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MOC continues to promote "Cultural Exchanges and Collaborative Projects between South East Asia and Taiwan" in post-pandemic era

  • Date:2021-08-13
MOC continues to promote 'Cultural Exchanges and Collaborative Projects between South East Asia and Taiwan' in post-pandemic era

Last year, the Ministry of Culture invited members of the Southeast Asia Advisory Committee members to propose cultural exchange projects for the first time, and the Ministry has received warm responses. This year, amid the ongoing pandemic, MOC continued to launch the "Cultural Exchanges and Collaborative Projects between (the Regions of) South East Asia and Taiwan (新南向海外交流專題計畫)," to highlight government efforts in maintaining ties with the region, and to unfold the diverse exchanges with Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, among others.

MOC stated that five proposed projects were approved this year, including online residency, online performance, online forums, special studies, field survey, and publication. The ministry expects that more countries will join the cultural exchange program, such as New Zealand and Australia.

The selected projects featured the exploration of classical music and long-distance inheritance between Taiwan and Vietnam as well as the comparison of narratives between Taiwan and Thailand.

The discoveries connect the study of the history and culture of Taiwan and the Mekong River Basin as well as the online communication with Southeast Asian countries about Butoh (亞洲舞踏), one of the three largest genres of new contemporary dance.

Additionally, the program also explored the possibility of "virtual artist residency," to show how creative needs are met and how support can be provided through the internet during the pandemic crisis.

Established in 2015, MOC began to organize the "Southeast Asia Advisory Committee (東南亞事務諮詢委員會)." All previous committee members were the top domestic and foreign art and literature professionals who paid close attention to the Southeast Asian culture and played the role of a bridge of communication between Taiwan and Southeast Asia.

By implementing the projects, MOC expects to continue to conduct cultural exchanges with Southeast countries while exploring more possibilities for international cultural exchanges in the post-epidemic era.