Mouly Surya’s new war drama This City Is a Battlefield (Perang Kota) will screen as the final film at the 54th International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), which runs from January 30 to February 9. The film depicts Jakarta’s 1946 fight for independence by telling stories of people caught between personal lives and national struggle.

The story centers on Isa, played by Chicco Jerikho, a former war hero who teaches violin. He becomes involved in fighting Dutch colonial forces. His student Hazil (Jerome Kurnia), from a rich family, joins the mission and falls in love with Isa’s wife Fatimah (Ariel Tatum), who plays piano and works to keep her family safe during wartime.

Companies from eight countries made this film together: Indonesia’s Cinesurya and Starvision led the project, working with teams from Singapore, the Netherlands, France, Norway, the Philippines, and Cambodia. Willawati, Mona Surya, and Rieza Jusuf served as executive producers.