Following In South Korea's Footsteps, Indonesia Relys On Films For Cultural Promotion

Minister of Culture Fadli Zon after a meeting with the delegation of the film maker "Women From Rote Island" at Nusantara III Building, Parliament Complex, Senayan, Jakarta. (ANTARA / Princess Hanifa)

JAKARTA - Minister of Culture Fadli Zon expressed the power of film as a tool for promoting culture and cultural diplomacy. He called film the most effective medium to introduce Indonesian cultural wealth to the international community.

"This film is also very important as a cultural promotion, as a means of cultural diplomacy," he told ANTARA after meeting with the delegation of filmmakers "Women From Rote Island" at Nusantara III Building, Jakarta, as quoted by Antara.

Fadli called South Korea an example of a country that has succeeded in using film works as a tool for cultural penetration to various parts of the world.

According to him, Indonesia can carry out similar steps, displaying cultural themes in film works to advance national culture and promote it to other countries.

Fadli said that the Ministry of Culture is committed to supporting the making of cultural-themed films to promote the uniqueness of Indonesian culture to the international community.

"With films, we not only introduce culture, but also show strong national identity in the midst of the world," said Fadli.

According to him, the ministry will prepare support that includes increasing local filmmaker capacity and facilitation to expand the distribution of culture-based films to the global market.

The film "Women From Rote Island" directed by Jeremias Nyangoen is considered one of the Indonesian films with cultural backgrounds that can be used as a cultural promotion tool.

This film received four awards at the 2023 Indonesian Film Festival, namely the best long story film category award, best director (Jeremias Nyangoen), best original screenwriter (Jeremias Nyangoen), and best cinematographic director (Josep Christoforus Fofid).

The Indonesian Oscar Selection Committee has designated the film "Women From Rote Island" as the work to be proposed to be included in the competition for obtaining the Best International Feature Film award at the Academy Awardske-97 event in 2025.