SPOTS WE LOVE

Nestled in the middle of vast rice fields, Joshua District Restaurant & Gallery is the spot we love in Tabanan region to the west of Bali. Used shipping containers are recycled into their venue, a two story with the ground floor reserved for gallery that displays chic, street-style clothing and for art exhibitions, while the second is the rice field-view restaurant and the recently opened co-working space. The menu is more on the Western side love their tomato tartar with sleek presentation, and their selection of coffee will satisfy caffein addicts. Stay for the sunset. Where else to go: Pigstone and Kedungu Beach.

Heralded as the “Ubud in the past”, well, we can’t argue with that. Admittedly lush and verdant, Sidemen, to the east of Bali in Karangasem, is a welcome respite from other more touristic sites. We love the sleepy and breezy vibe, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to do here. You can do water rafting at Telaga Waja river, or for a more homegrown experience, visit weaving plants where they create the gorgeous Endek or Songket cloth. You can also soak in the marvelous Tukad Cepung Waterfall or take a peek of the Bukit Temple, which would require a bit of leg work as you need to climb a considerably steep flight of stairs. Oh and have we mention Mount Agung is always on the horizon to greet you every morning? Where to stay: Villa Iseh, Wapa Di Ume.

Okay, so it’s not really a tranquil getaway, but the coffeeshops in chilly Kintamani is worth a mention because a) the coffee is good and b) man, you gotta love the view! The hottest one is Montana del Cafe, their minimalist, glass façade (trendsetting other venues) that faces off Mount Batur. Naturally, their outdoor space is much sought after for the IG crowd, but who can blame them? If you prefer enjoying your mountains on a balcony with a warm cup of joe, then this is the place to be at. Worthy Mentions: Eco Bike Coffee, Tegukopi, Akasa Kintamani.

Thanks to its volcanic terrain, Bali has several well-known hot water springs, such as the ones in Kintamani (the commercial Toya Devasya, comes to mind), but the springs in Tabanan is also worth exploring. Yeh Panes Penatahan is the most popular in the region and offers a public pool and a private one that are divided with bamboo walls. The water is about 30 – 40 degree Celsius and it’s yellowish in color due to its sulphur rich content that are good for your body. So take a dip and embrace the heat. Where else to go: the famous Jatiluwih rice fields.

In these challenging times when so many people who love the island can’t come to Bali, we are trying to make Bali available to them via online media, Mike adds, continuing, at the same time, with marketing partners affiliated with the show offering their products and services to our audience, we can help generate much needed income for local businesses and individuals. We’re still looking for additional support in the form of sponsorship, product placement and more affiliates to further uplift the production quality but I’m so impressed with the collaborators who’ve joined with us so far.

This includes actors, musicians, semi retired industry professionals, local businesses and other individuals who just want to help with what they think is a great concept. Among the affiliated businesses are Typhoon Adventures, offering a variety of seaborne experiences, and Treasure Garage, the custom motorcycle creators, both headquartered in Canggu, and Michael Peck, Songwriter and Musician. Michael offered us several of his own songs for the series, “Mike explains” and I’m delighted to say we’re planning to use entirely locally produced music in the pilot episode. That’s something I’d like to stick with all the way through the series, to provide a showcase for local musical talent as well as the show’s cast and crew. There are several world class production companies in Bali and the concept has benefited significantly from their advice and cooperation, in particular the prodigiously multi talented actor / write / director / producer and acting coach Joseph Taylor of Nusa Film. Joseph is a huge asset, Mike commented, I’ve worked with professional actors, even a couple of movie stars, and I’ve had to develop novices to perform tough roles as we did ‘The Bottom Turn -Mike’s 2019 Bali based short film which was selected for Academy Award qualifying film festival Into the Palace, BAFTA Wales qualifying Camarthen Bay Film Festival, won awards at festivals all over the world and for which local surf champion Cinta Hansel won two Best Actress awards, but that was to play one role which was fairly close their own personalities and life experience. I’ve been to several of Joseph’s acting classes and seen how he can analyse exactly what’s working in a scene, what isn’t, why and how to rapidly improve an actor’s performance.

If you’re a budding actor who’s serious about developing your talent, you should already be attending his weekly classes. So who’s in the tv series? Joseph, of course! laughs Mike, He’s playing a multi layered character that I love. As well as a couple of Joseph’s highly committed students. We’re still finalizing some of the cast but we’re talking to some very familiar faces that we’re really excited about. And the movies? ‘One is a supernatural thriller set during Nyepi, Mike advises, which is being developed with Unchartered Features and the other is a romantic drama across three generations of Balinese, expats and their mixed race children. It’s a real heart wrencher. I had tears in my eyes several times while writing it.

Yes, we’re mainly focused on the tv series right now but we’re always interested in high concept projects,‘ Mike adds and clarifies: High concept doesn’t have to mean high cost. A big budget doesn’t always mean a better product. For a gym promo for example, a room full of exercise machines, rows of dumb bells, a guy doing some arm curls and a couple of shapely women riding fixed bicycles to a heavy rock sound track isn’t very novel or compelling. Your audience needs more, deserves more the human element and you need to present a story with characters people will identify with. It could be a normal individual a person like you and me or a pro athlete who triumphs over lethargy or obesity, as long as it’s relatable, and if it’s parents keeping themselves healthy to make sure they can properly take care of their family and teaching their kids the importance of health and fitness from an early age, now you have a chance of motivating people to get off their arses and do something healthy, which is the whole point. Especially now in the battle against Covid.