'Make sinetron fest merry'

'Make sinetron fest merry'

JAKARTA (JP): As organizers of the Indonesian Sinetron
Festival (FSI) continued to prepare for the airing of Indonesia's
television awards event tomorrow night, a senior official at the
Ministry of Information yesterday urged them to create a festive
atmosphere.

The Director General for Radio, Television and Film,
Dewabrata, said the festival, in which dozens of awards are to be
given to the best in the flourishing TV industry, should be made
as merry as possible.

The Ministry of Information said Alex Kumara headed a six-
person delegation of the FSI organizers to meet with Dewabrata at
the latter's office yesterday.

Minister of Information R. Hartono has agreed to attend
tomorrow night's star-studded event, which provides recognition
to those working in the industry, particularly actors and
actresses.

Dewabrata said the festival should bring in as many singers
and musicians as possible, especially those involved in the
making of sinetron, as teleserials are called in Indonesia.

The organizers have chosen RCTI's Studio 4 as the venue
instead of a luxury hotel, reportedly to save costs and to avoid
creating an impression of extravagance at a time of national
economic crisis.

Alex said some 240 TV stars will attend the festival, which
will be broadcast live by all six Indonesian television stations
tomorrow night.

Altogether, more than 40 awards will be given out, ranging
from the best sinetron critic and best talk show, to the best
director, actor and actress in the three categories of drama,
drama series and comedy series.

TPI's Mat Angin has the most nominations for a comedy series
and RCTI's Bukan Perempuan Biasa heads the nominations for the
drama series category. Sepanjang Jalan Kenangan, which has not
been aired yet, has collected the most nominations in the drama
category. (emb)