The Jakarta Provincial Government is aiming to develop Jakarta into a cinema city. This initiative resurfaced during the Jakarta Future Festival 2025 talk show "Collaborate to Elevate" at Teater Besar Jakarta, Taman Ismail Marzuki, Central Jakarta.

"Almost every major city in the world has a film commission,"

Organized by Jakarta Regional Development Planning Agency (Bappeda), this event carried the theme "Developing Jakarta as a Cinema City".

Speakers at the talk show included Jakarta Vice Governor Rano Karno; Netflix Southeast Asia Director of Global Affairs, Rubben Hattari; Jakarta Film Week Festival Director, Rina Damayanti; and Qodrat 2 film producer and Magma Entertainment Co-founder, Linda Gozali.

According to Rano, Jakarta needs an icon in order to become a cinema city. Therefore, this event is part of a long journey to establish an institution called the Jakarta Film Commission.

"Almost every major city in the world has a film commission, like in Busan, Hong Kong, and Tokyo," he said on Sunday (6/15).

He emphasized that based on meetings with festival organizers, Jakarta needs a dedicated institution to serve as the heart of the film industry's development.

Interestingly, Rano mentioned that Indonesia has been visited by The Motion Picture Association, a major U.S. trade association representing five major studios and Netflix.

"They're not just any organization, they've even organized the Oscars. They are ready to assist Jakarta in forming a film commission," he asserted.

Rano explained that the Jakarta Film Commission should be an independent institution, not a regional-owned enterprise (BUMD), and must be run by professionals.

"The Jakarta Film Commission will serve as a one-stop service body, handling permits, location databases, talent matchmaking, and promoting Jakarta as a film production destination," he affirmed.

He added that developing film production is part of Jakarta’s Regional Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMD) and is a key priority alongside infrastructure and other sectors.

"Of course, every plan requires public input, just like in Musrenbang discussions. Bappeda will structure it accordingly," he said.

Rano noted that Jakarta’s identity as a cinema city has deep roots, visible through its support for the film industry during the governorship of Fauzi Bowo.

"There's a Governor Regulation No. 115/2012 on Partial Entertainment Tax Exemption for National Film Production. This only exists in Jakarta," he stated.