces they temporarily call home. Told in a concise runtime, the film highlights student routines, modest living spaces, and the quiet hope of finding a safe place to return to. It offers a contemporary portrait of how technology reshapes the search for belonging and everyday comfort.

A father's dilemma between protecting his daughter or his homeland.

Upcoming debut from an indie director, Mohd. Fikri Umam Alhady

One night, in a shopping mall parking building growing quiet, a man and a woman forget where they parked their car. The man leaves the woman behind to search for it. Suddenly, a bored elderly driver approaches her.

An intelligence agent, a target, and an ordinary citizen meet at the edge of a meatball cart. What will happen?

At 73, Rolly Wuisan, an Indigenous Minahasan from Sulawesi, has spent over 50 years as a traditional palm wine maker and steward of his land. The film follows Rolly’s daily routines as he walks a considerable distance from his home to climb palm trees up to 50 meters high and search for firewood to distill Captikus (Traditional Palm Wine from Minahasa). Rooted in ancestral knowledge, he believes that nature and humans are close relatives who must protect each other. By planting trees and safeguarding forests and rivers, he ensures the survival of future generations. Rolly: A Story of My Father is a meditative portrait of traditional craftsmanship, resilience, and the vital role of Indigenous wisdom in the fight against climate change.

This film reflects the journey of artist Teguh Ostenrik in uniting art and nature, especially the ocean. Troubled by the damage to marine ecosystems and longing for the kind of silence not found in galleries or studios, Teguh created ARTificial Reef, an underwater sculpture that is both beautiful and functional as a home for coral and marine life. Told through a personal and contemplative narrative, the film explores a creative process that blends art, science, and spirituality. Teguh collaborates with divers, scientists, and coastal communities, showing that art thrives through connection and ecological awareness.

A visual essay obsessed with lines in space—as form, boundaries, and language—that tells a story about a part of the history of solidarity through cinema. Will they have a second chance?

Plot under wraps

A short film by Ancha Latief

As a priest, Thomas is used to hearing the confessions of his parishioners. One afternoon, he listens to the lengthy confession of a girl who is deeply troubled, and over time, her distress begins to unsettle Thomas himself. Thomas finds himself drawn into his own labyrinth, reflecting on what he has done and the things he has let go. The confessional booth transforms into a space of silent inner rooms, with a single beam of light in the corner.

The Indonesia political turmoil of 1965 prevents Koesno from pursuing his dreams. His desire to dance clashes with political prejudice against dancers, thrusting him into dangers he cannot comprehend.

Weaving together interviews with political prisoners detained after the 1965 anti-communist purge in Indonesia with footage from an unmade film about romance between communist cadres, this multifaceted docufiction assemblage interrogates the historical limits of an eternal sentiment.

Singing star Natasha accidentally reveals to her manager that she intends to commit suicide to ensure everlasting fame after editing her new album in Bali. The supernatural inhabitant of room 327 decides to influence the outcome.

A Poet travelling to a city and read his mind and opinion about humanity.

This film narrates the story of a community on the coast of the Special Capital Region of Jakarta, experiencing the direct impact of land subsidence and global climate change that jeopardize their area. In an effort to face this crisis, they come up with a unique solution by using green mussels shells for raising the ground to prevent the disaster from engulfing their homes.

Tomorrow is Cody's birthday and Chloe prepares a drawing to surprise her brother. The lantern that she uses as a light source suddenly blows out.

This video is part of Massroom Project (2003) is a documentary video project on Jakarta. The videos consist of nine works that tells nine stories about living experiences in Jakarta. Those experiences pass on various aspects of the city such as: mass transportation, public space, marginalize traditional vendors, voice pollution in the city and survival in Jakarta. These nine works of the Massroom Project has been screened in various film festival and exhibiton in Indonesia and international. Some of the works achieve the nomination for best short filmwork at Oberhausen International Film Festival, Germany. Amongst the important festivals which screened the Massroom Project works is Indonesia Under Construction, The Netherlands; Seminar and Conference Responsibilities of Criticism 2008, USA; Insomnia 2005 - Institute of Contemporary Arts, England.

While taking care of his beloved pet bird named Jambu, Attal must face his older brother who keeps on taking away his money.

A story of a hero from Betawi (local utterance of Batavia, now known as Jakarta), not unlike other stories, such as Si Jampang and Si Pitung.

Anton ran away from home to study in Paris. After a scholarship scam, he ends up in Serpong. He meets Komang, who will then take him around to find Paris within Serpong.

Sinar is a security officer who assigned to get rid of some gangsters. Timur is both Sinar's bestfriend and one of those gangsters. Soraya was Timur's girlfriend, but ended up getting married with Sinar. A mysterious shooting from this mission raise a strong tension in the relationships among the three of them. Between husband and wife, betwen friends, and between old flames.

Two young men look for frog to get the magic number.

A filmmaker from Norway becomes an internet phenomenon and national celebrity in Indonesia after making a love song to the traditional cuisine nasi padang.

Although she is only an herbalist, Ginah is very attractive. She looks graceful and her friendliness results in many crushes on her.

After the leaving of their only one son to study in the foreign, a 25-years marriage faces their split, questioning themselves about love, desire, the passing of time and what really they want in life.

Faraz (Audi Marissa). beautiful, veiled, pious, graceful, but why she is pregnant? Amanda (Elyzia Mulachela) catches her having her pregnancy checked in midwifery clinic. Everyone immediately bullied Faraz, because Amanda posted a video of Faraz going into the clinic. Faraz remains silent for all the gossip that hit her. But the longer, the more disturbing. Especially when pregnancy gossip makes parents protest parents. Mrs Jasmin, the principal, does not take Faraz out, as when Amanda's best friend, Kinan, was pregnant. Amanda is getting annoyed, because she feels unfair. She is not allowed by his dad to go out with Randy. She was even sentenced to participate in the Pesantren Kilat. Amanda then finds a new fact: Faraz is married. Amanda grew increasingly tired and exasperated.

Often enough we find ourselves stuck with that empty spot in our soul, the spot we long to fill with the presence of others, and some noise, even. But as we struggle to get ourselves out in the midst of crowd, we then realise that more does not always mean merrier; sometimes it only escalates the loneliness, and all the noise around us cannot beat the loud sound of silence inside our head.

If I could turn back time, I would never fall in love with you.

Two filmmakers who always fail to market their films, try to find a way to success by doing black magic in their film production.

Ineke and Jamal, have already discussed their marriage plan, but disaster strikes. Ineke is hit by a horse, and faces the possibility of paralysis. Jamal, who has already applied for a job in the oil industry, has to leave her in the hospital and goes to Natuna island. Jamal never fails to send her letters, but his letters are always kept by Ineke’s mother. Doctor Yaman, who has just returned from Timor Timur, is challenged to cure Ineke. His effort is successful and he even marries Ineke who has forgotten about Jamal. Then Jamal returns home and is heartbroken when his younger sibling informs him about the situation. Ineke’s mother feels guilty.

Masked Monkey opens as a classic, romantic nature film - but this quickly changes when a monkey playing in the wild is captured and the scene shifts to hectic Jakarta. Street artists use monkeys in the most incredible shows.

Plot unknown

A woman trapped inside a locked room desperately attempts to escape, only to drown as the space slowly floods, before realizing that the key to her freedom has been with her all along.

Cahya must face the bitter reality of losing both of his parents at the same time. In his grief, he embarks on a journey of mourning in a funeral home, accompanied by the ghosts of his parents. Along the way, Cahya recalls memories of himself with his parents—from his childhood to the painful moments of growing up. These fragments of memory gradually guide him toward understanding the meaning of loss.

This work is an attempt to overcome alienation amidst the fragmented construction reality of everyday narrative. Rethinking the meaning of reflections and shadows, framed subjects, body movements, screen, as well as sounds that are constructed by connecting the expression of their existence with the history of representation in modern art.

Yanto takes his son Puput to school and stopped on the way at a small shop, where people put up lottery numbers. Yanto suspects that his motorbike’s license plate number will hit the jackpot. He tries to confirm asking the lottery number prediction to a madman who has lived under a tree for a long time. And it turns out that Yanto’s feelings were right, the madman also agreed that Yanto’s license plate number would come out that night. Without thinking, he bought the lottery number.

A football fan boy named Damar who also has achievements in his school. Although he is a smart and cheerful child, in fact his life is not as good as his achievements. With a simple house and meager food, Damar's family has difficulties in the economy. His mother has a lot of debt because the money she has is not enough to pay for school or pay for electricity, even Damar's mother gets a warning letter from Damar's school to pay off Damar's school fees so that Damar can take the UN.

A tribute to Vinz, Said, and Hubert.

Amelia, a mute high school student, faces challenges from her school peers while trying to publish her poetry to the school's bulletin board and stop the bullying she is facing.

A pair of roommates experienced a network failure around their apartment, when they needed the internet they found a network from the next room. Unfortunately they did not know the password, so they did various unethical ways to access the network.

Ryan is often the target of violence from his father and can only play with his toys in the middle of the night, the only time he feels safe, but one night he finds the presence of a mysterious figure who begins to interact with him.

a man realized being followed by an unknown thing after completing his college payment because he started to entering his 5th semester.

Miss Eloise, a melancholic property agent, is assigned to manage the vacation of a countryside apartment room due to the sudden disappearance of its last tenant, a blue collar worker at a neighbouring company. However, her whimsical decision to spend the night in the mysteriously abandoned room—fuelled by her desire to flee from her own soporific reality—slowly spirals into a feverish odyssey.

Emon (Ade Faisal), a rather spoiled, effeminate young man, falls in love with Prilly (Nurul Arifin), a model who, as it turns out, is having an affair with his father, Oom Eddy (Aom Koesman). Prilly is only really interested in getting a car and a house. She isn’t in love with Emon, but does enjoy his sense of humor. One day Emon catches his father with Prilly. His father begs Emon not to tell his mother. As time passes, it seems that Emon cannot get Prilly out of his mind. In the meantime, Emon’s discovery of her love affair with his father has woken Prilly up to the error of her ways, and she begins praying regularly and even apologizes to Emon. Emon then realizes that Prilly really wants to be with him. Happy ending.

An old woman who lives alone connects with an old man who has a reparation kiosk through obsolete things.

John is in love with an Indonesian woman and wants to marry her. But her father asks him for one thing. John has to be circumcised first. Kuncup tells us the story of John finding ways to solve this problem.

Farhan was born named Andin. batak's father treat Andin as man because he wants his name his broken. As an adult, Andin self-proclamaid as a man by the name of Farhan.