Feature: Musical Web Series PAYUNG FANTASI Won Gold Award at the PR Awards 2023 in Singapore

The 2022 musical series Payung Fantasi, inspired by the music and life of the Indonesian maestro and national hero Ismail Marzuki, has achieved more than 40 million views on the IndonesiaKaya YouTube channel. On Thursday (4/27/2023), the musical series presented by www.indonesiakaya.com in collaboration with Garin Nugroho and BOOW Live, also won the Gold award for the Best PR Campaign: Entertainment category at the MARKETING-INTERACTIVE PR AWARDS held at the Island Ballroom Shangri-La in Singapore.

The MARKETING-INTERACTIVE PR AWARDS 2023 is the definitive award for PR practitioners throughout Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Australia-New Zealand. The awards have been handed out more than a decade ago by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, a leading advertising, marketing, and media intelligence company in Asia that operates in Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand. This year, there were 42 categories, each consisting of three winners: Gold, Silver, and Bronze, judged by independent juries consisting of industry leaders and senior communication experts.

Renitasari Adrian, Program Director of www.indonesiakaya.com stated, "After successfully bringing home the Bronze award in 2022 for the Nurbaya musical series, in 2023 we managed to bring home the highest award, the Gold award, for the Payung Fantasi musical series. This good news is the result of the hard work of the artists and the support of the media colleagues and art enthusiasts who have watched the series. Of course, this victory is an honor for us, as we can stand alongside big names in the entertainment field in Asia. This award is also a driving force for us to continue presenting a variety of high-quality programs that showcase Indonesia's diverse cultural and historical legacy with a unique and creative package to broaden the horizons of art enthusiasts."

The category reading and award presentation were conducted by Ananya Mukherjee, Global Communications Director, Narrative & Content Cargill, and received directly by Billy Gamaliel, Program Manager of www.indonesiakaya.com, along with the Payung Fantasi musical series production team. In the Best PR Campaign: Entertainment category, www.indonesiakaya.com was awarded alongside National Geographic Asia (Silver award) and Marina Bay Sands (Bronze award). There were also several other finalists such as Orchard Turn Developments, PETRONAS, and Tune Talk.

The Best PR Campaign: Entertainment category is a category that involves media members to increase awareness of entertainment products that can include films, TV shows, music, concerts, books, newspapers, sports events, and so on. In this category, the jury looks at the role and contribution of communication in campaign strategies that can describe creative and innovative elements, successful execution, and can prove the campaign's ability to increase public awareness in the media.

The production process of the Payung Fantasi musical series went through a long process that began in January 2022, starting from the online audition of Mentjari Bang Maing and Djoewita, followed by 250 registrants from various regions outside Java such as Bali and also including the eastern part of Indonesia. After conducting a hybrid audition process, 29 participants were chosen to join the production of the Payung Fantasi musical series.

In addition to the visual spectacle on display, the various musical compositions of Ismail Marzuki were presented through 6 episodes of Payung Fantasy. More than 25 works of this local maestro were performed beautifully by the cast, including "Jauh di Mata," "Payung Fantasi," "Juwita Malam," "Dari Mana Datangnya Asmara," "Gagah Perwira," "Indonesia Pusaka," "Sepasang Mata Bola," "Sabda Alam," and so on. Another noteworthy number was "O, Sarinah," one of Ismail Marzuki's first songs written in Dutch, which became a symbol of the lives of oppressed Indonesian society during the colonial era as well as a tribute to the simple life of the people.

"Thank you to all the teams involved, the art enthusiasts, and the media who have always helped in spreading the information about the Payung Fantasi musical series to the public. We hope that this award we received help increase our love and enthusiasm for sharing Indonesian culture," said Renitasari.