Talks are underway to return Indonesian horror series, "Losmen Melati", a co-production between Taiwan-based Catchplay and Indonesia/Singapore-based Infinite Studios, to regional screens.

This follows a five-week run on Netflix’s Indonesia top 10 films, from the week of 7-13 August, when it debuted on the list at #4, to its fifth and last appearance at #9 for the week of 4-10 September. On Catchplay+ Indonesia, the series was the top title for six consecutive weeks, and continues to be the most watched series on the platform, Catchplay says, adding that the show brought in a lot of new users, and particularly horror fans.    

If it’s too early for specifics, the partners take with them into season two the season one experience of see-sawing from a 10-part horror series greenlit in 2021 to a feature film ("Motel Melati") released theatrically across the region from March to June this year, and back again to a seven-episode TV series ("Losmen Melati") that premiered in August this year – and it sounds like they might just do it again. 

“Nowadays, there are so many series introduced by so many platforms every day. This was a way to make sure that "Losmen Melati" had a bigger chance to stand out,” says the property’s executive producer and Catchplay group chief executive, Daphne Yang. 

The partners backed into the movie add-on decision in early post production for the TV series, which tells the story of a remote inn, managed by the mysterious Melati, where unsuspecting visitors are confronted with their worst nightmare. 

“We saw the potential of turning the opening of the story into a film, giving the audience a cinematic experience into the world of Losmen Melati,” Yang says. 

“Everyone eventually agreed that having the film in addition to the series will not only help monetisation through additional box office receipts but also ‘grease the runway’ – increase awareness of the IP before the series launch,” she adds.  

The film was edited primarily from the original episodes one, two and six, and the story adjusted to give the feature a complete narrative. There were no rewrites and nothing was reshot.  

The series, edited as a standalone, starts from the end of the film. 

Audiences do not have to have seen the film to follow the series. “We tried to make the film and the series both capable of standing alone, by themselves,” Yang says. “However, the audience would gain a better understanding of the story if they watched the film first,” she adds.

“One of our biggest learnings is that a smart release strategy across the two sectors drives bigger success,” Yang says. 

“Indonesia has a big theatrical release market, which provides not only a great opportunity for revenue but also a terrific channel to build awareness for the IP. For horror fans, this provides double satisfaction... Later on, we licensed the film to other OTT platforms, which helped the IP gain more followers, who then tuned-in to Catchplay+ for the series,” she adds.

“The line between films and drama is really blurring. This is not only about the production value or cinematography but also about the audience and how content can be released and marketed.” 

Catchplay has every intention of growing its regional originals, and following this first Indonesian co-production with more, including an action crime story in a possible second partnership with Infinite Studios, and  its own developments.

Published in ContentAsia's eNewsletter, 9 October 2023