Indonesian Horror Hit ‘Pabrik Gula’ Sets 2028 Sequel

Indonesian studio giant MD Entertainment will release a sequel to its 2025 horror smash “Pabrik Gula” in early 2028 and has three Imax films planned for 2027, Astrid Wienardi, the company’s head of content licensing and global business, said Sunday at Taiwan Creative Content Fest (TCCF) in Taipei.

Wienardi delivered a presentation on how MD ties its film and series library to broadcast and streaming. The company took control of free-to-air channel NET TV in a deal worth up to $105 million and has brought in investment from Korea’s SBS.

“Pabrik Gula” sold more than 5 million tickets in Indonesia before traveling to Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, the U.S. and Europe. Its hooks and popularity persuaded MD to commit to a second installment.

The Imax relationship started with “Badarawuhi,” the prequel to “KKN di Desa Penari” and the first Southeast Asian film shot for the format. One of the three 2027 Imax titles will draw on “Dhot Design,” a YouTube animated series about four friends that pulls between 8 million and 10 million views an episode. Lionsgate and CJ are also among MD’s strategic partners.

Active for more than two decades across film, series, animation, music publishing and talent management, MD has more than 200 features to its name and plans 12 to 13 releases in 2027, led by horror alongside comedy and drama. “KKN di Desa Penari” sold 10.7 million tickets at home, an Indonesian record at the time.

“Ivanna 2” is due early next year. The original is a spinoff from MD’s “Danur” horror universe about a headless Dutch woman.

“‘Ivanna’ was moderately accepted in Indonesia market, but it did fascinatingly well in Vietnam,” Wienardi said. “It actually broke records in the theatrical Vietnamese market.”

Feedback from platform partners, along with fan comments on social media, decides whether MD extends a series, spins off a title or grows a franchise. Netflix drama “Ipar Adalah Maut,” which Wienardi translated as “Brother-in-Law Is Death,” topped the streamer’s trending list in its first week and stayed in the top 10 for seven straight weeks. A second season is in the works and could launch on Netflix next year.

MD has eight titles on Netflix and three on WeTV, where seven of the platform’s top 20 titles were MD productions, including “Layangan Putus,” which trended in 25 countries. On Prime Video, mother-daughter series “Induk Gajah” (“Mother Elephant”) earned a Season 2 order soon after its 2023 debut and helped pull in new subscribers. A deal with iQIYI, unveiled in mid-October, will see two titles roll out by December and a third in the first quarter of 2027.

Music is part of the playbook too. Netflix series “Suara Hati,” whose two lead actresses are dangdut singers, generated 100,000 first-week downloads across Spotify and YouTube Music, while “Bakti,” a song from “Danyang: Mahar Tukar Nyawa,” which opened Nov. 5, has passed 200,000 downloads on Spotify.

“The golden rule for us is that the universal appeal should never mean stripping away local identity,” Wienardi said. “Local identity is very important for MD. Without local identity, we lose the soul of the story.”

She added that CEO Manoj Punjabi demands that soul at every greenlight meeting, and that MD wants folklore-rooted horror rather than “watered-down thrillers or any Hollywood-like thrillers.”

When an audience member asked how Indonesian films command around 65% of local moviegoing while Taiwanese films account for just 10%-12% at home, Wienardi cited Indonesia’s population of roughly 280 million and a deep well of haunting folklore that parents pass to their children.

“We are surrounded by a lot of mountainous areas where the spiritual taboos are actually discussed on family dinners,” she said.

Horror, MD’s specialty for more than 20 years, is the genre that crosses borders most easily, according to Wienardi, who said it has at times reached the U.S. and European markets. “When it comes to drama, it’s a bit different because then, you know, there’s a lot of sayings in Indonesia that probably are not translated or culturally translated well,” she said.

The traffic runs both ways. MD released adaptations of Thai and Korean properties this year, partnered with Korea’s Barunson on “Sorop” and has fielded co-production inquiries from U.S. and European producers. Wienardi said the studio sees strong potential in bringing Taiwanese and East Asian IP to Indonesia, and wants pitches that arrive with proof of concept, a clear fit for Indonesian viewers and a track record in their home market.

“When we’re talking about NET TV, data is number one,” Wienardi said. Free-to-air and pay-TV ratings land daily at 10 a.m. and determine whether a program is extended or changed, while MD series simulcast on the channel help widen its reach. The channel’s goal is a place in Indonesia’s top five.

Wienardi said she hopes MD will one day work with Taiwanese directors and producers and “share probably a common ground of storytelling.”