Oligarchy in Indonesia Cinema Industry

There is something that lately piqued my interest. It's about oligarchy in Indonesian film industry. I noticed it first during the speech on national television last month where Pramono Anung, the Top Brass of Indonesian Goverment Secretary, mentioned that Indonesia's Tenth Economy Package Policy was  initiated to cut the chain of oligarchy and cartel of cinema industry.

Oligarchy and cartel.

Wow, those words is like the grand combination that i thought only existed in the Quentin Tarantino films, NOT on the industry that produced the films. And yet it happens in Indonesia. Perhaps this contribute to the reasons why Indonesian film get super stagnant in the past long years.

Statistically speaking

Based on Pramono statement, which i assume is a government legal statistic, Indonesia only have at least 1.117 cinema to serve 250 million people. So basically the cinema only cover 13%. And ironically 87% of those cinema only existed in Java island and 35% portion of those is saturated in Jakarta (Indonesia capital city). It's kind of a waste of market since in my opinion, people of the remote islands in Indonesia, lets say Borneo, Sumatra, and Sulawesi, is basically richer than people in Java. But even so, this seemingly wasteful practice is not really a waste. Actually, because of the big portion of those cinema is being held by no more than 4 companies, so, it can't be helped if they don't feel the urgency of competition.

So here comes the oligarchy part.


Among those big name in cinema industry, there is 21 Cineplex Group. This company held the flagship cinema brand, such as 21, XXI, and The Premiere. 21 Cineplex Group already dominate Indonesian cinema industry since way back then in 1980 when they first founded by Sudwikatmo the cousin of the deceased ex-president Soeharto (cough, nepotism alert). And it's no secret if during Suharto reign, the Indonesian business sector was dominated by his family, relatives and cronies.

And up to now, 21 Cineplex Group, already build 667 screen in 135 area.  And the frightenin part is, those group is also affiliated with Omega Film, the holder of distributor right of Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) in Indonesia.

A single entity gain full control of Indonesian cinema. Sounds familiar right? True. That's how you get Oligarchy /ˈäləˌɡärkē/ : a small group of people having control of a country, organization, or institution.

15 years a slave, only several entities dared to challenge the reign of 21 Cineplex Group. One is Blitzmegaplex and Cinemax. Then recently Raam Punjabi join the fray by launching Platinum and Cineplex. So this cinema industry was controlled by only four business group.

This is what Jokowi, the Indonesian president, wants to raze by the Tenth Economy Policies. You can read more of my report regarding Indonesian Tenth Economy Policies here.

For all that matter, the tenth economy policy package purpose is to eliminate the monopoly of a handful people in the cinema industry, which is partly existed due to the favor they gained from Suharto dictatorship. The influx of foreign investment will help the growth of cinema, which has been hampered by monopoly and oligarchy all this time. Good luck Indonesia.

Images: What Does It Mean