Closing the Curtains of JAFF20: Final Day Highlights and a Look Back at Its 20-Year Journey

As JAFF20 enters its final day, the eighth day of the festival continues to bring stories that touch the most intimate corners of human experience—from emotional journeys across time to public spaces that quietly witness life, connection, and farewell. Today also revisits two decades of Jogja’s film community movement through a forum that opens intergenerational dialogue and reflection. Before joining us at the JAFF20 Closing Night, make time to watch today’s film highlights and take part in a collective walk down JAFF’s memory lane through the Community Forum.

SCARLET

Saturday, 6 December | Empire XXI Studio 2 | 12.15 WIB

Saturday, 6 December | Empire XXI Studio 3 | 12.30 WIB

From visionary, Academy Award–nominated filmmaker Mamoru Hosoda comes Scarlet, an animated time-travel adventure that crosses worlds and generations. The story follows Scarlet, a female swordfighter from the medieval era, on a perilous mission to avenge her father’s death. But after failing and being gravely wounded in the “Otherworld,” she encounters an idealistic young man from the present day. Someone who not only helps her heal but shows her a future not driven by anger or despair. When Scarlet finally confronts her father’s killer once more, she faces the greatest battle of her life: the courage to break the cycle of hatred and discover a purpose beyond revenge. Hosoda, known for The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Summer Wars, and Mirai, brings his signature emotional depth to this latest work, which has screened at major festivals throughout 2025, including Venice, Toronto, New York, and Hong Kong. 

NUMAKAGE PUBLIC POOL

Saturday, 6 December | Empire XXI Studio 5 | 16.15 WIB

Shingo Ota’s latest documentary offers a tender yet powerful portrait of Numakage, a large public swimming complex in suburban Tokyo that has existed for 52 years. More than a public facility, Numakage has long served as a sanctuary for the elderly, children, and gay. A haven for those seeking safety and belonging. As its demolition approaches, Numakage Public Pool traces the quiet grief felt by its community of users. The sorrow depicted is strikingly human, as though mourning the passing of a person rather than a building. Through Ota’s sensitive documentary approach consistent with the voice he first established in The End of the Special Time We Were Allowed the film reveals how a public space can hold memory, connection, and invisible lives within its walls. Screened at numerous documentary festivals worldwide and premiering in Asia at the Busan International Film Festival.

COMMUNITY FORUM: PIJAT SINGKAT REBORN — “20-YEAR RETROSPECTIVE: US, JOGJA KITA”

Saturday, 6 December | Omah Jayeng | 12.00 – 14:00 WIB

Marking twenty years of JAFF’s journey, the Community Forum revives “Pijat Singkat,” a discussion program rooted in the communal spirit of Jogja’s film community. First initiated in 2006 as a response to the Yogyakarta earthquake, the program emerged as a space for reflection through films and conversations.

Two decades later, Pijat Singkat Reborn invites audiences to revisit that legacy while reexamining how far the community has come. This year’s discussion asks a vital question: does the collective spirit that once united Jogja’s—and even Indonesia’s—independent film communities still burn with the same strength? With curator Tomy Taslim and the communities that continue to shape Jogja’s cinematic landscape, the forum becomes a space for younger generations to understand the communal foundation that built the city’s independent film ecosystem. 

The full lineup of JAFF20 screenings and events is available on the official website jaff-filmfest.org and on social media @jaffjogja.