JAFF21 officially announced its program lineup at a press conference in Jakarta on November 6, 2026. Themed “Influx,” the festival will screen 254 films from 34 countries over eight days, from November 28 to December 5, 2026, in Yogyakarta. The films were selected from more than a thousand submissions. You can buy tickets on TipTip starting November 21, 2026.
The festival opens with Silenced Nights (Lawrence Fajardo, 2026), a Filipino drama about the witnesses to a teenager’s execution by police in Manila. The film will have its Indonesian premiere on opening night. “We’re opening the festival with this film because silenced nights are part of our history too,” said JAFF Program Director Alexander Matius.
Closing the festival is You Are the Film (君は映画) (Makoto Ueda, 2026), a 68-minute Japanese comedy-drama. The film won the White Raven Award at the 2026 Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival. “It’s actually a film with a small canvas and scale, but has a huge impact,” said JAFF Festival Director Ifa Isfansyah.
In the Main Competition, ten feature films from ten countries are competing for the Golden and Silver Hanoman Awards. One of them is A Girl Unknown (Wu ming nü hai) (Zou Jing, 2026), a debut by a woman director. The film won the FIPRESCI Prize in Critics’ Week at Cannes 2026.
In the Indonesian Screen Awards, ten Indonesian films are competing across ten categories. Among them is Ibuku (Eddie Cahyono, 2026), winner of the Special Jury Prize at the 31st Busan International Film Festival. There’s also Secrets (Ravi Bharwani, 2026), which will have its world premiere at JAFF21.
Light of Asia brings together 21 short films competing for the Blencong Awards. You can also vote for your favorite film from this section through the Amar Bank Audience Choice Award.
The Main Competition jury consists of Dita Gambiro, Riar Rizaldi, and Shan Zuolong. In other categories, musician Hindia is on the Blencong Awards jury, and Malaysian actress Sharifah Amani is on the Indonesian Screen Awards jury. The full list of jury members is available at https://jaff-filmfest.org/jury-member/.
This year, JAFF also introduces the JAFF Awards, honoring individuals, communities, and institutions that keep Asian cinema alive. In the press release, Ifa said JAFF was born from a community spirit, and the JAFF Awards come from the belief that Asian cinema grows through the work of many connected people.
Outside the competitions, Asian Perspectives presents 26 feature films and 28 short films. Panorama features 12 feature films and five short films that have screened at festivals such as Cannes, Venice, Berlin, Toronto, and Sundance. Nocturnal gathers films best enjoyed at midnight, Transcendence is a space for experimental films, and Emerging showcases work by new directors.
Rewind screens 15 titles, including Train to Busan (Yeon Sang-ho, 2016) for its 10th anniversary and Mukhsin (Yasmin Ahmad, 2006) for its 20th. There are also three Hayao Miyazaki films: Spirited Away (2001), Howl’s Moving Castle (2004), and My Neighbor Totoro (1988). Teen romances from the 2000s return with Eiffel…I’m in Love (Nasri Cheppy, 2003) and Heart (Hanny R. Saputra, 2006). At the Cinematic Concert, Grrrl Gang will perform live alongside scenes from five short films.
For families, JAFF Kids has a dedicated slot on Sunday morning, November 29, at 10:00 a.m. WIB (Western Indonesia Time), with screenings in five theaters at once. Inclusive Screening offers special screenings for Deaf and blind audiences with Na Willa (Ryan Adriandhy, 2025). The full schedule and ticketing information are available at jaff-filmfest.org and on Instagram at @jaffjogja.
