/ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT/ASIA: Films Look Behind Eastern Stereotype

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Grace Jadyn Cheng

SINGAPORE, Oct 9 2001 (IPS) - Asian cinema conjures up images of buffaloes grazing on an open field, against a village backdrop. The reality behind that image however, is often vastly different, and more and more Asian productions are reflecting this.

This was the view shared by a number of young filmmakers from Asia in a seminar held at the trendy art house ‘The Substation’ here recently.

One of them was Thai director of the film ‘Motorcycle’, Aditya Assarat. He says, “Thailand is going through a very exciting time, there are a lot of new people making films and there is more open- mindedness in terms of the investors, the producers and from the government agencies involved.”

Thailand’s movie industry is getting a shot in the arm with the box-office hit ‘Suriyothai’, currently running in packed houses across Thailand. Based on a story during the Ayutthaya period, it is the most expensive film ever made by the Thais, and is designed to become an international hit.

A rash of new hard-hitting and sometimes controversial film in recent months has put the Thai censors under pressure, for trying to dilute sexual and political contents of the productions.

Aditya predicts that the next five to 10 years will see a change in Thailand, with more films about critical issues being addressed — a vision that fellow Thai director Pakpoom Wongpoom shares.

In his controversial film ‘Luang Ta’, Wongpoom daringly raises the issue of corruption among Buddhist monks, a film possibly pioneering the future of critical thought in Thailand.

This daring and analytical approach in Asian films is seen elsewhere in the region as well but Du Jie from China, director of films such as ’22 Yuan’ and ‘Hot Summer’, says that it is still not enough.

“We should face up to how we are going to tackle our competitors like Hollywood, reasons Du Jie. “It is good to have our voices in the movies we make but we have to think about the box office too.”

Considering that Asian films have barely skimmed the surface in Hollywood, getting recognition in the Western film industry is not going to be easy.

Referring to the recent success of the Asian film ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ in Hollywood, Aditya argues that the movie was a hit because it played into the West’s stereotypes about Asia.

“When the West thinks of Asia (films), they think of martial arts and flying through the air and all these beautiful stuff. So that’s how they packaged it,” he observes. Or, he adds, they think about “it’s poverty, wide open landscapes, and the buffaloes and the cows, working on the farm. But that’s not really what I see.”

If Asian films are to garner worldwide recognition, they will have to do so on their own terms with a realistic and honest Asian viewpoint, argues the Thai filmmaker Adiya.

“I am from the city and my experience in the city is very different to that in the farm. I would like to make films that are about my experiences in the city,” says Aditya.

Cheah Chee Kong, Singaporean director of the acclaimed movie ‘Chicken Rice War’ based on life in the modern Asian urban environment, believes that it is precisely cultural differences that will get Asia out of its rut.

“Yes, we watch a lot of Hollywood movies, and yes, we watch a lot of American television, but because we are brought up in a different context, a different culture, our ideas are very very fresh,” he argues.

At film festivals, Cheah has been asked by western film makers where got the idea for his film. His reply is, “One of my father’s friends is like that. He is a dancing champion and he is a hawker (food stall vendor).”

Cheah points out that is where Asian filmmakers have the advantage in coming up with films that are more representative of contemporary Asian society — as opposed to the age-old stereotypes on Asia one may get from Hollywood.

But funding is another obstacle to getting worldwide recognition. “A thing that is too easy to overlook is that a film is capital- heavy,” says Malaysian writer-turned-filmmaker Amir Muhammad, held up to be one of the ‘Leaders of the Asian Millennium’ in 1999 by ‘Asiaweek’ magazine.

Where the filmmakers receive funding from, if at all, and the expectations that come with the package, make up a vicious circle.

“If you get money from a certain type of foreign association, they do expect a certain form of cultural identity. If you want their money, you conform to what their idea of your country’s culture is,” says Amir.

Funding is a problem Singaporean filmmakers, like French filmmakers, can worry less about. Says Wahyuni A Hadi, programme executive of film and new media for Singapore’s Substation: “We have great support from the Singapore film commission and foundations, so people understand the importance of it.”

She says, though, that Asian films are typecast into two genres — the exotic and the newfangled. But with local funding coming into the industry, Asia will break free from these stereotypes. “There’ll be new issues that they’ll be dealing with, so for sure, molds will be broken,” predicts Wahyuni.

Aditya is also confident that funding will eventually come their way, even though the Thai government does not fund local filmmakers the way Singapore does.

“Thailand now has an independent film movement, where people are not there just for the money,” he says. “They are trying to find a way (for funding) by pitching their projects to producers who, now think the same way as we do.”

Says Juan Foo, producer of the Singaporean movie, ‘Return of the Pontianak’: “As quantity increases, so will quality; we will eventually get there.”