AIC In Conversation The Australia-Indonesia Centre

Celebrating seven years, the ReelOzInd! Australia Indonesia Short Film Competition and Festival premiered on 22 October 2022.

This is a recording of the Q&A portion of the premiere that followed the festival reel.

Guests include:


Jemma Purdey, ReelOzInd! festival director
Dharma Putra Purna Nugraha, director/writer of The Scent of Rat Carcasses
Yuh Rohana Meliala, producer of The Scent of Rat Carcasses
Ed Coney, director of A Rohingya's Journey
Joseph Hoh, writer/director/producer of Wonderfully Made
Annisa Adjam, director/producer of My Clouded Mind
Nabiel Ghithrif, director of Siwul (Whistle)
Reyhan & Fadhel, actors in Siwul (Whistle)

The ReelOzInd! Australia-Indonesia short film festival would not be possible without the support of its 2022 festival partners Universitas Brawijaya, Universitas Negeri Malang and Blueboat, community partners AIYA, and media partners FilmFreeway, Inside Indonesia and Viddsee.

To watch the ReelOzInd! 2022 AUS-IND Short Film Festival, head to https://reelozind.com

The Indonesian tech giant Bukalapak has announced that it’s creating a technology hub in Melbourne, a significant move that brings to Australia’s door some of the most dynamic trends around innovation and  scale in the Asia region.
Most Australians will have never heard of this company; here’s some useful information.


Initially set up to help the ‘mum and dad’ shops sell their goods it now has 104.9 million registered users
Raised $US1.5 billion in its 2021 IPO, the largest initial offering on Indonesia’s stock exchange
Investors include Microsoft, UBS Group and the Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC

In this webinar, co-hosted by Bukalapak, the Indonesia Australia Business Council, Global Victoria & Victorian Government Trade and Investment South East Asia, we will meet new Bukalapak CEO Willix Halim, an Indonesian citizen who  studied in Melbourne and manages first-hand the tech talent crunch.

Translated as “opening a stall”, Bukalapak will develop the new  technology hub in conjunction with the Victorian government to expand  its international footprint and explore partnership opportunities with  world-class universities.

Speakers include: 


Opening remarks: George Iwan Marantika, Indonesia Australia Business Council
Moderator: Helen Brown, The Australia-Indonesia Centre
Panelist: Willix Halim, Bukalapak
Panelist: Rebecca Hall, Victorian Government
Panelist: Kendall Draper, Australian Government Department of Home Affairs
Closing remarks: Dr Eugene Sebastian, The Australia-Indonesia Centre

Sesi 1: Jalan menuju pemulihan: Mengatasi dampak pandemi terhadap industri pariwisata
Sektor pariwisata adalah salah satu pendorong pertumbuhan ekonomi  yang signifikan di Indonesia. Namun, sektor ini mengalami kesulitan  selama pandemi COVID-19. Penutupan perbatasan dan pembatasan perjalanan  telah menyebabkan jutaan orang di sektor ini kehilangan pekerjaan,  dimana perempuan, kaum muda, dan pekerja berpendidikan rendah adalah  yang paling terdampak. Saat ini, ada setitik harapan sejalan dengan  tingkat vaksinasi yang tinggi. Sesi ini akan mendiskusikan keadaan  industri pariwisata yang terdapat dan tindakan apa yang dapat diambil  untuk membangun kembali pariwisata dan mensejahterakan masyarakat yang  bergantung padanya.

Sesi 2: Kesehatan atau ekonomi di Indonesia? Membuat keputusan terbaik yang  mustahil selama pandemi COVID-19
Selama pandemi, pemerintah telah bergulat dengan keputusan yang  mustahil untuk memilih kesehatan atau ekonomi saat keduanya berada dalam  krisis. Pemerintah Indonesia telah berjuang untuk mendapatkan  keseimbangan ini dengan baik. Ketika kasus melonjak dan banyak orang  berada dalam posisi keuangan yang genting,  pembatasan sosial tidak  dapat terus dilakukan. Dalam sesi ini, peneliti akan mempresentasikan  model yang mereka buat untuk membantu pemerintah mendapatkan  keseimbangan yang tepat, serta kondisi dan hasilnya, dengan menggunakan  contoh dari pengalaman Sulawesi Selatan.

Session 1: Road to recovery: Assessing the pandemic’s impact on the tourism industry
The tourism sector has been a significant driver of economic growth in Indonesia, but it has been hard during the COVID-19 pandemic. Border  closures and travel restrictions have seen millions of job losses, with women, young people and lower-educated workers being most vulnerable.  Now, as vaccination rates grow, there is hope on the horizon. This session will assess the state of the devastated industry, and what actions can be taken to rebuild tourism and the communities that rely on it.

Session 2: Health or economy in Indonesia? Making the best impossible decision during COVID-19
During the pandemic, governments have grappled with the impossible decision of choosing health or the economy while both are in crisis. The  Indonesian government has struggled to get this balance right, as infections soared across the country and many people were in precarious  financial positions that made social distancing untenable. In this session, researchers will present a model they created to help  governments get the balance right, and its conditions and outcomes, using an example from the experience of South Sulawesi.

Sesi 1: Ekonomi kreatif: Bagaimana pekerja kreatif muda menghadapi COVID-19
Ekonomi kreatif Indonesia berkontribusi sebanyak 7 persen dari PDB.  Namun selama pandemi, kegiatan luar ruangan dan acara-acara ditutup.   Dengan bantuan dan dukungan yang tidak cukup dari pemerintah, banyak  pekerja kreatif muda harus berjuang untuk bertahan hidup. Sesi ini akan  mengeksplorasi isu-isu yang dihadapi oleh sektor ekonomi kreatif dan  strategi untuk lebih mendukung pemulihan dan keberlanjutannya.

Sesi 2: Kelompok yang terlupakan: Mengatasi dampak COVID-19 pada penyandang disabilitas
Pandemi berdampak keras pada para penyandang disabilitas, dengan  banyak dari mereka yang kehilangan pendapatan, terdampak dari pembatasan  sosial, dan kurangnya informasi kesehatan dan kesempatan pendidikan  yang mudah diakses. Penyandang disabilitas juga seringkali dikecualikan  dari perencanaan, pelaksanaan dan evaluasi mitigasi/pemulihan COVID-19.  Sesi ini akan membahas pengalaman penyandang disabilitas selama pandemi,  dan apa yang dapat dilakukan untuk lebih mendukung penyandang  disabilitas selama masa krisis.

Session 1: Creative economy: How young creative workers are dealing with COVID-19
Indonesia’s creative economy generates 7 percent of its GDP. But  during the pandemic, events shut down and with little support from the  government, many young creative workers had to pivot to survive. This  session will explore the issues faced by the sector and strategies to  better support its recovery and sustainability.

Session 2: Forgotten victims: Tackling COVID-19’s impact on people with disability
The pandemic has had a significant impact on people with disability,  with lost income, social isolation and many struggling with a lack of  accessible health information and education opportunities. People with  disabilities have also been excluded from planning, implementation and  evaluation of COVID-19 mitigation and recovery. This session will  discuss the experiences of people with disability during the pandemic,  and what can be done to better support and include people with  disability during times of crisis.

For more: https://pair.australiaindonesiacentre.org/pair-summit-2021/2-december-protecting-society/