Kicking off this year's Alternativa Film Project, the second edition will see the event take place in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, having moved from last year's location in Almaty, Kazakhstan, where it hosted the Alternativa Film Awards. Founded by technology company InDrive, the non-profit Global Film Initiative seeks to grow into one of Asia's premier film events, with a mission to give international visibility to filmmakers whose work can drive social change.
The event describes itself as a “nomadic project” and will look to hold a camp each year in a different location.
“From the beginning, the concept of the awards was to be nomadic and move from one region to another,” Lisa Surganova, head of the Alternativa Film Project, tells Deadline. “Last year, we started in Central Asia, and that choice was mainly driven by InDrive having the largest office there. We felt that this region had been completely overlooked and hadn't really been researched by film programmers, and there weren't many events happening.” Which is happening there in relation to the international film scene.
Surganova notes that she planned to keep the second edition of the event in Asia, before moving to another continent, and that Southeast Asia stood out because of its growing and vibrant film industry.
“The film industry in Southeast Asia is developing very quickly, and many new names are emerging, but it is not well developed compared to the film industry in Japan, South Korea or India, so we felt that we could offer something there that would benefit local filmmakers.”, As you say. “Indonesia is one of the centers of the region where people from other countries used to come.”
Touching stories
The Alternativa Film Awards, which take place at the end of the event on November 29, focus on films with a strong “social impact,” Surganova says. She says there is no strict set of rules that define this term, but notes that the selection committee focuses on topics it considers important to the region as well as films that have broad appeal. “It's important to focus on films that can be interesting to a wide audience,” she says. “So we try not to choose festival titles that are too artistic.”
Noting the ongoing funding challenges faced by independent filmmakers, Surganova emphasized that the Alternativa Film Project wants to help address this issue by creating more networking opportunities, especially for film professionals in countries with a smaller local scene. As a result, I created a three-day Industry Days series.
“If you are a filmmaker from Laos or Kyrgyzstan where there is not a lot going on locally, we want to offer you an opportunity to meet people from abroad, talk about what is important to you, showcase your project and offer networking so that, in the future, it will be easier to submit the script.” Your to someone or look for financing.
Surganova admitted that the nomadic nature of the event presented a major challenge but hoped to evolve and adapt alongside the industry.
“First of all, it is not easy to organize a big event,” she explained. “The biggest challenge is getting the local audience interested in this event, because they don’t know you there. When you organize a Bedouin event, you are always like a foreigner and a newcomer. They will know festivals like JAFF [Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival] And other festivals in the area instead.
Surganova stressed the importance of cooperation with local partners to secure support in the city hosting the awards. The upcoming edition in Indonesia has already formed partnerships with Minikino Film Week, Docs by the Sea, InDocs, SAE Indonesia Creative Media Academy, Gelanggang Inovasi & Kreativitas Universitas Gadjah Mada, supported by the Indonesian Ministry of Culture and Education, Jakarta Film Week, Jogja-NETPAC Film Festival Asian 2024 and ARTOTEL Pianti Suites.
