Nusantara in Javanese, Kapuluang Malay in Tagalog, the Malay Archipelago to various historic western interlopers: these names all refer to the teeming Pacific island chain spanning from Indochina to Australia. A place of biological and cultural diversity that crosses continents between Asian and Australian geologic and natural history influences. A region on the front lines of the rising tides and unpredictable weather of climate change. A series of unique film cultures revealing many surprises.
In 2018 the Solomon Islands, in the South Pacific, hosted the Melanesian Arts & Cultural Festival, celebrating the country's 40th anniversary of independence. On neighboring island states, the struggle for freedom continues, as West Papua resists Indonesian occupation and the residents of New Caledo
A scientist studying the first human time traveller falls in love with her subject. But if her research succeeds they will become separated by eons of history. She must find a way to connect with him across the ages or lose him forever.
May has a good relationship with her brother Jackson, but everything changes when a smartphone appears.
When a rare earth plant is being built near a coastal town, its inhabitants fall into despair, fearful of its radioactive effects. Ming, a high school student, is indifferent towards the changes. All he cares about is spending idyllic afternoons with the childhood friend he secretly loves, Mei Ann.
A sensual immersive visual trip in the world of magic, myth and nature in Indonesia. Ladya is working with a documentary crew who is searching for ancient pyramids and investigates supernatural stories about a lost royal kingdom hidden in the southern sea of Indonesia. In her spare time, she capture
Jay wakes up in Manila, yet he dreamed of Athens. He has a nightmare, during which he has a special quest: to save his two daughters from a special surgery: their houses are on them, and they need to be removed. In his attempt to fetch them, he roams around Athens' cityscape, seeing things under a v
A city where its people are forced to buy water and work for a Boss who controls the springs. Water Goddess who is believed to be the guardian of the springs gives no answer to the problem. In the midst of misery and despair, a girl appears and tries to help free people from the Boss's cruelty. Will
A son revisits a long-estranged father, on the day of an impending solar eclipse. An event of cosmic significant coincides with an emotional revelation for father and son.
Independent animation visualising the experience of language confusion and misunderstanding while people living in their second language
In Indonesia, multinational corporations have drained millions of acres of swamps and converted them to industrial plantations of oil palm and acacia. Researchers are looking for alternative crops that can be grown in wet conditions, without draining. They're touting, among other possible candidates
Trying to move on from a troubled past, June attempts to escape her life with her virtual phone assistant, Kara. The device brings June through a literal journey of recovery, until she discovers that Kara's intentions are not what it seems.
In their fourth collaborative film Zanny Begg (Sydney) and Oliver Ressler (Vienna) focus on Nauru, a tiny remote island in the Pacific with 10,000 inhabitants. The title "Anubumin" is Nauruan for "night" and symbolises a certain darkness that surrounds the island. The film combines a poetic narratio
Lembusura, or the legend of the mountain demon. A rain of ash falls on Java. Kelud, a volcano located to this east of the Indonesian island, is active. As one of the island's most dangerous mountains, it is known for violent and explosive eruptions. And when it rains ash, it pours. Time and again, e
The ancestral forests of the nomadic Orang Rimba have vanished. In the short span of three decades, oil palm plantations have replaced much of the tropical peatland rain forests in Jambi, Indonesia. The People of the Forest, Orang Rimba in their dialect, have nowhere to go.
Rumble of train rails; Crashing of ocean waves; Soft caress of distant wind.
Abstract music video for ISAN's song Slow Rings. The concept of this piece was inspired from the works of Matt Abbiss and Walter Ruttmann, with the aim to create an animation that times smoothly with the music in an organic motion. In terms of a technical approach, small sequences of animation were
Leonardo's Formula is a music video animation for the song of the same name by English electronica duo ISAN. The animation mimics mechanical movements to match the fast and stable rhythm of the music. A desaturated colour scheme was chosen to further emphasizes an overall machine-like aesthetic.
"PARADOXICAL" is one of the rare science fiction films from Taiwan. A man with a mysterious background meets a beautiful, enigmatic plant designer. As the two embark on a series of unconventional dates, she discovers a mysterious lottery ticket, revealing the man's true profession and overturns thei
The animation installation, "Mental Black Hole" examines how people perceive depression as opposed to the invisible activity taking place in the brain. This media-based installation, in the form of physical space with three-channel projection, presents a creative interpretation of the amygdala and h