Indonesian Film Wins Locarno Film Festival Award; Actor: Govt Attention Needed

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Notable Indonesian actor Reza Rahadian in an interview on Sunday hoped the government can be able to provide equal attention to the Indonesian film industry as they do to achievers in olympic sports and math olympics. Especially after Indonesian director Edwin on Saturday won the Golden Leopard for the best picture at the Locarno Film Festival with 'Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash,’ a film Rahadian stars in.

In an interview with Tempo on August 15, Reza Rahadian argues that Indonesia is in a string of receiving ‘gifts’ “from the gold medal in the olympics, in film we got gold, math olympics also obtained gold,” he said. “The government, in this case President Jokowi could provide equal attention, and not just to one sector only.”

The committee chairperson of the 2021 Indonesia Film Festival reminded that the momentum where the highest set of prizes are won in a multitude of categories may not be repeated in the future. 

He believes that the sustainability of such accomplishments can only be possible through major support from the government. “Equal attention for us Indonesians who are ‘fighting’ in various sectors” he explained, “There are an abundance of Indonesian arts going global such as art of dances and theater that contribute a lot for Indonesia but once again the euphoria is not as huge as athletes winning in the olympics.”

Rahadian plays the role as Budi Baik in the film directed by Edwin, which in turn can be seen as a cultural diplomacy tool that can be a strong ‘diplomatic means’ at the global scale, which is not an uncommon strategy as it is practiced by the film industry in South Korea, China, India, and the United States. 

“Hopefully this win can spark the spirit of Indonesian filmmakers to remain optimistic in creating their work amidst tough times for us all,” he said. 

Following the Locarno Film Festival, Reza Rahadian revealed that 'Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash’ will go to the Toronto Film Festival and try its luck at the Oscars, which will depend on the Academy Awards committee.

ISTIQOMATUL HAYATI