News

What’s Left of Us, an upcoming Filipino feature directed by Tyrone Acierto, has won the Taicca Focus Asia Co-Production Award in Udine, Italy.

The prize, given to a project that demonstrates the greatest potential for Europe-Asia collaboration, includes a cash prize of €10,000.

The film, currently in development, is set in a world ravaged by a mysterious disease that erases memories. The story revolves around a family who battle both the infected and their own fading minds as they attempt to survive and stick together.

Producer is Wilfredo Manalang, known for Duong Dieu Linh’s Vietnamese feature Don’t Cry Butterfly,...

Documentaries lead the spring 2025 funding session of Bangkok-based Purin Pictures, representing four out of six selected titles that will receive a combined $160,000 in grants.

Three documentary winners, which receive a production grant of $15,000 each, comprise Arts Centre, in which veteran documentarian Tan Pin Pin continues her exploration of Singaporean identity; Woven Bamboo Neighbour by Indonesia’s Gama Triono, who turns to filmmaking through social work; and Vietnamese director Nhan Tran’s And The Mountains Echoed, which follows three generations of Hmong women as they navigate life between village and city.

The fourth documentary winner, Baby Jackfruit, Baby Guava from Vietnam,...

Taiwan-based Aview Images has joined Indonesian filmmaker Wregas Bhanuteja’s third feature film “Levitating,” marking the company’s third collaboration with Indonesian productions, it was revealed at the Hong Kong FilMart.

The film follows the story of Bayu, an Indonesian teenager who aspires to become a shaman for local trance parties in a small suburban community where inhabitants derive pleasure from spiritual possession. The protagonist positions himself as a central figure in resolving the community’s crisis amid an impending eviction.

Rising star Angga Yunanda leads the cast, alongside Anggun C. Sasmi, Maudy Ayunda, Bryan Domani, and Chicco Kurniawan.

Bhanuteja’s debut feature “Photocopier” (2021) spent three consecutive weeks on Netflix’s Global Top 10 list for non-English films. His sophomore effort “Andragogy” premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and achieved substantial commercial success in Indonesia, attracting over 500,000 admissions.

“When I first saw ‘In the Year of Monkey’ at Cannes Critics...

Kang Bo’s Kingdom Of The Insomniacs has picked up the top Busan Award at the Asian Project Market (Apm) in South Korea.

The 27th edition of the Apm wrapped on Tuesday evening (October 8) after four days, taking place at the Asian Contents & Film Market (Acfm) during the Busan International Film Festival (Biff). A total of 30 feature film projects from across Asia met with potential finance, co-production partners and international distributors.

Scoll down for full list of winners

Chinese fantasy drama Kingdom Of The Insomniacs marks Kang Bo’s second narrative feature and follows mushroom farmers plagued with insomnia and an aging disease.

Kingdom Of The Insomniacs, directed by China’s Kang Bo, won the Busan Award at the close of this year’s Asian Project Market (Apm) at Busan International Film Festival.

Produced by Xie Meng, the project follows a group of mushroom farmers plagued with insomnia and an aging disease. After his father dies, a young member of the community tries to extricate himself from this wicked kingdom. Kang Bo is a documentary filmmaker whose debut narrative feature Family At Large, starring Hu Ge, is currently in post-production.

Hum, from US-Philippines filmmaker Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan, was the only project to win multiple prizes – picking up the Artekino International Award and the Sorfond Award. Produced by Hannah Schierbeek and Alemberg Ang, the project tells the story of a rodeo couple who are haunted when mysterious ecological changes threaten to destroy the stadium they live in.

This year’s Apm introduced two...

After three days of one-on-one meetings within the Asian Project Market, winners were announced at a ceremony in Busan, South Korea, on Tuesday evening.

The project market is held as part of the Asian Contents & Film Market, which is closely aligned with the Busan International Film Festival. Some 30 film projects were pitched by their directors and producers, seeking finance, co-production partners and international distribution. Market organizers reported that they facilitated 706 meetings.

“Kingdom of the Insomniacs” was the winner of the prestigious Busan Award. “Hum” from The Philippines was the only project to win multiple prizes.

Singapore-based producer Tan Si En, who previously produced Venice award winner “Don’t Cry Butterfly,” Sundance award winner “Pop Aye” and Anthony Chen’s “Wet Season,” notably picked up prizes for both her Apm entries, “Levitating” and “Crocodile Rock.”

“Kingdom of the Insomniacs” is a drama thriller set in an old forest farm, “where mushroom farmers...

Indonesian filmmaker Wregas Bhanuteja is in the process of directing “Levitating,” a film project that delves into the world of trance parties and spiritual exploration. The film, which is being presented at Busan’s Asian Project Market (Apm), aims to explore the nature of pleasure, obsession and human contentment.

Bhanuteja has already made a significant impact on the international film scene. After graduating in film directing from Jakarta Institute of Arts in 2014, his short film “Lembusura” (2014) competed at the Berlinale in 2015. He went on to win best short film at Cannes Critics’ Week with “In the Year of Monkey” (2016), and his short “No One is Crazy in This Town” (2019) competed at Sundance in 2020.

His feature film debut, “Photocopier” (2021), premiered at Busan in 2021 and swept the Indonesian Film Festival with 12 Citra Awards. His sophomore feature, “Andragogy” (2023), had its world premiere at Toronto in 2023, played Busan and is now available on Netflix...

Some 18 books, manga and webtoons hailing from outside Korea have been added to the Busan International Film Festival’s Busan Story Market. They join 29 previously announced pieces of IP from Korea and 30 Asian film projects selected for the Asian Project Market.

The overseas IP selections include ten from Taiwan spanning the drama and romance genres with elements of fantasy, thriller and science fiction, and six from Japan (five books and one comic) covering sci-fi, murder mystery, time travel and stage magic. Two more hail from France – one in the comedy genre, the other in the historical romance vein –marking a difference from previous years where French films for remake had been the focus.

This year’s Korean IP section for the Busan Story Market includes 11 books, eight webtoons, six web novels and four stories, selected from 237 submissions by 110 companies. “This selection process reflects a shift from previous years, where stories were more prevalent,...

Busan International Film Festival (Biff) has revealed 30 titles chosen for the 2024 Asian Project Market (Apm), including upcoming features by award-winners Kirsten Tan, Iqbal H. Chowdhury, Woo Ming Jin and Daishi Matsunaga.

The investment and co-production market, which runs as part of Biff’s Asian Contents and Film Market (Acfm), is set to take place from October 5-8 in Busan, South Korea.

Scroll down for full list of titles

This year’s Apm selection features an expanded variety of genres, including crime thrillers, horror, queer cinema, and animated films, alongside the more traditional selections of drama, comedy and romance. Organisers said...

Busan International Film Festival has revealed the 30 projects that have been selected for this year’s Asian Project Market (Apm), including several from Asian filmmakers who have previously had films selected for the Korean festival.

The line-up includes Dhakar Nagin, from Bangladeshi filmmaker Iqbal H. Chowdhury, who won Busan’s New Currents Award last year with The Wrestler. Also returning is Indonesia’s Wregas Bhanuteja with Levitating, after his film Photocopier screened in New Currents in 2021.

Other returnees include Japan’s Sotoyama Bunji with Life Redo List after Soiree screened at the festival in 2020, along with Asian Film Academy alumni Aigerim Satybaldy, a Khazakh filmmaker who is producing Leg from Uzbek filmmaker Shokir Kholikov; Sri Lanka’s Ilagno Ram with Rabbit Hole; and Myanmar’s Lin Htet Aung with Making A Sea.

Established filmmakers in the selection include Hong Kong documentary filmmaker Chan Tze-woon with Nothing Happened, Filipino indie filmmaker Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan,...

After his full-length debut, “Photocopier”, that came out in 2021, Wregas Bhanuteja decided to continue the exploration of current public issues regarding the use of technology and social media. However, in “Andragogy”, which premiered at the 49th Toronto International Film Festival, the main character is not a teenager, but a middle-aged teacher. Hence the English title, which means “the art of teaching adults or helping adults learn”, perfectly captures the film's message – in this rapidly changing world, people need to acquire new skills throughout their entire lives. The movie was met with critical acclaim as it received seventeen nominations at the 43rd Indonesian Film Festival, including Best Picture, and won two awards – for Best Actress, and Best Supporting Actress.

Andragogy is screening at Cinemasia

The story, written by the director himself, concentrates on Prani (Sha Ine Febriyanti). She is a school teacher recognized for her innovative disciplinary methods that help students correct their bad behavior.

Exclusive: Singapore’s Momo Film Co has boarded Indonesian filmmaker Wregas Bhanuteja’s third feature film, Levitating (working title).

Principal photography for Levitating is slated to start in the third quarter of this year in Indonesia. The film takes place in a small suburban area where pleasure comes from being possessed by spiritual beings. It follows 20-year-old Bayu, who aspires to be the shaman for regular trance parties and later emerges as a critical figure to solve the area’s crisis in the face of an impending eviction.

Besides Momo Film Co and Bhanuteja’s Rekata Studio, Siera Tamihardja and Iman Usman will also serve as producers on Levitating.

In 2016, Wregas became the first Indonesian director to win an award at Cannes Film Festival after clinching the Discovery Prize for his short film Prenjak. Bhanuteja’s feature debut, Photocopier (2021) premiered at the Busan International Film Festival and later recorded three...

Claudia Sanchez’s documentary Transmexico took the Audience Choice Award on Saturday at the Santa Barbara Film Festival, which revealed winners in its juried categories as it wraps its 39th edition.

The doc follows three trans women who challenge societal norms while inspiring change against daunting odds.

Other winners include Sophia Sabella and Pablo Feldman’s Edge of Everything, which took the fest’s Spirit Award for Independent Cinema; Nays Baghai’s Driving Into the Darkness as Best Documentary; and Wregas Bhanuteja’s Andragogy from Indonesia as Best International Feature Film.

The fest also bestowed wins on short films A Man’s Man (documentary), Area Boy (live-action) and On the 8th Day (animated), qualifying the pics for the 2025 Oscars.

“We are so grateful to our dedicated group of jurors for their fine selections,” Sbiff programming director Claudia Puig said as part of the awards ceremony, held at a breakfast today...

“TransMexico,” “Edge of Everything” and Andragogy” are among the winners of the 39th annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

The Sbiff, whose mission is to discover and showcase the “best in independent and international cinema,” has become one of the leading film festivals in the United States – attracting roughly 100,000 attendees for a packed week slatted with screenings of over 200+ films.

A panel of jury members selected the winners, which included Lesley Chilcott, Alex Keledjian, Chris Landon, Lael Loewenstein, Jacqueline Lyanga, David Magdael, Gail Mancuso, Greg Nava, Pituka Ortega Heilbron, Carla Renata, Gil Robertson, Ondi Timoner, Clay Tweel and Ali Wolfe.

“We are so grateful to our dedicated group of jurors for their fine selections,” Claudia Puig, Sbiff’s programming director, said in a statement. “The winning films tell stories that span the globe, from the magic of movie palaces in the Atacama Desert to the stunning mystery of ice caves...

From March 5 to 10, the 16th edition of the CinemAsia Film Festival will bring Asian cinema to Amsterdam at Studio/K, Rialto De Pijp, and Rialto Vu. Since CinemAsia's first edition in 2004, the Competition program has been at the heart of the festival. This year, the competition features seven titles from a new generation of filmmakers from China, Japan, Indonesia, India, Mongolia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. On March 10, the 2024 CinemAsia Jury Award winner will be announced during the closing ceremony, and the festival will conclude with the film Gaga by Golden Horse-winning director Laha Mebow, the first indigenous female director of Taiwan, who will be in attendance.

Seven competition films covering the diversity of Asia

In the Competition program, CinemAsia puts the spotlight on emerging independent filmmakers with a distinct artistic voice and cinematographic vision. The films showcase the wealth of themes and genres in Asian cinema and reflect a mosaic of cultural,...

The CinemAsia Film Festival in Amsterdam has unveiled titles from seven different Asian countries for its competition section.

The festival will play at the Studio/K, Rialto De Pijp and Rialto Vu venues March 5-10, 2024. The event will close with the out-of-competition screening of “Gaga,” a drama about indigenous communities in Taiwan, directed by Laha Mebow.

“Gaga” documents the challenges faced by a commune after the death of a respected tribal elder who, while alive, had held things together. Following his death problems that emerge include a land dispute, financial difficulties, an unwanted pregnancy and the risk of over-riding ‘Ga Ga’ or old tribal norms. It debuted at the 2022 Golden Horse festival and won the best director and best supporting actress awards. In 2023, it won a trio of awards including best narrative feature at the Taipei Film Festival.

This year’s seven competition titles include: “A Song Sung Blue,” by China’s Geng Zihan,...

Indonesia’s cinema admissions grew by 14.5% year-on-year to reach 114.5 million in 2023, compared to 100 million the previous year, according to local box office analyst Bicara Box Office. That figure puts the market around 24% below the pre-pandemic figure of 152 million admissions in 2019.

Despite having a slow start to the year, local productions picked up the pace from September onwards and ended 2023 with 53.3 million admissions for a 48% market share, according to Bicara Box Office data.

In 2022, Indonesian films racked up 57 million admissions and a 56.5% market share, a year of fewer Hollywood releases, which also saw the record-breaking success of MD Pictures’ Kkn Di Desa Penari, which raked in 9.23 million admissions to become Indonesia’s biggest local film of all time (the film was also re-released in an extended version at the end of 2022 and the two versions combined pulled in more than 10 million admissions).

MD Pictures also produced the top Indonesian film in...

Lila Aviles’ “Totem” has won the global feature award at the annual Jakarta Film Week.

The film previously won awards at the Berlin, Hong Kong, Durban and Beijing film festivals.

The direction award for best Indonesian feature film went to Jeremias Nyangoen’s directorial debut “Women of Rote Island.” The film bowed at Busan earlier in October.

The series of the year award went to “Teluh Darah,” directed by Kimo Stamboel, and the Jakarta Film Fund award was won by “Rabu yang Bahagia,” directed by Candra Aditya. The global short award for best international short film went to “Things Unheard Of,” directed by Ramazan Kılıç and the global animation award was won by “Mortelli, A Hopeless Case,” directed by Ben Fernández.

In the event’s Producers Lab program, the best project award was presented to Dewangkoro Rinugroho for his film “Partus,” which will receive a development grant from Indonesia’s Ministry of Education,...

Next Goal Wins (Taika Waititi, 2023).The lineup is being unveiled for the 2023 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival, starting with 60 selections from the Gala and Special Presentations programs. The festival takes place from September 7–17, 2023.Gala PRESENTATIONSConcrete Utopia (Um Tae-Hwa)Dumb Money (Craig Gillespie)Fair Play (Chloe Domont)Flora and Son (John Carney)Hate to Love: Nickelback (Leigh Brooks)Lee (Ellen Kuras)Next Goal Wins (Taika Waititi)Nyad (Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin)Punjab ’95 (Honey Trehan)Solo (Sophie Dupuis)The End We Start From (Mahalia Belo)The Movie Emperor (Ning Hao)The New Boy (Warwick Thornton) The Royal Hotel (Kitty Green)The Holdovers.Special Presentationsa Difficult Year (Éric Toledano, Olivier Nakache)A Normal Family (Hur Jin-ho)American Fiction (Cord Jefferson)Anatomy of a Fall (Justine Triet)Close to You (Dominic Savage)Days of Happiness (Chloé Robichaud)The Rescue (Daniela Goggi)Ezra (Tony Goldwyn)Fingernails (Christos Nikou)Four Daughters (Kaouther Ben Hania...

Patricia Arquette’s Gonzo Girl and Larry Charles’ Dicks: The Musical open the sections.

The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has unveiled the titles in its Discovery and Midnight Madness programmes, with the line-ups including Harmony Korine’s Aggro Dr1ft, Patricia Arquette’s Gonzo Girl and Molly Manning Walker’s How To Have Sex.

The Discovery line-up, designed to open a window on contemporary international cinema with first and second features from new filmmakers, comprises 26 titles from 25 countries, most of them world or international premieres.

As well as Arquette’s directing debut Gonzo Girl, with the actor also starring alongside Willem Dafoe,...

New films from Patricia Arquette, Larry Charles, Harmony Korine and Finn Wolfhard will screen in the Midnight Madness and Discovery sections of the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, TIFF organizers announced on Thursday.

Korine’s “Aggro DR1FT” and Charles’ “Dicks: The Musical” will screen in the Midnight Madness section, along with eight other films that also include Jason Yu’s “Sleep” and Wolfhard and Billy Bryk’s “Hell of a Summer.”

“Dicks: The Musical,” which TIFF Midnight Madness programmer Peter Kuplowsky called “bonkers and bawdy” in the press release announcing the lineups, will open the Midnight Madness section, while Weston Razooli’s “Riddle of Fire” will be the closing-night attraction.

The Discovery section will showcase 26 films from up-and-coming directors around the world. It will open with Arquette’s “Gonzo Girl,” which stars Willem Dafoe and Camilla Morrone (“Daisy Jones & the Six”) and is one of many TIFF titles from actors who have turned to directing.

The Toronto International Film Festival has today announced the lineup for two of its more unpredictable and interesting sections: Discovery and Midnight Madness. Billed as “the infamous,” this year’s Midnight Madness lineup features 10 titles, seven of which are world premieres. The Discovery lineup, which primarily includes world and international premieres, includes 26 titles.

Per TIFF, both “Midnight Madness and Discovery provide a cornucopia of original and unexpected work. Midnight Madness is a fan favorite, iconoclastic program highlighting the weird and the wicked, while the Discovery program offers a window to contemporary international cinema and introduces the public to first and second feature films from gifted new filmmakers.” The festival’s announcement also notes that 13 female filmmakers, representing 50 percent of the total program, are featured in this year’s Discovery lineup.

Those films include new offerings from Harmony Korine and Larry Charles, plus — as Peter Kuplowsky, TIFF International Programmer, Midnight Madness,...

by Joseph Leong

Premiering at the 26th Busan International Film Festival in 2021 and streaming on Netflix since January 2022, “Photocopier” (Penyalin Cahaya) is Indonesian film director and screenwriter Wregas Bhanuteja’s feature-length debut.

This mystery thriller follows student Sur, played by Shenina Cinnamon, as she seeks to discover the truth behind how photos of her at a party had circulated online. Having failed in her scholarship application as a result of said photos, Sur performs an investigation of her own after her claims are dismissed by the interview board and father, only to uncover a startling series of numerous victims who have fallen prey to the same fate. Told mainly from the perspective of Sur as she embarks upon her quest, viewers are offered a voyeuristic look into the lives of those she investigates.

While at times forcing the viewer to question if her methods are justifiable, Sur is nonetheless a...

Streaming giant staged its first-ever Indonesian slate event.

Netflix has announced its most ambitious slate of upcoming Indonesian films and series from local directors including Timo Tjahjanto, Kamila Andini and Joko Anwar.

The line-up of three features and four series were unveiled at Netflix’s first-ever Indonesian slate event, held in Jakarta, with the local-language original set for release in 2022 and 2023.

First up is feature The Big 4, marking the first action comedy from Timo, who is one half of the Mo Brothers known for their action thrillers Killers and Headshot. In the upcoming film, set for release toward the end of this year,...

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) is a regional intergovernmental organization comprising of ten countries in Southeast Asia, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam. Evidently, the movie industry of these countries does not yet reach the size of Japan, India and S. Korea for example, but through the support of foreign companies (S. Korea has invested heavily in Indonesia that last few years for example), streaming services and a number of European festivals, along with the continuous support of Busan, a number of local filmmakers have managed to produce movies of great quality. 25 of the best, we present in this list.

Without further ado, here are the best Asean films of 2021, in reverse order. Some films may have premiered in 2020, but since they mostly circulated in 2021, we decided to include them.

25. Death Knot

In the end, “Death Knot” is a horror movie which relies...

Ten works in progress also screened at Coming Soon showcase.

Laura Samani’s Italian-Slovakian project Small Body and Mikko Myllylahti’s Finnish drama The Woodcutter Story received the TorinoFilmLab’s two prestigious €40,000 production awards on the final night of Tfl’s Meeting Event which marked the culmination of the 11th edition of the TorinoFilmLab.

The event presented all of the projects developed at Tfl through the year and took place from November 23-24.

Four co-production awards of €50,000 each were also presented to Mounia Akl’s Costa Brava, Lebanon (Lebanon-France-Sweden-Norway), Felipe Gálvez’s The Settlers (Chile-Argentina-Denmark), Jianjie Lin’s Blood And Water...

The Singapore International Film Festival (Sgiff) is wrapping up its exciting 27th year and recently announced the winners of its Silver Screen Awards.

Asian Feature Film Competition

Bagging the Best Film award in the feature category is Nepalese drama “White Sun” (Seto Surya). Directed by Deepak Rauniyar, “White Sun” is an exceptional portrait of post-civil war Nepal. It is an inspiring film that champions a better and more peaceful future for children.

Wicaksono Wisnu Legowo’s debut picture “Turah” was given Special Mention by the jury. Set in a small village struggling to survive, this Indonesian film is a poignant exploration of corruption and hypocrisy in society.

Bangladeshi feature “Live from Dhaka” scored the Best Director award for Abdullah Mohammad Saad and Best Performance for Mostafa Monwar. Saad’s debut follows a partially handicapped man who wrestles between morality and self-preservation.

Southeast Asian Short Film Competition

Wregas Bhanuteja’s “In...

White Sun wins key award at the 27th Singapore International Film Festival.

White Sun won best film in the Silver Screen Awards at the 27th Singapore International Film Festival.

The second feature of Nepalese director Deepak Rauniyar is about a Maoist who returns home to bury his father.

The jury found it “an exceptional and incisive film about civil war and memory that encapsulates the never-ending conflict that is the state of the world today, with a message of hope that a different future for all of us can be possible through our children”.

Abdullah Mohammad Saad was named best director for his debut feature Live From Dhaka, which also took best performance for actor Mostafa Monwar. Shot in grainy black and white, it tells the story of a partially handicapped man who lives his days in anguish as he tries to find a way to leave Dhaka.

A special mention went to Turah, the debut feature...