JAKARTA - The name Fero Walandouw is very closely related to Indonesian soap operas and films. Exploring acting since 2009 in the soap opera Cinta and Anugrah, this Manado-born man has pocketed 17 soap opera titles he has played. In addition, there are 13 film titles that he has played.
With this experience, Fero's acting is unquestionable. His latest acting can be enjoyed on the digital soap opera, 9 Bulan. This is the initial breakthrough for Indonesian soap operas broadcast on OTT WeTV.
"I see that this is the future of Indonesian soap operas. Young viewers of Indonesian soap operas now don't just watch free TV on TV. But they want to watch it on OTT with subscribe and pay," said Fero while talking to VOI at the WeTV office in Central Jakarta, June 2.
Not without reason when Fero said that. As a filmmaker, he knows the quality of soap operas 9 Bulan is better than soap operas on television. The long filming process, shooting that is not being pursued, and editing make the quality of this soap opera well maintained.
The soap opera 9 Bulan made a sweet note in its first week of airing. The four episodes that have been broadcast since 27 May immediately catapulted the soap opera starring Cita Citata, Fero Walandouw, and Pamela Bowie into the top 10 favorite series on WeTV.
This achievement made Fero feel happy and enthusiastic. "This week the soap opera 9 Bulan is broadcasting its fifth episode. The results from the first week of broadcasting episodes 1-4 are in the top 10, which is quite good. Well, we hope that the screening of this soap opera can bring in new viewers and new subscribers who use VIP access on WeTV," he said.
Unlike television which has a rating, the number of viewers of soap operas on OTT cannot be known. However, there are favorite shows that will appear on the homepage, competing with many series and films from within and outside the country.
Fero did not expect the soap operas he starred in to become favorites in Malaysia. "I didn't think Malaysia could be a favorite too. In fact, talking about OTT and TV that we have been living so far is quite different. Digitally, we can watch it anytime and anywhere," he said.
In the soap opera 9 Bulan, Fero plays Weli. Weli is an innocent man from the village, because of conditional love he must go to the capital to realize the conditional love.
"Each story has its own interest. The message to be conveyed in this soap opera is light, comedy, and also drama," said Fero.
Playing a funny character, according to Fero, is not an easy thing. "Because we make people scared and angry is easy. If it's comedy every scene and scene is a challenge how the actors have to make the audience laugh," he said.
Fero Walandouw admitted that he was enthusiastic in carrying out his role this time. "From the start I said this is the future of the soap opera industry, whether drama, comedy, religion can enter. And people can watch it anywhere and anytime, without a time limit. On the way home waiting for traffic jams, at home confused, people can watch," he explained. With the concept of a digital soap opera that was given enough time for its production, Fero said he was happy. "Being the beginning of the history of Indonesian soap operas entering the OTT, I am happy," he said.
Differences in Digital soap operas
The soap opera 9 Bulan is proof that Indonesian audiences need quality shows. By paying to watch, it shows that there is a demand for the Indonesian people to look for quality shows. So what is the difference between digital soap operas and television soap operas?
"Actually, there are several things that we have to look at from the TV industry. Because they must have data, have their own analysis of a successful show," he said.
For him, a career in the entertainment industry cannot be judged rigidly with numbers. "Look, we're in the art world right. Art can't be judged from 1-10. Art can be judged from whether people like it or not. Our success can be seen from people liking, loving, and accepting our soap operas or films, many who watch it, and become a topic of discussion in the community," he explained.
"If you want to say the difference is definitely from the process. I've experienced shooting during the day, at night it airs. From there you can see the name chasing airs. Indeed, the weakness of the catch-up system is that we want it or not. We are ready or not ready to be ready," he added.
This is sometimes the dilemma of Indonesian soap operas. Not infrequently, netizens protest against stories and scenes that they think are unacceptable. Some even threw insults at the KPI until they stopped broadcasting.
TV soap operas usually have no known ending. "When it's stuck, finally the soap opera will end when people are bored. Because no one is watching," said Fero.
Different from digital soap operas, with limited episodes, from the beginning the story is known at last. "As an actor, chasing soap operas can make the audience bored after playing the same character for a period of time. Not in digital soap operas. Let's say there are 17 episodes. It could be that the ending hangs, people will miss looking for a sequel to find out the role of the next actor," he explained.
In the process of filming, every scene can be maximized. "We in the field can package scenes to the maximum. We can use drones, we can be detailed. This is what is difficult to get in pursuit of broadcasts. Although the TV industry must be acknowledged that it has a formula not to bore the audience from minute to minute. And it must be studied with OTT because indeed there are some projects that are dragging, make you bored, skip it," he explained.
Fero admitted that he could not turn away from acting. Had become a host, Fero admitted that he missed being back with acting.
"Acting is awesome. You could say it's an adict. If we don't act, we feel the need to express what we're going through. I've been playing soap operas for 6 years non-stop, acting continuously. Even though I'm still playing technically, but I feel the need for acting for health my psychology," he explained.
Decades in the world of entertainment, Fero has undergone all the entertainment professions. "The acting is done, the host is done, the adventure host is done, the reality is done. If there is a chance in the future, I want to become a film producer. Maybe that will be later," he explained.
Apparently, Fero Walandouw was inspired by Reza Rahadian about his future career. "Yesterday, I shared with Reza when he was a director. It's a job that requires a lot of responsibility. That's why I want to be a producer," he said.
"Honestly, I want the crew to be prosperous. Because sometimes the cost of production is high, it's just that sometimes we have to judge our team as an asset that can keep the company going. When we take care of our team, they will take care of the project optimally. For me actually it's not a big thing but it can be done," he said.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
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