These are ten feature films you shouldn’t miss at the Jakarta Film Week which will take place from October 25 – 29, 2023 in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Beyond Utopia by Madeleine Gavin – USA | 2023 – 115 minutes
Hidden camera footage augments this perilous, high-stakes journey as we embed with families attempting to escape oppression, ultimately revealing a world most of us have never seen. (JFW 2023)

Trailer:

Her Hobby by Ha Myung-Mi – Korea |2023 – 118 minutes
Jeong-In recently divorced a violent husband and moved back to her hometown. While suffering from nosy villagers, she was drawn to Hye-Jung, a newcomer to the town, and the two young women soon became closer. Hye-jung’s freewheeling and confident character inspired Jeong-in to break free of her wretched life. One day, Hye-Jung suggested that Jeong-in share a ‘hobby’ with her, and now, their bloody hobby is about to begin. (JFW 2023)

I haven’t Done Anything by Park Sang-Min – Korea |2023 – 80 minutes
Oh Tae-Kyung, once an up-and-coming actor, starts a YouTube channel as a breakthrough. He starts to produce content where he grants people’s wishes, inspired by the movie OLDBOY. One day, with a hefty sum of money, a subscriber asks him to find out the story of a man standing alone with a picket that says, “I HAVEN’T DONE ANYTHING.” However, the guy remains in endless silence. When Tae-Kyung is about to give up, he comes across the picket guy’s sister, and she tells him what had happened. As he goes closer to the truth, the excitement of unraveling the story turns out to be a shocking twist. (JFW 2023)

If only I could hibernate by Zoljargal Purevdash – Mongolia, France, Qatar, Switzerland | 2023 – 98 minutes
A poor but prideful teenager, Ulzii, lives in the yurt area of Ulaanbaatar with his family. He is a physics genius and is determined to win a science competition to earn a scholarship. When his mother finds a job in the countryside, she leaves him and his younger siblings to face a harsh winter by themselves. Ulzii will have to take a risky job to look after them all and keep his home heated. (JFW 2023)

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Past Lives by Celine Song – USA, Korea | 2023 – 106 minutes
Nora and Hae Sung, two deeply connected childhood friends, are separated after Nora’s family emigrated from South Korea. Two decades later, they are reunited in New York for one fateful week as they confront notions of destiny, love, and the choices that make a life in this heartrending modern romance. (JFW 2023)

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Terrestrial Verses by Ali Asgari & Alireza Khatami – Iran | 2023 – 77 minutes
Terrestrial Verses follows everyday people from all walks of life as they navigate the cultural, religious, and institutional constraints imposed on them by various social authorities, from school teachers to bureaucrats. These stirring vignettes, humorous and affecting, capture the spirit and determination of people amidst adversity, offering a nuanced portrait of a complex society. (JFW 2023)

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The Breaking Ice by Anthony Chen – China | 2023 – 97 minutes
In cold wintry Yanji, a city on China’s northern border, young urbanite Haofeng, visiting from Shanghai, feels lost and adrift. By chance, he goes on a tour led by Nana, a charming tour guide who instantly fascinates him. She introduces him to Xiao, a personable but frustrated restaurant worker. The three bond quickly over a drunken weekend. Confronting their individual traumas, their frozen desires slowly thaw as they seek to liberate themselves from an icy world. (JFW 2023)

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The Eternal Memory by Maite Alberdi – Chile | 2023 – 83 minutes
Augusto Góngora, a veteran Chilean journalist and prominent chronicler of the crimes of the Pinochet regime, and Paulina Urrutia, actress, activist, and politician, have been a tight-knit loving couple for over 20 years.

Augusto was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s eight years ago. Paulina’s uncompromising dedication and Augusto’s fierce fight to hold on to his identity is a deeply affecting testimony to their love.

THE ETERNAL MEMORY is both an inquiry into human dignity in old age and adversity and into the mechanisms of individual and collective remembrance. What – and who – do we recall from our past? Why do we forget or suppress certain memories, and what effect does this have on a person, as well as on an entire country? (JFW 2023)

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Tiger Stripes by Amanda Nell Eu – Malaysia, Taiwan, Singapore, France, Germany, Netherlands, Indonesia, Qatar | 2023 – 95 minutes
The first amongst her friends to hit puberty, Zaffan, 12, discovers a terrifying secret about her body. Ostracised by her community, Zaffan fights back and learns that to be free, she must embrace the body she feared, emerging as a proud, strong woman. (JFW 2023)

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Women from Rote Island by Jeremias Nyangoen – Indonesia | 2023 – 106 minutes
Orpa’s husband just passed away and left her with three daughters. Orpa has to face the constant discrimination and centuries-old tradition that always left the women as a second-class gender in the society and the victim of violence. (JFW 2023)

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For more information, please visit: https://jakartafilmweek.com/en/