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John Badalu Dies: Indonesian Producer, Programmer & Advocate For Minority Voices Was 53
Badalu, an advocate for LGBTQ+ and other minority rights in Southeast Asia, produced films such as Malila: The Farewell Flower and Ave Maryam.
Born in Makassar on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, Badalu’s experiences as a member of multiple minority groups, including ethnic Chinese, Buddhist and gay, shaped his work as an advocate for inclusivity and representation. His work as a producer includes Thai filmmaker Anucha Boonyawatana’s Malila: The Farewell Flower(2017), a story about former gay lovers reconciling the past that won the Kim Jiseok Award at Busan International Film Festival; and Indonesian director Razka Robby Ertanto’s Ave Maryam(2018), centered on the Christian community in Indonesia. In 2022, he spearheaded programming at the Bali Makarya Film Festival, an event that introduced Southeast Asian cinema to local audiences and international guests.
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