In Memorium: John Badalu

We mourn the sudden passing of John Badalu, longtime advocate of Southeast Asian cinema and champion of boosting understanding and representation of minority groups.

As a member of the Asia Pacific Screen Awards International Nominations Council since 2023, John drew on his rich knowledge and experience as he helped guide the selection of APSA nominees as well as winners of the Young Cinema Award, the Cultural Diversity Award and Best New Performer. John’s input was invaluable, too, on the APSA Forum Steering Committee.

John brought to APSA decades of cinema experience as well as a background steeped in efforts to promote diversity and elevate marginalised voices. Dedicated to ending deep-seated discrimination against LGBTQ+ people in Indonesian society, he co-founded the Q! Film Festival in Jakarta in 2002. John saw the festival expand with side events to other Indonesian cities, and in 2008 he was awarded an Ashoka Foundation Fellowship for his groundbreaking work.

Through the 2000s, John broadened his influence as a delegate for festivals including the Berlinale, the Shanghai International Film Festival, Tallinn Black Nights and the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival. In recent years he served as programme consultant and adviser to the Busan International Film Festival and Sheffield DocFest. As an independent producer he found success with films including What They Don’t Talk About When They Talk About Love (2013, Sundance world premiere), Malila: The Farewell Flower (2017, Kim Jiseok Award at Busan) and Basri & Salma in a Never-Ending Comedy (2023, Cannes world premiere).

At the Asia Pacific Screen Academy, we celebrate John’s advocacy for Southeast Asian cinema and support for inclusiveness and empowerment, and feel a huge loss as we move ahead without the benefit of his warm-hearted and deeply considered counsel.