Hey Murray,
hope you guys are ok.
Production in Indonesia are at a record low, if not dead.
Indonesian government passed a law prohibiting any type of shoot with more than 5 people (crew+cast) + barred entry to any foreign nationals effective today.
That pretty much was the coup de grace for us 🙂
So far we had about 15 jobs cancelled in the last 2 months which was a huge blow to our business obviously, much like anyone else in the production world I imagine.
What we did about it:
The very few staff we kept during this crisis are all allocated to an online development role.
We spend a lot of time writing blog posts, improving the websites of our 3 companies (Baliprod, Balishoot and Bali Model Agency).
But more importantly we brainstorm every day about what the industry will be like when things “get back to normal”.
Or the new normal for that matter, as we believe the market will forever be changed after this.
In that regard, we endeavour to understand what the market will be like in a few months and find solutions to address our clients’ future demands and issues in the new economy.
Also, we spent some time developing a new business: Bali Film Gear Rental (name is self explanatory!).
Although we had to let go a large part of our in-house team, we are lucky to have enough cash flow to keep us afloat for a few more months, hoping business starts again soon.
That’s for Baliprod and from what I hear other production houses in Indonesia are really hurting.
Unlike us in Bali most are in Jakarta where the crisis is fairly advanced.
In any case, we keep a positive attitude and are convinced things can only get better.
Stay safe!