Jogja-Netpac Asian Film Festival Kicks Off with Filipino Drama and Ends with Japanese Comedy-Drama

The 21st Jogja‑Netpac Asian Film Festival opens on Nov 28 in Yogyakarta with Lawrence Fajardo’s Filipino drama Silenced Nights, which already screened in Toronto and makes its Indonesian debut on opening night. The closing night on Dec 5 will feature Ueda Makoto’s Japanese comedy‑drama You Are the Film, a recent White Raven Award winner at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival.

Competition & Awards

The festival will show 254 films from 34 countries in both competitive and non‑competitive sections. Ten feature films vie for the Golden and Silver Hanoman Awards, judged by Dita Gambiro, Riar Rizaldi and Shan Zuolong. Two of those entries are debut works by women directors, including China’s A Girl Unknown by Zou Jing, which earned the Fipresci Prize at Cannes Critics’ Week, and Singapore’s Ah Girl by Priscilla Ang Geck Geck, a Youth Jury Award winner at Rotterdam and firebird‑award actress at Hong Kong. Other contenders are 9 Temples to Heaven, Black Coffee, Cherry and Virgin, Fruit Gathering, Hearing, Ria and Roid. The Indonesian Screen Awards will judge ten local titles across ten categories, with Sharifah Amani, Tanigaki Kenji and Yoon Ga‑eun on the jury. Notable entries are Eddie Cahyono’s Ibuku (a Busan Special Jury Prize winner) and Ravi Bharwani’s Secrets which will world‑premiere in Yogyakarta. Short films compete in the Light of Asia strand for the Blencong Awards, while debut and sophomore works are eligible for the Netpac Awards. Viewers can pick a favorite via the new Amar Bank Audience Choice Award.

Programs & Partnerships

Special sections include Panorama (12 features, 5 shorts), Asian Perspectives (26 features, 28 shorts), an Indonesian Film Showcase, and a Rewind strand revisiting Studio Ghibli classics and other Asian hits. The Cinematic Concert returns with Grrrl Gang performing live to five short‑film clips. New sponsors bring programs such as Undercurrent, showcasing Filipiñana and Fujiko, and TikTok Film Circle workshops. The JAFF Market runs Nov 28‑30 at Jogja Expo Center, featuring six industry programs.

Context

JAFF’s theme “Influx” reflects the festival’s aim to explore how rapid cultural shifts shape everyday lives, using cinema as a window into diverse Asian experiences.