After ARKIPEL’s Noli Me Tangere – the 10th Jakarta International Documentary & Experimental Film Festival closed on October 1, 2023, Bogor became the host for Thinkwell Empat – Kelindan Dalam Sedulur on October 3. Thinkwell is a program initiated by SAVVY Contemporary, which connects cinema practitioners, collective representatives, thinkers, and technologists from arounf the world. They gathered to discuss and try to redesign the contemporary film distribution ecosystem. More than fifty participants from around the world attended the symposium, which aimed to address issues in the global film circulation system. The fourth edition of the symposium aims to go deeper and find ways to deal with challenges in film circulation. The symposium was organized in the form of a three-stage game that involved participants in various roles. The roles include a “messenger” who acts as a communication bridge between groups, as well as other roles determined by each group to facilitate in-depth and complex discussions. In the first stage of the symposium, each participant individually wrote important issues on a film circulation map. These issues were then posted on the walls of the room. Participants could express the issues in the form of texts, images, or even collages. The collected texts and images were grouped by thematic links, forming large problem “islands”. This problem mapping provides a basic framework for participants to identify individuals who have the propensity to address the problem. The islands that emerged from the wall mapping process led to the formation of groups. This was the beginning of the second phase of the symposium. Each group detailed the problems within their respective island and explored possible opportunities or solutions. There were four groups, each with a different approach. The first group, Subversion, delved into the existing circulation system and looked for loopholes to enter or create new system models. Second, the Scandal Bag group, examines the relationship between communities, creating safe spaces and principles of living together. Third, the Dialect of Oblivion group, envisions the toolbox needed in a healthy cinema circulation ecosystem. Fourth, the Kinoship group, focusing on the viewer’s point of view, this group contemplated the principles needed to support a film circulation ecosystem. During their discussions, each group documented the process, mapping, and creating drawings and collages that would later be compiled into a zine. In the third stage of the symposium, each group was challenged to go beyond the problems they had explored. Their task was to design a prototype or solution to address the problem they had identified. The Subversion group proposed “The Mesh,” a network that connects cinema practitioners based on the principles of equality, decentralization, and community resilience. The Scandal Bag group presented principles for creating safe spaces that optimize functionality for everyone and curators that support the community. The Dialect of Oblivion group designed a program of film screenings depicting struggles in different regions facing various forms of oppression. When these four prototypes are connected, they form a holistic solution. The Mesh serves as a platform that connects practitioners and communities, coupled with the principles of safe spaces from Scandal Bag, screening programs designed by Dialect of Oblivion, and principles to support audiences from Kinoship. This ecosystem seems to fit the contemporary needs of film distribution and has the potential to be applied. The Thinkwell Empat – Kelindan Dalam Sedulur symposium is an exciting collaborative effort to confront challenges in the contemporary film distribution ecosystem and explore innovative solutions. It reflects a commitment to permeate the future of film circulation. Year Puncak, Bogor, Indonesia
The Kinoship group offers a manifesto for cinephiles and principles for activating audiences, spaces, and communities.
2023
Thinkwell Empat – Kelindan Dalam Sedulur: Redefining the Contemporary Film Distribution Ecosystem
