Loneliness during the pandemic becomes the central theme of “Gombal From Home”. The film tells the story of Eka, a young man who seeks attention and companionship through a dating application by using a fake identity. At first, the virtual relationship feels exciting and comforting, but the lies he creates slowly give rise to more complicated emotional conflicts.
Amid the rapid advancement of technology, there are still people who are not fully prepared to face it. This lack of preparedness is clearly portrayed in Palsubuuk!, a film that tells the story of the downfall of a meatball stall caused by a single irresponsible social media post. Through this film, we do not merely witness a cliché comedy-drama, but also a real issue that feels very close to everyday life.
In Bersama Membangun Negeri, the most disturbing thing is not merely about a corrupt politician, but about how Heni shows absolutely no empathy toward Satinah, casually asking her — an elderly widow in the village — to cry in front of a campaign camera. No longer done in secret, but openly, as if it were something completely normal.
Language is typically one of the first cues audiences use to determine a character’s identity in a film. The words someone chooses and the accent they carry can reveal their origins and personality. In this film, however, the language spoken is an entirely invented one, a fusion of Javanese, Japanese, and Latin that sounds distinctly foreign to the ear.
Comedy cinema is often associated with polished lighting, precise shot composition, and visually pleasing aesthetics carefully crafted to draw out laughter.
Seribu Kunang-Kunang di Jakarta is an adaptation of a poem by Joko Pinurbo, brought to life as a short film directed by Anindya Erviana Madalina. The film follows a poet who encounters a young Chinese-Indonesian girl carrying the moon on a night in May 1998, a year that left a dark mark on Indonesian history, defined by the inhumane tragedy that targeted the Chinese-Indonesian community as victims of racial violence.
