Indian Drama ‘Girls Will Be Girls’ Wins Best Film In Jakarta World Cinema’s New Competition Section

Indian-French coming-of-age drama Girls Will Be Girls was awarded best film in the First Feature Competition of Jakarta World Cinema in Indonesia, which launched a competition section for the first time this year.

Directed by Shuchi Talati, the film is set in a boarding school in the Himalayan foothills and follows the teenage protagonist through her first love and the interference of a protective mother. The film premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival where it won an audience award.

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Best director in the First Feature Competition went to China’s Lin Jianjie for Brief History Of A Family, about a middle-class Chinese family in the post-one-child-policy era, who takes in their only son’s mysterious new friend.

Meanwhile, the Audience Award at Jakarta World Cinema went to Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance, starring Demi Moore, which won the best screenplay award at this year’s Cannes.

The three-year-old festival, which aims to develop the audience for world cinema in Indonesia, screened 120 films from 61 countries over its eight-day run (September 21-28). It drew 11,100 attendees through its offline screenings at CGV Grand Indonesia theatre, and 31,400 viewers through streaming platform KlikFilm.

The line-up included Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Perez, Jia Zhangke’s Caught By The Tides, Gints Zilbalodis’ Flow, Greg Kwedar’s Sing Sing, Payal Kapadia’s All We Imagine As Light, Muhammad Rasoulof’s The Seed Of The Sacred Fig, Hong Sang-soo’s A Traveler’s Needs, and Miguel Gomes’ Grand Tour.

Festival Director Shandy Gasella said: “It’s been a phenomenal experience witnessing the excitement from both filmmakers and audiences. The diversity of films and voices that were showcased this year highlights the growing role of Jakarta World Cinema as a space where global cinema can thrive. We look forward to expanding this tradition in the years to come.”

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