Cultural Diplomacy of Indonesian Cinema at the Cannes Film Festival 2025: Strategic Meetings and Promotion of Indonesian Intellectual Property

Cannes, May 19, 2025 — The Indonesian delegation continues its strategic efforts at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival with a series of important activities aimed at strengthening Indonesia’s position in the global cinema landscape.

Today, Indonesia’s Vice Minister of Culture attended the CNC x EFAD Talks in AFAN Roundtable, a forum organized by the Centre National du Cinéma et de l’image animée (CNC) in collaboration with the European Film Agency Directors Association (EFAD) and the Asian Film Alliance Network (AFAN). During this event, Indonesia’s representatives sat alongside policymakers from Southeast Asian and European countries to discuss cross-regional collaborations, the sustainability of the film industry, and the mobility of creative talents.

After the forum, the Vice Minister of Culture also held a bilateral meeting with CNC and representatives from four friendly countries: the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. This meeting discussed the potential for co-productions and cross-border film distribution, which is expected to expand access for Indonesian filmmakers to international festivals and cinemas.

“The meeting with CNC and AFAN was successful, where the participating countries expressed high appreciation for Indonesia’s film industry. This recognition is based on outstanding achievements in domestic film ticket sales, total audience numbers, and the quality of national film productions. During this event, I mentioned that Indonesia is considered a leading country in Southeast Asia in the film industry,” said Giring Ganesha, the Vice Minister of Culture of Indonesia, regarding the activities at Cannes.

“For CNC, the Ministry of Culture is exploring future-oriented collaborations. The proposed cooperation agreement covers various aspects, including the exchange of experiences and best practices, strengthening institutional capacity, facilitating professional exchanges, co-production collaborations between creators and producers from Indonesia and France, knowledge sharing on archiving, restoration, digitalization, and distribution of film heritage, as well as the development of educational programs and public access, and enhancing international participation. If everything goes as planned, the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with CNC will take place in December at the JAFF Market,” he continued about the strategic collaboration.

Meanwhile, the Deputy Governor of Jakarta, Rano Karno, arrived in Cannes and made a brief visit to the Jakarta Indonesia Pavilion at the Marche du Film. This visit marks the support of the Jakarta Provincial Government for strengthening the Jakarta film ecosystem as part of the vision to make Jakarta a City of Cinema, ahead of the city’s 500th anniversary celebrations in 2027.

During his visit to the pavilion, Rano Karno emphasized that Jakarta’s participation in the Cannes Film Festival is a serious commitment from the government to advance the national film industry. Jakarta is also ready to expand its global network and open up strategic collaboration opportunities for the advancement of the domestic film industry. Specifically, he stated that the “Jakarta City of Cinema” campaign will be officially launched ahead of Jakarta’s 500th anniversary in 2027.

“This is proof of Jakarta’s seriousness in building a cinema city. Our presence at this festival is the first step to expanding our international network. Moving forward, Jakarta will also form the Jakarta Film Commission to support the creative industry in the film sector,” said Deputy Governor Rano Karno.

The Indonesian Pavilion also became a strategic space for promoting and exchanging Indonesia’s intellectual property. In the special Showcase Indonesian IP in Marche du Film session, the delegation introduced adaptation projects from national comics such as Bandits of Batavia, Locust, and Jitu, as well as featured films like Pangku, Jumbo, and Sleep No More. This showcase demonstrated Indonesia’s creative ecosystem’s readiness to compete globally with original and promising content.

In the AFAN Talks held on May 15, 2025, Indonesia participated in a panel discussion with various film stakeholders from Asia and Europe. This forum featured speakers from CNC (France), EFAD (European Film Agencies Association), and delegations from Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam. Indonesia was represented by producer Meiske Taurisia as the moderator and Mia Santosa, representing Visinema.

The Indonesian representatives highlighted the importance of building cross-regional policy collaborations to support film funding, distribution, and talent exchange between Asia and Europe. The discussion also spotlighted the potential of Southeast Asia as a global creative production hub, with Indonesia being a key player due to government support and the involvement of the independent film community.

Mia A. Santosa, Chief of Staff at Visinema, shared, “It is an honor for me to represent Visinema in this important discussion about the realities of being an independent producer in Asia. As an Indonesian film producer, Visinema is committed to being a game-changer by presenting quality content across genres, despite various challenges from start to finish. I believe that deep collaboration, both domestically and between AFAN member countries, can be the key to advancing the film industry ecosystem in each market, and open the door for Asian works to reach global audiences.”

In another program, Indonesian producer Yulia Evina Bhara has also begun her role as a jury member in the Semaine de la Critique (Critics Week) section of the Cannes Film Festival 2025. Yulia joined fellow jurors Jihane Bougrine, Josee Deshaies, Daniel Kaluuya, and Jury President Rodrigo Sorogoyen.

“Semaine de la Critique is a very special section, as from thousands of applicants, they only select seven feature films and 10 short films for competition. Currently, I, along with the other four jurors, have started watching the films in the competition, and we will soon be deciding on the awards,” concluded Yulia Evina Bhara.

The various activities of the Indonesian Delegation at the 2025 Cannes International Film Festival will contribute to strengthening Indonesia’s film industry, both through collaboration, partnerships, and international networking, which could open up future cooperation opportunities.

List of Indonesian Film Projects and Intellectual Property at Marche du Film & Cannes Film Festival 2025:

1. Renoir (co-production film from Japan, Indonesia, France, the Philippines, and Singapore, competing in the main program for the Palme d’Or).

2. Pangku (participating in the Hong Kong Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) Goes to Cannes program).

3. Jumbo (marketed by Magic Fair, USA).

4. Sleep No More (marketed by Showbox, South Korea).

5. Mortician (marketed at Marche du Film).

6. Ikatan Darah (marketed at Marche du Film).

7. Timur (marketed at Marche du Film).

8. Legenda Kelam Malin Kundang (marketed and collaborated with Barunson E&A, South Korea).

9. Sijjin (marketed and collaborated with Barunson E&A, South Korea).

10. Rangga & Cinta (marketed and collaborated with Barunson E&A, South Korea).

11. A film about Rose Pandanwangi (Director & Producer Razka Robby Ertanto participated in the Producers Network program at Marche du Film).

12. Jitu comic (presented in the Asian IP Adaptation: Intro Talk & Pitching Session by JAFF Market & VIPO).

13. Locust comic (presented in the Asian IP Adaptation: Intro Talk & Pitching Session by JAFF Market & VIPO).

14. Bandits of Batavia comic (presented in the Asian IP Adaptation: Intro Talk & Pitching Session by JAFF Market & VIPO).