Cristian Mungiu’s ‘Fjord’ Claims Top Prize at Jakarta Festival
The Palme d’Or winner closed an eight-day event that awarded three Indonesian directors funding for their first feature films.
By Bianca Herrera ·
Cristian Mungiu’s “Fjord” won the Jakarta World Cinema Audience Award on Sunday. The film, which opened the festival, secured the event’s sole feature prize. It beat out other entries to take the top honor in front of a local crowd.
The festival also handed out cash prizes for first-time filmmakers. More than 300 short films were submitted between April and July for the KlikFilm Short Movie Competition. A jury of three industry professionals reviewed the entries. Horror director Joko Anwar, writer-director Gina S. Noer, and Khozy Rizal served on the panel.
Jusuf Witjaksono’s “Karim” took the top spot. The director will receive full production and distribution support for his debut feature from Falcon Pictures. Two other shorts earned similar backing. Adam Hasyim Al Raschid’s “Air Pangea” and Ali Yafie Muzaki’s “The Grave of Dreams” were named runners-up. Each director will get funding for a first feature from KlikFilm.
Zaky Alfawwaz’s “Callsh#t” received the short film audience award. Michael Juan Saptayada’s “OTW” won the Special Jury Prize. These awards conclude a competition designed to bridge the gap between short-form work and feature-length projects.
Frederica, the festival’s executive director, announced that over 25,000 people attended screenings during the eight-day run. The events took place at CGV Grand Indonesia. The crowd gathered for the final screening of Banjong Pisanthanakun’s Thai horror film “Inherit.”
Pisanthanakun and actor Davika Hoorne joined the audience for a question-and-answer session. Pisanthanakun noted that Hoorne’s wardrobe expenses were high. He cited a Gucci dress that cost 3 million baht, or about $89,500, as a major line item in the film’s budget.
