The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Project Final Report

Prepared by: Daniel B. Darmawan Jeanne Boitano Yuehmei Liang Leiden University School of Management MBA in International Management 2004 - 2005 Leiden, August 18, 2005

Table of Contents

1 Executive Summary..........................................................................................................4 2 Project Introduction and Methodology.............................................................................6 2.1 Introduction............................................................................................................6 2.2 Festival Definition..................................................................................................8 2.3 Purpose and Objectives........................................................................................10 2.4 Project Methodology and Limitations..................................................................10 2.5 Paper Presentation ...............................................................................................11 3 Festival Operation in East Asia.......................................................................................13 3.1 The Purpose of Festivals in East Asia .................................................................13 3.2 East Asia Festivals Organization Structures .......................................................15 3.3 How East Asia Festivals Determine their Programs............................................17 3.4 Communication and Positioning .........................................................................24 3.5 Festival Financial Resources and Expenditure Analysis .....................................27 3.5.1 Festival Financial Resources............................................................................27 3.5.2 Financial Expenditure Analysis.......................................................................30 4 Development of Cooperation among Festivals in East Asia...........................................33 4.1 The Current Cooperation of East Asia Festivals .................................................33 4.2 The Key Success Factors in the Cooperation ......................................................35 4.2.1 Formal Network Affiliations............................................................................36 4.2.2 Informal Network Affiliations.........................................................................36 4.2.3 Government Role in Supporting Culture and Arts...........................................37 4.2.4 Technology.......................................................................................................38 4.3 Potential Difficulties for Cooperation .................................................................39 4.3.1 Similarity in the Programming........................................................................39 4.3.2 Economic Development and Social Condition................................................39 5 Developing Opportunities in the East Asia Market.........................................................42 5.1 Why European Groups Seek Opportunities in East Asia.....................................42 5.2 Typology of the European Performing Arts that are Favorable ..........................42 5.3 The Entry Channels .............................................................................................45 5.3.1 Agency.............................................................................................................45 5.3.2 Formal and Informal Forum............................................................................46 5.3.3 Foreign Governments......................................................................................47 5.3.4 Company Sponsorship.....................................................................................48 5.3.5 Performing Arts Fair........................................................................................48 5.3.6 Festival Representatives...................................................................................49 5.4 Secondary Markets ..............................................................................................49 6 Conclusions and Recommendations................................................................................53 Conclusions...............................................................................................................53 6.1 Overview of Festival Operation in East Asia.......................................................53 6.2 Cooperation among Festivals in East Asia...........................................................56 6.3 Opportunities for European Performing Arts Group ...........................................57 Recommendations.....................................................................................................58 6.4 Recommendation for IETM ................................................................................58 6.5 Recommendation for EFA....................................................................................58 6.6 Recommendation for European Performing Arts Groups ...................................59 6.7 Recommendation for East Asia Festival Organizers............................................59 6.8 Recommendation for the Governments ...............................................................60 6.9 Recommendation for Business Corporations ......................................................61 6.10 Recommendation for Future Research...............................................................62

7 Appendices......................................................................................................................63 Appendix 1 : Informal European Theatre Meeting ..................................................64 Appendix 2 : European Festival Association ............................................................65 Appendix 3 : Hong Kong International Arts Festival................................................66 Appendix 4 : Shanghai International Arts Festival....................................................69 Appendix 5 : Macao International Arts Festival........................................................74 Appendix 6 : Tokyo International Arts Festival........................................................77 Appendix 7 : Hong Kong New Vision Arts Festival.................................................80 Appendix 8 : Seoul Performing Arts Festival...........................................................83 Appendix 9 : DaDao Live Arts Festival....................................................................85 Appendix 10 : Jakarta International Arts Festival (JakArt).......................................88 Appendix 11 : The Member List of Asia Europe Foundation...................................92 Appendix 12 : East Asia Festivals Programmes List .............................................93 Hong Kong Arts Festivals.........................................................................................93 Macao International Arts Festival.............................................................................94 Shanghai International Arts Festival, .......................................................................96 Tokyo International Arts Festivals............................................................................98 Hong Kong New Vision Arts Festival ......................................................................99 Seoul Performing Arts Festival...............................................................................100 DaDao Live Art Festival.........................................................................................101 Jakarta International Art Festivals (JakArt)............................................................102 8 Acknowledgements.......................................................................................................104 9 Bibliography..................................................................................................................106

Table List
Table 1: Programming Based on Type of Performance 18 Table 2: Programming Based on Festival Target Group 19 Table 3: How East Asia Festival Gather Information about Foreign PA Group 23 Table 4: East Asia Festivals Financial Resources 30 Table 5: East Asia Festivals Financial Expenditure Allocation 31 Table 6: East Asia Festivals Budget 32 Table 7: Characteristics Comparison between Three Types of Festival 56

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

1 Executive Summary
It is the objective of this paper to perform preliminary research and present a general overview on the structure and operation processes of the performing arts festivals in East Asia. Additionally, we want to present the current cooperation status among the festivals and present the key success factors of this cooperation. For the interest of our clients, IETM and EFA, we identify the trends of performing arts in East Asia, and examine the possible entry channels for performing groups to this region. We also explore the possibility for establishing secondary markets in East Asia. To accomplish our tasks we investigate eight festivals in the East Asian region. In our research, we identify three main types of festivals in East Asia. Each festival has its own distinctive characteristics. This categorization occurs because the East Asian festivals are influenced by many factors such as; their purpose and motivation, cultural heritage, government policies towards culture and resources available. While sponsor-oriented festivals have abundant resources and tend to be large festivals, state-supported festivals are likely to promote specific arts genres. Conversely, rebellious festivals operate with their unique cooperative organization model to fulfill their vision. Therefore, famous and commercial artists typically choose the sponsor-oriented or state-supported festivals, while the idealist and cooperative artists seek to find self actualization in the rebellious festival. We believe that East Asia offers large opportunities for European performing arts groups. We identify at least 147 performing arts festivals in the region. We find festival concentration in more developed countries like Japan, Korea and Hong Kong. In our research, we recognize that the majority of foreign performance groups appearing in East Asia fall under the music and dance genres. This occurs because the audience is not faced with the language barrier, as in dramatic theatre, and is able to interpret the art and performance message as it sees fit. To seize the opportunities in East Asia, European performing groups should establish a relationship with the local performing arts players. This is due to the influence of the East Asian cultural heritage where relationships must be established prior to business decisions being made. Europeans need the opportunity to introduce themselves, and gradually strengthen the relationship, both on the organizational and personal level. We identify six entry channels to commence the relationship with the Asian parties (agency, formal association, government, company sponsorship, performing arts fair and festival representatives). By strengthening the relationship, the European parties could seek more opportunities such as establishing a circuit of a secondary market. In addition, the informal fora also play a key role in the information circulation. In those fora, Asian parties will exchange knowledge, gossip, personal preferences, judgment, private experiences, opinion etc. In addition, we recognize that the cooperation among the European and East Asia has already been established. There is a movement, both from the governments and arts communities, to strengthen and enhance more cooperation between the performing arts players. Their objective is to build bridges between the societies of Asia and Europe through cultural engagement.

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia From our study, we realize that it is not easy for European performing arts professionals to penetrate the East Asia market. European performing groups should establish their foundation first in some country in East Asia, and from there they can expand their market in the region. However, to find the right Asian partner is very essential. Like Sun Tzu said, Victory can be anticipated, but it can not be forced.1

Carr, C. (2000) The Book of War, New York: Modern Library, 2000, p.80

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

2 Project Introduction and Methodology

2.1 Introduction
Cultural and arts diversities in Asia Asian culture and arts are too diverse to be seen as one piece. There are a number of factors that influence the development of culture in this area: different origins of culture, counties and areas that are at different levels in economic development, and different government policies. In Asia there are some influential and in some cases, dominant cultures and they vary by region: Chinese, Japanese and Malay dominate East Asia culture, Indian dominates Central Asia and Arabian dominates the Middle-East and West Asia region. Each of these dominant cultures has distinctive historical forces which are influential: The Chinese culture is influenced by Lao Tze and Confucius; Indian is influenced by Hindu religion and Buddhism, and Islam is the dominant force in Western Asia and the Middle East. But against these dominant influences, people try to incorporate new ideas, to transform the culture, or to assimilate new influences through art and culture. This cultural transformation results from inter-mingling various cultures, especially those which arrive from the West. Christian culture has been an influence in Asia since the 16th century, the result of colonization by European countries. It is because of the complexity of the development of culture in Asia that the Asian cultural arts market becomes difficult to define. Other influential drivers currently at work in Asia that effect the cultures and arts markets are differences in economic power and government policies on a country by country basis. A majority of the countries of Asia are developing economies. They struggle to maintain both economic and political stability. As a consequence, the governments do not place high priority on the development of local culture and arts. Conversely, the developed countries in Asia, whose economies are strong, see the development of culture and arts as an integral part of countrys continued development. As a result, either professional or traditional performing arts in Asia can only grow and flourish based on the social and economic development of the country in which they exit. An example of this is the absence of developing countries such as Thailand, India and Middle Eastern countries in Music, Opera, Dance and Drama in Asian, the Pacific and North America (MOD) in 2003,2 the yellow book directory for the performing arts industry. As the world is moving toward a more global economy, there are concerns raised regarding the effects that globalization will have on the cultures of specific societies. Globalization drives products and goods to be homogeneous worldwide, so there could be negative consequences in the arts and a loss of artistic diversity. As a result
2

Alain Charles Arts Publishing Ltd. (2003), Music, Opera, Dance and Drama in Asian, the Pacific and North America 2003

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia of this globalization, cultural industries such as TV, film, publishing and music, have grown substantially and what is produced in one region is easily transferred and sold to other areas. Commercially produced art has become increasingly popular since the producers take the cookie-cutter approach to producing and are able to be marketed as a global product. Productions such as the musical Mama Mia are celebrating great success worldwide. It is important that these large commercial productions do not stifle the development of art of the local cultures. A fear prompted by the economic globalization is that the local cultures will lose their specific markers and that the diversity of productions will become less evident. This is intrinsically against the make up of a regions cultures and the goods that are produced in these societies. For it is these differences and diverse products (productions) that form and define the culture for what it is. Culture tends to express the diversity of geographic and ethnic location and so opposes movements towards one single way of being-in-the-world and one story of how life should best be lived. The very nature of culture, then, pulls against those economic structures and forces that might be driving us towards a single global culture.3 As the process of globalization transpires, the drive to maintain the cultural and individual artistic identity will remain strong among the arts professionals. Performing Arts Markets in East Asia A vital and prosperous performing arts environment is the essential factor for festivals. A variety of performing arts activities presented by various organizations are taking place throughout whole year, including music, dance, theatre and Chinese opera. According to the statistical data from National Arts Council of Singapore, in 2004 there were 1,915 productions with 5,105 performances in Singapore alone. There were 2,710 ticketed performances with 1.1 million individual attendees.4 There are 267 arts societies registered with the Registry of Societies and 321 performing arts companies registered with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority in Singapore.5 In the same year, there are 5,318 performances in Hong Kong with 4.55 million individual attendees.6 According to the Urban Ticketing System,7 there are 4,212 million tickets sold with the total sales of 641 million HK$ in 2004.8 In East Asia, the concrete statistical numbers for the performing arts industry can only be found in the more developed countries, such as Singapore and Hong Kong. It is because Arts Management is a relatively new area of management and has not yet been taken seriously in most of the East Asia countries who are more concerned
Tomlinson, J, Globalization and Culture (online), cited on August 16, 2005 Singapore population was 4 million estimated in July 2004. US Immigration department (online). Cited on August 8, 2005 5 National Arts Council, (2004), Arts Statistics (online), cited on August 10, 2005 6 Hong Kong population was 6 million estimated in July 2004. CIA Fact Book (online). Cited on August 8, 2005 7 The ticketing system in Hong Kong, organization website http://www.lcsd.gov.hk 8 HK Leisure & Culture Service, (2005), Cultural Statistic Report (online), cited on August 11, 2005.
3 4

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia with their economic development.9 However, it is expected that Singapore and Hong Kong are only the tip of the iceberg in the East Asia performing arts industry. According to the MOD 2003, 10 there were 147 major festivals in the East Asian region.11 With the influence of western arts and cultures, the contents of Asian festivals are rich in both western classical and contemporary and Asian traditional performing arts genres and styles. Europeans and East Asia Performing Arts The European presence in the East Asia performing arts quite often plays a role as an important reference for the western and contemporary performances. For the western-originated genres, such as classical music, dance, and theatre, the European artists and performing companies provide the high standard performances to East Asia performing arts players. For the innovative contemporary works, the European partners challenge the relatively conservative East Asia societies with the bold and brave experiments of performing arts. It is fair to say that in East Asia, the European performing arts intriguing to the Asian population. Europeans today are becoming increasingly involved with East Asia performing arts, especially through the festivals. Most of the famous European artists, orchestras, dance companies, and theatres are all including the major East Asia cities and festivals in their portfolio of performances. In addition to the economic benefit and the reputation, it is more desirable that the interaction between western and eastern arts and cultures can result in the stimulation of artistic creation and collaboration. The innovation of productions and performances is the first priority in the performing arts industry. In order to facilitate this innovative creation, it is necessary to establish cooperation among festival players and collaboration among artists between western and eastern performing arts markets. Therefore, it is the intention of this study to understand what the programming interests and financial modalities of the East Asia performing arts festivals are; furthermore, with the understanding of the operation of East Asia performing art festival, how European performing arts groups can deal with the East Asia parties and establish a wider presence in the East Asia region.

2.2

Festival Definition
A festival is composed of series of events happening in a compressed, usually short-term period. Festivals are both cultural and social events. They occur in a unique setting that enables the enactment of authentic works, often providing new interpretations.

The statistics numbers of Korea and Japan are more enclosed and are not public on the website. 10 Music, Opera, Dance and Drama in Asia, the Pacific and North America 2003 was published by Alian Charles Arts Publishing Ltd. MOD is a yellow book for Europe and International Arts Manager, particularly in the performing arts field. 11 Alain Charles Arts Publishing Ltd. (2003), Music, Opera, Dance and Drama in Asian, the Pacific and North America 2003
9

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia In Europe, festivals originated from the ritual celebration in Athens in the fifth century B.C with a theatrical festival in order to honor Dionysus.12 The different purposes of festivals evolved as time passed: for instance, athletic games, religious ceremonies, military victories, dedications, and funerals. Furthermore, the forms the festivals took evolved from annual market fairs in the medieval Europe, to church or court festival presentations in the 18th century, followed by the Bayreuth Festival by Richard Wagner in the 19th century. In modern Europe, festivals have been proliferating intensively especially since the end of the Cold War.13 Festival dAvignon, Edinburgh Festival, and Holland Festival are the famous examples of sustainable festivals since the 1940s.14 Presenting the cultural events in a condensed format, the role of the festival has come to re-voice and re-interpret the traditions.15 The festival is the intermediary of arts and culture to represent the traditional forms with innovative approaches. The conventional performances are variations for the festival every year. The festival also acts as the cultural modifier to introduce various cultural forms from other regions. In this way, the festival offers the community a fresh taste of foreign flavor and provides the cultures a chance to meet one another. Very often, new creation of arts is generated from the lively environment of the festival. Festivals also play a part in tourism for the city or town where it is being hosted, bringing visitors from surrounding areas to participate in the scheduled events. It is the blend of bringing people together in unique social situations and the creation of new productions that give each festival its own uniqueness.16 Festivals usually gather people together around a celebratory event and are used as a valuable catalyst for cultural, social, economic development of a particular region. There are numerous varieties of festivals as they can encompass many different attributes (i.e. theme, duration, scale), depending on motivation and the type of activities the organizers behind each festival bring to it. In this study, we are focusing on those professional arts festivals in East Asia region that present performing groups and artists, both traditional and contemporary. In addition, we also concentrate on those festivals that have a recurring basis, not on one time event festival. The operational scope of internationalization is one of the necessary elements in this study, with the constant dialogue between cultural institutions and local communities. For an international festival, support, practical insight and inspiration are provided locally, while the involvement of cultural institutions-particularly those with an international profile ensures that festivals provide essential
The god of wine in the Greek mythology Klaic, D. (2002), The Future of Festival Formulae: A Holland Festival Symposium in De Balie Background Paper, Amsterdam, p1 14 Davis, E.L, (2005), Knowledge Continuity Management in Festival Organizations, Utrecht School of Art, p.8 15 Lynch D. (1999), Short-term Travel Grant Application (online), cited on August 4, 2005. 16 Ibid (online)
12 13

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia exchanges between local and international communities.17

2.3

Purpose and Objectives

As part of our MBA program, we are involved in a consultancy project for IETM (Informal European Theatre Meetings) and EFA (European Festivals Association). Please see Appendix 1 and 2 for additional background information on our clients. It is our intent with this project to present to our clients, a general overview of how performing arts festivals in East Asia are structured, and how they operate and the levels of organization among them. We will present the different varieties of performing arts festivals that occur in East Asia, and analyze the festivals purpose and programming orientations of the festivals. We will also investigate the financial modalities under which East Asia festivals operate. Moreover, we want to present the current status with regards to cooperation among the festivals and present their key success factors. In the interest of our clients, we will identify possible entry channels to Asia and explore the possibilities of secondary markets to the East Asia Festivals.

2.4

Project Methodology and Limitations

In order to achieve our objectives, we have researched a selected group of performing arts festivals that are representative of the East Asia countries. We have used festivals that are associated with Association of Asia and Pacific Performing Arts Center (AAPPAC), an organization with thirty two members, established in 1996 to promote and exchange the artistic programs of the region. In addition, the festivals selection was also based on initial contact by Dr. Dragan Klaic on behalf of the IETM in the Festival Forum in Singapore, Critically Speaking: Asia & Europe Contemporary Performing Arts Colloquium, held in June 2005. The festivals we chose were diverse with regards to size, programming, and motivation. We selected seven festivals in East Asia, which include; Hong Kong Arts Festival, Tokyo International Arts Festival, China Shanghai International Arts Festival, Macao International Arts Festival, Hong Kong New Vision Arts Festival, Seoul Performing Arts Festival, DaDao Live Arts Festival and Jakarta International Arts Festival (JakART). We felt that festivals from these countries presented a realistic picture of the Asian market with regards to performing art festivals. Those festivals that responded to our initial correspondence and surveys were interviewed via phone calls, and (or) email. Interviews were conducted with the festivals staffers in order to collect information on the operation of those festivals, their operational scope and funding, including public support, commercial sponsors, the performing groups, the operators, the audience, and other relevant players. We gathered additional information from books, articles and the internet research.

17

Reding, V., European Festival Association, (2000), EU Commission for Culture and Education (online), cited on August 8, 2005.

10

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia After data was collected and distributed we analyzed all aspects to create a comprehensive picture of the operation of festivals, including organizational purposes served, programming, financial analysis and value-added activities. We have used this information to analyze the points set forth in the objectives and present opportunities for cultural arts exchange and cooperation and to provide a recommendation for both European and East Asia festivals and their networks in order to seek stronger cooperation among each other. In order to obtain additional information, we conducted interviews with several performing arts group in East Asia and Europe. Finally, we conducted internet research on several key organizations that play a significant role in the culture and arts cooperation in East Asia. In our paper, we use a qualitative approach as our main approach. However, we try to provide quantitative data to support our arguments whenever possible. In the process of our research project we have faced some limitations, particularly in the gathering of information. The similarity among festivals is inevitable because of the established network associations. Some of the festivals that we researched are non-profit organizations but not all have clear operation records. Some of the festivals are government divisions, whose operational activities are dispersed, subcontracted or have been spun off. Therefore the person interviewed would use language that was vague or diplomatic. The person interviewed was aware that some of what he/she could say might be taken in a negative light and therefore, some information from the interviews was incomplete or difficult to obtain. For instance, it was hard to obtain all financial data that we needed. On the other side, the scope of the European festivals and performing groups were limited due to infrequent responses of selected organizations. We believe this to be due to time of year, a summer holiday season for those involved.

2.5

Paper Presentation
We are writing this report for both our clients; IETM and EFA, mentored by Dr. Dragan Klaic and the academic panel of Leiden University School of Management. With the diverse backgrounds of our readers in arts and business, we recognize the need to include some background information of both disciplines. We understand that this may create some redundancies. Due to the nature of our readers, we feel it is necessary to include the background information in the appendices in order to offer a complete picture for all readers involved. We will begin by defining a festival and describing the context of 11

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia festivals in relation to our paper. What is the cultural backdrop for these festivals, and the current conditions in which they must exist. We will present in Chapter 3 the operational components of the festival in East Asia. How are the festivals structured on a management level? We will explore what factors play a role in the determination of their programming. What are their structures for communication and positioning themselves in the market? We will also analyze the financial components to the festival. What are their main sources of revenue? Does this play a role in their determination of programming and recruiting of performance groups? The expenditures of the festival will also be analyzed, and festivals of all sizes will be reviewed. Chapter 4 presents an analysis of the current state of cooperation among festivals in East Asia. What are the key success factors for this cooperation, and what possible difficulties exist that must be overcome for further cooperation among the parties in East Asia. In Chapter 5, we will present East Asias opportunities for European performing groups. What are potential entry channels for the European groups to utilize in order to enter the festivals in East Asia? We will analyze which types of programs from Europe are favorable in the eyes of the programming boards of the festivals in East Asia. We will present opportunities for a second-hand market, and provide examples for how this is being accomplished today in East Asia. We will then draw conclusions on our findings and present recommendations to our clients on the East Asia frameworks and the synergies that exist with European festivals and performance groups and how these synergies could be further developed.

12

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

3 Festival Operation in East Asia

In this section we would like to give general overview about how East Asia festivals operate. We break down our analysis into five important components: purpose, organizational structure, programming, communication and finance. In our analysis, we found that a festivals purpose plays an essential role. The purpose will determine the size of the festival. It is also reflected throughout the other components of the festival structure including the programming criteria, financial resources and how they communicate with their audiences. When considering the organizational structure, we identified two forms of organization; an independent organization and an organization which is an extension of the government.

3.1

The Purpose of Festivals in East Asia

In ancient times, festivals were used as ritual celebrations, particularly for religious ceremonies, military victories, dedications and funerals.18 However, in the modern era, the purpose of festivals shifted to a public celebration.19 Based on our research, the major festivals in East Asia have been initiated by the city or national government. These governments consider the festival as lighthouse projects with the additional purpose of developing the local culture and arts field. The festivals provide further value to the region, in addition to artistic creation and religious celebration, in terms of local tourism.20 Generally, from the perspective of a government, the festivals objectives are to increase a citys popularity and prestige, create an international image by placing it on the cultural map, and to attract more tourists. In our samples, the festivals that fall under this purpose are Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tokyo and Macao. In addition to the festivals with government support, East Asia also has rebellious festivals, particularly in the developing countries. These festivals are inspired by an idea or one individual with a driving mission, a visionary. They want to challenge the general public practice because these festivals sponsor art forms or ideas that are not mainstream, or they want to show they can do something distinctive and out of the ordinary, they generally receive very limited support from the government. In JakArt, the idealist artist community felt that the Indonesian people did not appreciate culture and the arts sufficiently. According to Mrs. Ary Sutedja, of the JakArt Festival, Indonesian people are to busy with themselves. They do not have enough time to see (or think) about culture and arts. Why do not we as an art community bring culture and arts to the people? In addition, Mr Shu Yang said, DaDao wants to provide opportunities that will build an environment for live-arts artists to continue to perform and create new works, to promote the professional performing standards, and to educate the

18
19

Brockett, O.G.(1995), History of the Theatre, 7th ed, London: Allyn and Bacon, p.53 Getz, D. (1991), Festivals, Special Events and Tourism, New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, p.54 20 Greffe, X.(2003), Arts and Artists from Economic Perspective, Paris: Economica/UNESCO, p.8

13

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia public since live -arts are not recognized in China and are oppressed by the main stream. From the perspective of culture and arts, we found three main purposes of the festivals in East Asia. The two primary purposes that our festival samples emphasize are to introduce the works of performing arts from all over the world for the enrichment of the local cultural life and to create local productions in order to promote wider public interest in culture and arts. A third purpose is to present specific cultures to the host country. First, the festival wishes to introduce the works of performing arts from all over the world for the enrichment of cultural life of a specific city. By having international performing arts groups in the festival, the organizer aims to stimulate and facilitate the cultural and artistic development in local artists and the community. They build international, cross-cultural bridges between professional communities of artists, providing opportunities for cooperation and communication.21 In addition, international groups with good reputations also strengthen the reputation of the festival, particularly by creating an international reputation. The second purpose of the festival is to cultivate the local arts and culture environment. This is achieved in two ways, encouraging local creation of local art works and by promoting wider public interest in the already existing culture and art. By promoting local productions, festivals can provide added incentives for local groups to produce higher quality performances, by giving them the opportunity to contribute to the program of the festival. The festivals see themselves as a place to promote and to test experimental projects and ideas. Conversely, the festivals offer the public the chance to see new talent or innovative productions. The festivals act as a catalyst to bring local culture and art closer to the society. The festivals increase local awareness, specifically with regards to other cultures. This purpose is distinctively exhibited by the Tokyo International Arts Festival. The festival organizer uses the event as an interface between other cultures and the Japanese people. The aim is not for a cultural exchange but rather to build a better understanding about distant people through their culture. This became the motive especially after the attack on September 11, 2001. From 2003-2006, the Tokyo International Arts Festival is concentrating on performance groups from the Arabic countries as well as Eastern European countries. They were the first to bring in a performance group from the Palestine region. Why? The Japanese consign their military units in Iraq and they realize a need for a better understanding concerning the Middle Eastern cultures.

Allen, K. & Shaw, P. (2000), Festival Mean Business: The Shape of Arts Festivals in the UK, British Arts Festival Association, p.2
21

14

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

3.2

East Asia Festivals Organization Structures

The festival organizations are operated either by an independent entity or as an extension of a government organization. There are two levels of organization in every festival organization, management and organizer. The management is the permanent form of the festival organization, represented by the organization board, and focuses on the strategic planning of the festival. The second layer of festival organization is the organizer. The festival organizer is under a project management structure which is comprised of a core team made up of a full-time staff that forms the basis of the festival.

Figure 1: Cultural Festival Configuration

22

Notes: Permanet festival organization is printed in bold

Different structures exist among the festival boards in East Asia. For instance, at the Hong Kong Festival Society Ltd., organizers of the Hong Kong Arts Festival, the board is composed of representatives from various sectors. They include individuals from the business community, the private sector, philanthropy, government, the Jockey Club, the tourist board, and the financial sector. The board is chaired by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange chairman. By having individuals with diverse backgrounds on the board, the Hong Kong Festival Society Ltd. hopes to get greater community support and to present the festival. Another important function of this board is to establish the sponsors and the business networks who support the festival. However, to ensure an independent board, the sponsors are not allowed to hold board positions. This is not the case for Arts Network Japan which runs the Tokyo International Arts Festival. Their sponsor representatives are placed on the board as a symbol of cooperation between the corporation and the festival.

Hagoort, G. (2003), Arts Management Entrepreneurial Style, Delft: Eburon Publishers, p.159
22

15

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia To execute the festival, the organization will hire additional temporary staff and volunteers in order to meet various short-term demands of the event itself.23 The function of part-time workers and volunteers is very broad. The temporary staff members are involved in administration, translating, ushering, stage crew, ticket office, photography, information centre, etc. Most part-time workers and volunteers are college and university students, preferably from arts, music or theatre fields. The number of volunteers varies according to the festival scale and how the festival structures itself. For instance, Shanghai pulls hundreds of students in as volunteers because the number of performances each year ranges from 120 to 150. The festival is run by a non-profit organization which has the financial burden of supporting the part-time jobs not filled by volunteers. However, Hong Kong New Vision, presented by the division of Hong Kong government, only hires part-time employees, without utilizing volunteers, to cover all the tasks because of the relatively small scale of programming, which included only 14 productions in 2005. In this study, there is another organizational approach which provides an alternative way for festivals to operate without the usual financial and managerial support. Rebellious festivals use their own means to provide support for their festivals. Although the organization structure is similar to the festival with government support, the rebellious festivals are totally dependent on their volunteers to run the festival. Promoting the social movement with arts, JakArt has a small core team as a think-tank. The organization has 300 part-time members (on a voluntary basis) with different backgrounds, including bankers, auditors, lawyers, and artists who are assigned positions within the festival that fit their specific field of expertise. Because the festival has very little in terms of financial resources, all stakeholders of JakArt contribute to the festival as volunteers with a strong identification with the organizational purpose. JakArt purpose is to demonstrate, expose, share, and encourage the importance of creativity in the social, economic, and cultural activities.24 The festival is sustained without conventional resources because the volunteers, who are put through a psychological test before being selected, are engaged of emotionally and motivated by their ideals. The festival successfully includes people with passion and imagination. Combined with persistence, these individuals want to create their legacy. While conducting the festival, JakArt acquires more volunteers, mostly university students from various backgrounds. In 2001 2003, they utilized at least 1,000 volunteers. JakArt does not pay for anything including meals and transportation. In exchange, JakArt gives unique experiences, challenges and freedom to find the solutions to problems that arise. To run the organization and festival, the organizers are dependent on collaboration among
Allen, K. & Shaw, P. (2000), Festival Mean Business: The Shape of Arts Festivals in the UK, British Arts Festival Association, p.32 24 JakArt, (2004), Internal Publication Leaflet
23

16

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia stakeholders. For instance, to re-paint poor neighborhoods in Jakarta, JakArt organizes the painting artists, approaches the Paint Company to become sponsor and utilizes the JakArt network, while the local neighborhood provide meals and volunteers to help the artists.

3.3

How East Asia Festivals Determine their Programs

It is not easy to define festivals according to the programming interests. Because one of the crucial elements of the arts is creativity, new ideas, types, and styles of performing arts are happening in every moment and affecting the components of the festivals. For instance, the official recognition of live arts25 didnt exist until late in the 20th century.26 However, every festival has certain guidelines to cope with the programming selection, whether explicit as those deliberately established festivals or implicit like the young and inexperienced festivals. Those guidelines shape the particular direction for the festival to select programmes and include two things: the type of performance and the target audience for the performance.

Based on Type of Performances

When using the type of performance as a determining factor for a festival, the festival can take one of two approaches. Festivals with mixed programmes in terms of the genre of performance are referred to as interdisciplinary festivals. On the other hand, festivals engaging a particular focus on the form of performance or artistic style are referred to specific-type festivals. The festivals containing interdisciplinary programmes tend to encompass various art forms. The festival includes all kinds of performing arts genres, including music, dance, theatre, film, and even fine arts exhibitions. The festival also involves various artistic styles, such as classical, popular, traditional, contemporary, and national. It is the mindset of the festival organizer that every single audience will find a place in the festivals in terms of the different preferences for some type of the performing arts. For these festivals, the main purpose is to facilitate the cultural exchange and build up the city image in terms of local arts and culture. It is the nature of a festival to celebrate rather than to present a certain point of view regarding the artistry. In our research, the festivals that follow this strategy are Shanghai, Hong Kong, Macao, Tokyo and JakArt. For the festival employing specific-type of performances, it is found that there is a more visible direction within the programmes in
Live arts represent essentially temporary works of art that span a range of disciplines and discourses involving, in some way, the body, space, and time. To use the term live art is not to attempt to define or fix a practice but a strategy to open up a landscape, to map new artistic geographies, to imagine new ways of working and at the same time, to create appropriate cultural, curatorial and critical frameworks around this eclectic and expansive body of practices and artists. 26 Live Arts Development Agency (2005), What is Live Arts? (online), cited on August 8, 2005
25

17

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia terms of the genre of performance or a certain tone of performing. These festivals stress a specific type of art form because of the expertise or the particular interest of the presenters. We can see that DaDao promotes the live arts genre in China, while New Vision and Seoul invite the various forms of performance in the field of contemporary arts. All of them try to build strong identity of innovation in their arts field.

Table 1: Programming Based on Type of Performance

Classical/ Popular Music Dance Theatre Contemporar y Music Dance Theatre Live Arts Fine Arts * Others **

Contents

Approach

Shanghai Hong Kong Tokyo Macao JakArt New Vision Seoul DaDao Notes: : stronger emphasis comparing among its own programmes * : including exhibition and expo ** : Including films and multi-media

InterDisciplinary

Specifictype

It is shown in table 1 that festivals with the interdisciplinary approach all include the mainstream types and style of performing arts, such as classical music, classical ballet, or popular theatre. In addition to the mainstream, the interdisciplinary festivals also encompass two more genres of performances. For the specific-type festivals, it is a more focusing distribution picture in terms of types of programmes. Usually only one genre is presented in the festivals. There is a strong and united taste in the various programmes. However, the table presents only a general overview. An exception to this case is the Hong Kong New Vision Festival. This festival wants to promote contemporary arts but not as exclusively as Seoul does. In their programming they try to bridge two different arts styles (classical and contemporary). Therefore a dance theatre is presented as well as a multi-media theatre; and a concert combining popular singers, classical instrumentalists, and an opera singer is presented as well as a concert blending eastern and western music styles. Although the types of the performances are not able to be classified into one categorization, there is a clear distinctive characteristic to the programming of the New Vision Arts Festival.

Based on Festival Target Group

18

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia There are two perspectives employed regarding the servicing target: those that are externally-driven and those that are internally-driven. The targeting groups can be defined according to the business component of festivals: product offering, activities, and resources. The audiences and sponsors are the final groups to whom the product of the festival is delivered. The audience purchases the tickets for the performances, and the sponsors enjoy an enhanced reputation that is associated with the reputation of the festival as well as that of being associated with the arts. Second, are the organizers and governments which are the organizers of the festivals. These two groups are in charge of the managerial and logistical tasks of the festivals and have serious impacts on the direction, production and presentation of the festivals. Third, there are the artists who are the involved in performing existing works or creating new pieces. The festivals initiating the programming ideas from the perspective of audiences and sponsors are referred to as externally-driven because it is the factors outside of the organization which have more impact on the programming decision making processes. On the other hand, festivals preferring to comply with the interests of artists, engage an internal-driven focus on the programming by looking at their own resources as a core competence, such as unique artistry, high concentration of specific genres, high standard for performances, and seeking to endow them with visibility. Table 2 shows the generalization of two perspectives of the programming interests in terms of the targeting groups of the programming.

Table 2: Programming Based on Festival Target Group

Festivals Stakeholders Independen t organizatio ns Governmen t divisions Shanghai Hong Kong Tokyo Resourc es Artists expertis e Activity System Organize r Stat e Product Offering Sponso r Audience

Macao New Vision Seoul JakArt No legal status DaDao Perspectives Internal External Notes: : stronger emphasis comparing among its own stakeholders for each festival

19

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia In the external-driven festival, the programming influence frequently comes from the sponsors and the audiences. The sponsor-oriented festival organizer usually is an independent organization. Although the organization secures some support from the government, it still needs to find additional resources in order to run the festival. Thus, the government plays an important role for the festival, but its intervention in programming issues is lower compared to the state-supported festival. Since there is another influential player (sponsor) in supporting the festival, the festival organizer needs to balance the interest of all parties. The government wants to establish a good civic reputation with the artistic and cultural added-value to create subsequent economic activities27, such as tourism. The sponsors want to increase their visibility and improve their corporate image with the audiences. We recognize different approaches in terms of sponsors influences. In Hong Kong, the festival successfully limits the influence of the sponsor and focuses more on the audiences. Hong Kong already has a long history (since 1973) and an established reputation as having a high standard for the performing arts. Although Hong Kong has famous sponsors such as the Jockey Club and IBM, the sponsorships are tied to the board of the festival, not the programmers. Conversely, Shanghai includes all varieties of performances with an international reputation to comply with its objective to present the best world cultures. In order to attract potential sponsors Shanghai associates the reputation of the well-known artists or performances with their sponsors corporate image by allying them to become patrons for the entire festival or for a specific programme. Therefore, artists, or performing arts companies, with good publicity and a strong reputation have the essential elements to be presented. Regarding to the state-supported festivals, their staff members are public servants. The festival organizer, as a division of government, offers a cultural and artistic public event to the local people in order to promote the quality of life. However, we identify different approaches used to formulate the programming interests. In Macao, they used interdisciplinary programmes as the way to take care of the needs of its people. Within the programmes, one-fourth of the productions combine popular entertainments, such as pop singers and films. More than half of the productions include local components, such as local performers, Portuguese or Cantonese28, or traditional Chinese operas. Conversely, New Vision and Seoul only focus on specific style of arts, because the government has decided to foster and encourage the development of contemporary arts. Therefore, in Seoul, New Vision, and Macao, the government plays a role of building up a bureaucratic mechanism with the capacity and point of view to decide the programmes. For the festivals without legal official status, they are dependent on
Greffe, X. (2003), Arts and Artists from Economic Perspective, Paris: Economica/UNESCO, p.8 28 Macao was the colony of Portugal and was returned to China in 1999. The dialect of Macao is Cantonese.
27

20

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia their internal resources to make their vision a reality. They exploit their resources (artist expertise, organization network) to run the festival. Since they only get limited support from other parties (government, sponsor), they are free to determine their own programming. Consequently, the first priority for them is the performance itself and the artists. Artists with a strong artistic motivation and with a non-commercial attitude are welcome and preferred in this festival. In DaDao, there is a sanctified place for artistry in the programming process that can not be compromised. They use the festival as a place for artists actualization. The concern to attract enough audience in order to cover the economic requirements is much lower compared to the other types of festivals. The sponsors, individuals or corporations, contribute because the festival is what it is. The sponsor wants to associate with DaDao artistry and innovative spirit in order to introduce something new to the traditional Chinese society. As an example, one of the sponsors in 2005 is a real estate company located in Beijing. The real estate company is known for providing innovative living spaces and creating fashionable lifestyles which are not common in China. There is a certain similarity among table 1 and table 2 with regards to Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Macao, all of which have significant support from the state and sufficient capital. Those who heavily use external-driven perspective are also exercising an interdisciplinary approach. They engage the resources of society, whether from public support or not, tangible or intangible. It is therefore a hidden assumption for them that they are returning a salute to the society. On the other hand, the festivals which tend to employ internally-driven perspective are also more likely to focus on specific-type programming because the influence or pressure from the external stakeholders is relatively low. Who is the decision maker in respect of programming? In determining their programming, despite the characteristic differences (festival with government support, specific-type festival and rebellious festival), festivals in East Asia are similar with relatively insignificant differences. The festival artistic director decides the general concept for the upcoming festival and makes the final decision in choosing which artists or shows will be performed in the upcoming festival. The festival artistic directors role is to ensure that the programmes are aligned to the festival purpose, to guard the festivals image and reputation, and to ensure the programmes can satisfy the target audience. The artistic director usually forms his own task-team to help him in daily activities. This team generally is made up of representatives of local art experts and artists.

Artists and Programme Selection Procedure in East Asia

21

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia Festivals Regarding the criteria that festivals use to select local artists and shows, Goh Boon Teck, Singaporean artistic director for the Toy Factory Theatre Ensemble, indicates that the festival creates general criteria for a preliminary screening process. After passing the qualification stage, the decision to present the show generally depends on the reputation and credit that artists have from previous productions. The selection process is rigorous, for the Singapore Arts Festival, however, once chosen the festival director trusts the individual troupe and gives them complete freedom on the artistic decision making regarding the presentation of their program. The Singapore Arts Festival usually presents only two or three different groups from a specific art type (e.g. classical dance, traditional Chinese theatre etc.). Therefore it is a challenge for every performing art group in Singapore to be distinctive and differentiate itself from other groups. The audiences that attend the festival play a role to some extent in determining the programming of the festival, because the Singapore Arts Festival desires to ensure diversity of the programme. In addition, according to Mrs. Ary Sutedja from JakArt, their local artists selection process is almost entirely in the hands of a network of senior artists and practitioners who are recognized as knowing their particular field well. These senior artists decide by themselves which artist they want to contact and collaborate with. On the other hand, the method of selection for international artists and shows is a more complex process. We recognize that an influencing driver is the informal network made up of international artists, foreign embassies and agencies. These informal networks are formed when people in the artistic festival industry exchange and share information about a particular group or artist with peers in the industry. This also occurs when a senior and influential artist or expert gives a recommendation to the festival programming department about specific artist or show. In addition, cultural attachs in foreign embassy also acts as an informal information resource, able to produce a list of hot-stuff shows in own country and sweeten the offer by paying for the travel costs. At the transnational level, information exchange between festivals generally pertains to the experience of working together with the artist and the resulting impact in attracting festival audiences. The recommendation from the established artist and foreign embassy usually relates to the uniqueness of the show. Alternatively, the artistic agencies use a formal approach by aggressively promoting their artists to the festival artistic department by providing a video, brochure, and invitation to see artist performance. Moreover, Singapore and Shanghai organize a performing arts exhibition; attended by the agents from all over the world with the goal of promoting their artist. Based on our research, every festival, except the rebellious festivals, generally follows the same procedure. They gather information by going to those resources they know and look to other similar festivals. Subsequently, the artistic team does a preliminary screening and makes a short-list of potential international artists or

22

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia shows. Afterwards, they attempt to contact the artists or group to discuss the logistic, technical and financial issues they have identified. After gathering more detail information, they evaluate all of it referring to their selection criteria. Examples of these criteria include the relevance of the proposed programmes to the theme and objectives of the festival, the overall programme balance of the festival, financial implications, artistic merit of the programme, technical viability, marketing consideration and risk taking. Based on the evaluation, they generate a priority list for their artistic members to visit the show. After they see the actual show, the festival artistic director will make the final decision to present the show or not in next upcoming festival.

Table 3: How East Asia Festival Gather Foreign Performing Arts Group.
Festival
Shanghai Hong Kong Tokyo Macao HK New Vision Seoul DaDao JakArt
Notes: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Information
5 6 7

about
8

Agency Conducts Performing Arts Fair Attending Performing Arts Fair Attending Other Festival

5. 6. 7. 8.

Direct contact with artist/group Recommendation Sponsorship Foreign Embassy

In addition, we found that festivals with government support have more opportunity to search and select potential artists or shows. With strong financial support, the big festivals in East Asia are very appealing to foreign artists or agencies, who want to expand their market. They also construct better network development for information gathering. Furthermore, concerning performances selection, the big festivals have travel budgets to see the potential performances. In Hong Kong, 90% of the programmes are viewed by the festival staff before being chosen. The rest are chosen based on the recommendation of a festival representative in the UK or influential artist. In developing countries, with exception of Shanghai, the percentage of the previewed programmes drops significantly. Consequently, the festival artistic department relies more on personal network and peers recommendation. In this case, visiting other festivals in the region to observe potential international artists or show is essential. Rebellious festivals are dependant on the artists personal network and foreign embassies to attract the international artists. While the artists personal relations can encourage a foreign artist to participate in the festival with their own money, foreign embassies

23

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia actively help the festival organizers by sponsoring the artist, particularly for the transportation cost and performance fees. In return, rebellious festivals give the artist unique challenges and experiences. For instance, JakArt presents a Greek theatre group performed in the Greek language in the middle of old ship dock with an audience of dock laborers, fisherman and local neighborhood. Furthermore, foreign culture and arts organizations can play important role particularly in specific arts festival like DaDao Live Arts Festival. For instance, Live Arts Development Agency, an independent organization commissioned by the UK government, was established to promote the development of Live Arts. Since 2004, they has contacted the director and visited DaDao Live Arts Festival. They have sent 18 international artists to China to participate in the festival. Consequently, Live Arts Department Agency and its member-organizations have been the main resource of foreign programmes for DaDao Live Arts Festival.

3.4

Communication and Positioning

A festival is a complex product because it conducts many events in limited period of time with the aim of communicating its purpose and obtaining the audiences awareness and interests. A whole series of single performances often vary one from another and draw a different type of audience. For instance, the elder generation tends to prefer the classical style, while the younger generation tends to prefer the contemporary or popular style. Traditional performances appeal to some, and other groups choose unconventional performances to acquire new experiences. Festivals in East Asia generally identify their audiences based on a demographic profile, particularly in age, gender and social status. Therefore, particularly in interdisciplinary festivals, the festival organizers tend to stretch their programming and provide many type of performances to cover the expectation their stakeholders (government, sponsors, audiences). However, they develop and communicate each program for specific target audiences. East Asia Festival Communication Strategy Festivals use different levels of communication, the umbrella branding strategy or product branding strategy. In the umbrella branding strategy, the festival operator promotes the message based on the reputation and the image of the festival, while a product branding strategy focuses on stressing the presence of one or more well-known artist and outstanding performances. Based on this study, festivals with a government support in East Asia (Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo) try combining both layers of communication. This type of festival is very concerned about its reputation, prestige and overall picture of the festival. They believe famous artists and brilliant performances will support the reputation of the festival and create an international image by increasing visibility in the world. In order to acquire this reputation and prestige, the festivals present famous, local and foreign artists or well known performances and use this reputation to create more buzz for the upcoming festival. In this way the festivals are able to 24

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia reach a larger audience due to the interests of the general public. Consequently, the major festival operators use mass communication tools (TV, newspaper and radio) to create general public awareness, while printed media (flyers, poster, festival guidebook) are used heavily to promote famous artists and popular shows. Print media plays a very important role in the communication of the festival. It reaches more people and can do so over a longer period of time. For instance, the big festival with government support usually put supplements about their festival in daily newspaper some weeks ahead. Many East Asia festival operators with government support enjoy the strong awareness of the local communities because the public sees the festivals as a yearly city event. However, the communities do not know who will perform, and where and when the performance will occur. In addition, the communities only have limited idea about the international artists. Therefore, the need to use product branding strategy becomes more essential to stimulate the interest of the local community by using the printed media. In the style-oriented festival (Seoul and Hong Kong New Vision), which are focusing on the contemporary arts, different communication strategies are employed. These festivals still have support from the government, but smaller amounts compared to the lighthouse festivals. Although the funding is less, these styleoriented festivals enjoy public awareness although only limited within their target group. The numbers of festival fans are smaller, and they are more enthusiastic and vigorous since they have the same interest and knowledge in that specific art. They use the festival as a tool to transfer the trend from abroad and absorb it and encourage the local development of contemporary arts to their area and create networks and collaboration between local and foreign artists. This type of festival uses high-artistic subject and appeal to the artist as a major tool to communicate with its fans. By taking advantage of the fans informal communication, the festival operator can focus more on creating the reputation and capturing new audiences by using the umbrella branding strategy. In contrast, rebellious festivals operators (DaDao and JakArt) have limited resources and support and do not have the luxury to buy a spot on TV or in the newspaper. This kind of festival depends on buzz created from the free media coverage, by using festivals purposes as the communication magnet. Furthermore, similar to style-oriented festivals, JakArt festival also had a strong informal communication network with the intention of contributing to local communities. A significant tool to attract the interests of audiences is free entry to the performances that could draw any interested party passing by. Nevertheless, the festivals also create a unique environment and experiences for the audiences because of the unique distinction and inspiring acts. From this point of view, the festival becomes an excellent opportunity to break down the barriers that traditionally stop the public from going to cultural events.29
29

Bachella, U., Bollo, A., Di Stefano, E., Klaic, D. & Hansen, K. (2004), Festivals:

25

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia In addition, the festival organizers also use internet as their communication tools. All festivals in our sample use website as public information resources. However, the content for each website is different. While DaDao only provide main information about the festival, in Singapore website you could register for online bulletin and buy the ticket online. East Asia Festival Positioning Positioning is how a festival can be sited in the minds of its potential target audiences. In order to achieve correct positioning, festivals need to analyze the characteristics and factors that are distinctive of their project (e.g. a unique environment, type of performances or theme, featured artists) and those that best satisfy what the target audiences is looking for (e.g. entertainment, relaxation, cultural enrichment, status, prestige).30 There is no single successful formula in positioning a festival, except to differentiate it from the others. In this study, it is understood that festival positioning is heavily intertwined with festival purposes. Furthermore, festivals in East Asia are already positioning themselves adequately in the local community and the surrounding region but not successfully enough to attract audiences from outside the country. Here are some examples from our sample concerning their positioning. In the Hong Kong Arts Festival, immense influence comes from Western society, thus the acceptance of Western arts and culture in Hong Kongs local community is greater than in other Asia cities. This is logical, because Hong Kong was a colony of the UK from the late 19th century until 1999. Therefore, more than 60% of the events in Hong Kong Arts Festival 2005 were presented by foreign artists or performing arts groups. By doing this, Hong Kong Arts Festival has presented itself as one of the most international festival in East Asia, particularly for performing arts groups. However, 90% percent of the audience comes from the local communities. China Shanghai International Arts Festival is a relative new festival in East Asia, started in 2000. Although very young, Shanghai enjoys high degree of support from the Chinese government and acts as one of Chinese lighthouse projects particularly in the culture and arts field. The reputation has built up rapidly as a prestigious interdisciplinary arts festival promoting Chinese traditional arts with an international flavor. Consequently, well-known artists and repertoire make up the mainstream of the programmes and approximately 40% of the programmes are from foreign artists and performing arts groups. The audiences coming from Shanghai and the surrounding area account for approximately 90%. However, the audiences for foreign programmes are highly dependent on foreign expatriates and the Chinese upper class in Shanghai and the surrounding areas. The positioning of JakArt is as an arts and social movement combined, achieved by bringing arts and culture closer to the society. JakArt successfully attracts numerous local artists (amateur and professional) and idealist foreign artists to contribute to the
Challenges of Growth, Distinction, Support Base and Internationalization, Tartu, p.43 30 Ibid, p.44

26

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia local community without spending any money for their talent. For instance, a Greek theatre group performed in the middle of old ship dock with audience of fisherman, dock laborers and their neighbors. The veritable slogan of JakArt is It is not about who you are, but what can you contribute to the society. Approximately 95% of their audiences come from the local communities. East Asia Festival Audiences In the previous sections, it is shown that the major audiences of performing arts festivals in East Asia are from local communities. The foreign audiences are only a minority. The primary reason of this audience composition is due to the contents of festivals. Most of the genres of performing arts in the festivals in this study are western cultural derivatives which are not interesting to the western visitors traveling in Asia. The Barong31 from Bali or Taiko32 from Kyoto would be more preferred by the western tourists than the Ballet Nacional Espaol from Spain in Asia. Moreover, most of the chosen festivals employ to enrich the local cultural life and to introduce new experiences to the local community. It is the domestic audiences who are the main purchasing customers of the festivals. With very different preferences from the western visitors, the general domestic audiences expect that the festivals can provide something new, something unusual, and something international. Since the primary target market is domestic audiences rather than foreign tourists, it is expected that the audience picture is less international.

3.5

Festival Financial Resources and Expenditure Analysis 3.5.1 Festival Financial Resources
Every festival has a different financial structure, especially regarding the origin of resources. We have identified in this study the government, private sponsors, ticket income, foreign governments and individual donors as the festivals main financial sources.

Government Role
In this study, the government has a critical role in festivals particularly regarding the financial issues, and they have decisive influences in the programming interests as a consequence. Festivals which are subsidized by the state bear the responsibility to carry out the governments will, which is to be relatively popular, highly acceptable, and intensely visible. Four government roles can be

Traditional Indonesian dance from Bali resulted from traditional religious ceremony. Traditional Japanese music played with drum was to disperse the devil in the ancient time.
31 32

27

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia identified in this study according to the definitions as initiator, organizer, commissioner, and funder.33 Festivals initiated and organized directly by the government enjoy the advantage of having almost full economic support and publicity, such as Hong Kong New Vision, Seoul, and Macao. These festivals are operated on an annual given budget and work under less pressure to generate income, either from sponsorship or tickets. The other festivals which are organized by independent arts organizations and commissioned by the governments receive significant subsidies from the government, nationally or municipally. Shanghai is one example which fits this mode. The role of the government here is rather like that of a commissioner who outsources the festival which presents the national image of arts and culture to a non-profit organization. There are other festivals which operate independently and receive a great amount of funds from the government but not as commissioned organizations. These festivals have more freedom to program compared to the commissioned ones. The role of the government is defined as funder for this type of festivals, such as Hong Kong and Tokyo.

Sponsorship in East Asia Festivals

Concerning sponsorships, we found similarities among the festivals in East Asia. Most of the sponsors of festivals are local companies (up to 70%). This probably happens because of a closer relationship between a sponsor and a festival organizer compared one with a foreign company. There is also another concern if the festival is a government project, in this case the government can influence the local business to support the festival. The festival sponsors come from a variety of industry backgrounds including banks, insurance companies, airlines, hotels, or consumer products to name a few. A unique situation is the Hong Kong Arts Festival. Their main sponsor is a non-profit organization, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust. There are various opportunities and levels for sponsorship: the main sponsor supports the entire festival; programme sponsors offer the opportunity for the corporate sponsor to be associated with specific projects; and finally as an official sponsor. This is an approach which provides an alternative way for festivals to operate without the ordinary financial support. The official sponsor offers its services as a host for festival activities. This type of sponsor could include airlines and hotel chains, or special projects such as a student ticket system, which sponsors a program for those who would like to help students and as a means to offer students tickets at half price. Like the government, the sponsors generally do not have direct influence in the artistic and programming activities of the festival. However, the sponsor can influence the marketing program heavily, particularly in the developing countries like China. Shanghai
European Forum for the Arts and Heritage (June 2003), Study on Cultural Cooperation in Europe (online), cited on August 12, 2005, p.145
33

28

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia International Arts Festival formed a partnership with one of the major real estate corporations in Shanghai. The company acts as a main sponsor, by patronizing and covering the whole festival and contributes a majority of the sponsorship. Nevertheless, the real estate company has tried to exploit every opportunity in the festival to promote itself. For instance, the company was introduced by the festival to the participants of the promotion showcase held by the Singapore Arts Festival. Regardless, of the business context in China, we think that the festival organizers need to introduce an ethical code of sponsoring, by putting the interest of the festival in front of sponsors own interest and limiting the opportunity for a sponsor to engage in reckless self promotion.

Foreign Government Roles

In addition to local government and sponsorship, there is another important role of the foreign government through their embassies in the respective countries to support specific festivals. Foreign governments want to promote their national culture and encourage arts and cultural exchange between the two respective countries. Consequently, foreign cultural institutes not only promote their artist and performances, but also help festival organizers to present the programs in the festival. The involvement level of the foreign government in the festival differs in every country. The foreign government usually offers subsides to cover international airfares for a selected group. In some cases, the foreign governments also encourage companies or cultural institutes within their country to present national artist or performances. For instance, Tokyo International Arts Festival received financial support from the Goethe Institute to perform Germany in Japan programmes. Conversely, in developing countries, the level of involvement of foreign government is much greater. Through the cultural institute, those foreign governments not only help festival organizers to make contact with the artists, they subsidize the transportation expenses and performance fees 34. The foreign governments do co-financing because they want to boost the image of their own country (and its culture) and not by some intrinsic cultural agenda. The general objective is political and seeks some influence. Unfortunately, we can not identify the parameter and procedure that has been used by foreign government to help foster these cultural exchanges. Each government has its own policies and priorities and decisions are often made case by case, depending of the country, festival and guest artists.

Donator
Concerning to rebellious festival, we recognize the important role of donations for them. They only get limited support from the government and private companies. For instance, in Indonesia, the officials in the government and private companies want to put their own interest in front of the JakArts interest, therefore limiting their sponsorships.
Chinese government leverages the exchange rates to benefit the festivals in terms of performing fees to foreign groups.
34

29

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia There are many donors for the festival. From internal resources, they have artists and personal networks. The artists donate when they agree to perform in the festival without a performance fee. Furthermore, in JakArt, they can utilize their members network to provide materials or money for the festival. From external resources, foreign governments are very important resources. They can provide foreign artists, and probably some money for the festival. Particularly for JakArt, we can consider local community as a donor since it collaborates with the festival organizer to provide meals, transport etc. However, donors are not noticeable for the rebellious festival only. Donors also involved in sponsor-oriented and state-supported festivals, together with the government and other sponsors. The distinction to be made is that sponsorship is a result of a business transaction. Although they both involve revenue for the festival, the sponsors purchase a product, in this case publicity and exposure for the sponsoring company. The donors, on the other hand, act on altruistic ground, driven by value, passion, belief in the inherent worth of arts, or personal association with the artists and their organizations.

Table 4: East Asia Festival Financial Resources

Festival
Shanghai Hong Kong Tokyo Macao HK New Vision Seoul DaDao* JakART**

Governmen t
33.30% 25% 40% 70% 100% 78% 20%

Sponsorship / Donator
33.30% 18.75% 35% 15% 12% 100% 80%

Ticket Income
33.30% 56.25% 25% 15% 10%

Notes: * For DaDao, all of their incomes come from sponsorship and donation,

but we were unable to breakdown the number. ** For JakART 80% of the income comes from donation, from individuals, artists, foreign embassies, or their network. Another 20% comes from the government and sponsorship

3.5.2 Financial Expenditure Analysis

Concerning the financial expenditure of the festivals, we have identified that there is a certain trend among festivals in East Asia. The festival expenditures are dominated by programming expenses, which includes international airfares, hospitality, performance fees and royalties etc. Marketing expense is always allocated in a separate category, limited to how to inform the public and create public interest about the upcoming festival. Another primary expenditure is the organizational expenses including salaries and administration. An exception to this is Macao International Arts Festival because the administration fees and salaries of the employees are not included in the festival budgets but are carried

30

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia by the government directly employees to run the festival. since Macao uses government

As a contrast, rebellious festivals cannot create clear distinction and categories of financial expenditures. Many expenses are not categorized with at all or in the same way that most festivals categorize expenses. This is a result of their unique collaboration business model. In unconventional festivals all stakeholders contribute something to the project. Consequently, the project actual expenses are distributed among the stakeholders. For instance, a painting project in Jakarta, the actual cost for JakArt is only for the paint applicator. The paint was provided by the sponsor, while local neighborhood provides meals and volunteers to help the artists. In addition, rebellious festivals probably lack management expertise because their organizations are base on the volunteers. According to JakArt 90% of the fund raising activity is to cover festival infrastructure (e.g. hall rent, sound system, and lighting), and foreign artist accommodation. Another 10% is for administration and printing expenses.

Table 5: East Asia Festivals Financial Expenditures Allocation

Festival
Shanghai Hong Kong Tokyo Macao HK New Vision Seoul DaDao* JakART**

Operation
n/a 18% n/a 25.50% 10-15% n/a 10%

Programmin g
n/a 58% n/a 85% 60% 70% n/a 90%

Marketing
n/a 24% n/a 15% 14.50% 10-15% n/a

Table 6: East Asia Festivals Budget

Festival
Shanghai* Hong Kong Tokyo Macao HK New Vision Seoul DaDao JakART**

Total Budget
7,500,000 - 9,000,000 6,500,000 n/a 600,000 2,500,000 n/a 3,300 - 5,000 40,000 - 210,000

Notes: * Rough estimation, based on internet research and rumors

31

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

** The big range in JakART happened because they have different theme every year, like the art movement (2001-2003), festival ala carte (2004), imaginary festival (2005)

32

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

4 Development of Cooperation among Festivals in

East Asia
Collaboration is an important tool in the global economy of today. The best companies are the best collaborators. In the flat world, more and more business will be done through collaborations within and between companies, for a very simple reason: The next layers of value creation whether in technology, marketing, or manufacturingare becoming so complex that no single firm or department is going to be able to master them alone.35

4.1

The Current Cooperation of East Asia Festivals

Currently, there is some level of cooperation among festivals in East Asia. However, we found that this level of cooperation is limited. To some extent, the festival organizers prefer to keep their own identity and try to become more innovative than other festivals. This follows the hidden agenda from the government officials to use the festival as a lighthouse project. In our research, we found several cooperative examples in the culture and arts field. The cooperation can be the result of formal affiliations, such as the Association of Asian Pacific Performing Arts Center (AAPPAC) and Association of Asian Performing Arts Festivals (AAPAF). Meanwhile, the informal networking enables festival to gather both tangible and intangible resources which facilitates collaboration among the festivals, such as Live Art Work in Japan (LAW). Governmental cultural agency centers such as Goethe Institute and British Council also provide a channel for festivals to seek resources. The ministries of culture or education in specific countries can stimulate the interactions among festivals by establishing various arts and cultural policies, projects, and programs, including student exchanges and cultural delegations. The formal affiliations, or associations, include various players in the performing arts industry from the West and East: festivals, arts and cultural centers, performing arts companies, agencies, and organizations which work in the arts field. It can be rather a close relationship since information can only be collected by registered members. In these associations, members can exchange ideas, expertise, management solutions, information about touring artists and venues, and funding resources. As an example AAPPAC offers an online programming communication system, Touring Networks TOPICS for touring company members to register those members in the region who have an interest in a particular venue. More complex collaborations have also been established among the members of AAPAF. In 2005, one contemporary multi-media dance theatre, Amber, was co-commissioned by two of the founding festivals of AAPAF, Hong Kong and Shanghai, the National Theatre Company of China (NTCC) and co-produced by the NTCC, Hong Kong, and Singapore Arts Festival.

Friedman, T. (2005), The World is Flat: A Brief History of 21st Century, New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, p. 352
35

33

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

The informal networks provide an opportunity to share information that is more diverse and open. Without paying memberships and being accepted by the hosting organization, the information is readily available for anyone interested. This is a very useful channel for the festivals and independent artists without sufficient resources to belong to an international association such as DaDao and its artists. In the informal networks, typically only information distributed in the public domain is available. For instance, information about artists, venues, education, festivals, funding and publications is presented by the LAW. Festivals can find the information about artists and performing arts companies from various countries as well as about funding resources through this network. The cooperation of DaDao and Nippon International Performance Art Festival is one of the successful examples. In fact, this circulation of information is an important function of the information network. It includes such things as rumors, gossip, personal preferences, private experience along with individual judgments and opinions. All these encourage the small festivals and independent artists to form or join the networks. The informal network between artists is much more vivid and exciting in the performing arts industry. The dance theatre, Little Prince Hamlet, was co-produced by six independent male artists from Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea, and Japan, and was commissioned by the Hong Kong Arts Festival. All six male artists are performers and also take part in other responsibilities of the production, including as the choreographer, the composer, the musician, the multi-media performance director, and the lighting and technical designer. Through the personal relationship of the artists, the collaborative production presents five different cultures in East Asia and creates a new performing arts style combining traditions and multi-media art forms imported from the West. This study finds that governmental cultural agencies have significant impact on festivals, especially for information and as a source for funding resources. Goethe Institute offers comprehensive information about German arts and distributes it to its branches around the world. Every branch also has a set budget to promote the German culture in these countries. In 2003, Goethe Institute financed one of the programmes presented by JakArt in Indonesia, and in 2005, Goethe Institute Tokyo financed the production Endstation Amerika by Setagaya Public Theatre from Germany in the Tokyo International Arts Festival. It is anticipated that the cultural institutes can become a middle man to broker information and resources among the festivals. Artists and performances that have the distinctive flavor of a particular nationality will be preferred by these institutes. In addition, governments of the host country could act as facilitators for the arts and cultural events in their region. We consider the Singaporean government as a generator and an important player in promoting cooperation and integration of the resources of

34

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia performing arts, particularly in South East Asia and East Asia. Singapore, with its multi-ethnic and diverse cultural heritage (Chinese, Malay, Tamil, etc.), tries to enrich its diversified culture through the exchange of knowledge and creates opportunities for co-operation in artistic productions. Singapore should be considered an emerging culture-hub in the East Asia region. National Arts Council (NAC), under the supervision of the Singaporean Ministry of Information, Communications and Arts, has been the pioneer among the Asian governmental agencies to initiate several official and unofficial programs or organizations in order to facilitate the development of arts and cultures in Singapore and the surrounding region. NAC has established projects and programs to promote an exchange of international arts and cultural. One of the grant programs is the International Collaboration Grant, which provides support to facilitate the development of coproductions and collaborative ventures with overseas artists.36 This funding program is a great resource for festivals or artists seeking international cooperation with Singapore. With full governmental support and a strong tradition of arts management, the Singaporean festivals and other arts and cultural events have developed rapidly. The Singaporean approach has been the model for other Asian festivals. AAPPAC and AAPAF are the logical development of the Pan-Singapore networking 37 organizations. However, there are festivals falling outside of the Pan-Singapore scheme. Those are individual festivals that employ small operations and have limited support from the government, and may even present alternative genres of performing arts. Although they can not be compared with the giant festivals, the Pan-Singapore networks provide opportunities for them to gather information on programmes and artists and to imitate the management structures. JakArt is one of the founders of AAPAF, and the director of DaDao usually participates in international forums and festivals. It is hard for the small to medium festival to be able to provide tangible resources to others as a demonstration of cooperation. However, with the strong particular vision of artistry and the market knowledge of local communities in terms of artists, environment, and audience, these festivals can work with other and develop cooperative ventures that are different from the more formal structures.

4.2
36

The Key Success Factors in the Cooperation

We identified several points that we consider as key success factors

National Arts Council (2005), Financial Assistance: International Collaboration Grant (online), cited on August 8, 2005 37 Esplanade Co. Ltd in Singapore is one of the founders of AAPPAC. Since 2004, AAPPAC has shifted its secretariat to Esplanade, Singapore.

35

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia in the development of cooperation among Asian festivals. Formal network affiliations play a significant role as a primary resource because of their ability to build an arts player database and set-up a standard for the performing arts industry. In addition, because of its cultural heritage, East Asia performing arts players are also dependent on personal networks to exchange information and share experiences. On the other hand, we also realize that governmental role is a very important one to create sustainable cooperation. Finally, the pervasive use of technology in Asia also plays a vital role, both at the organization level and the audiences level.

4.2.1 Formal Network Affiliations

Formal network affiliations like AAPAF, AAPPAC are formal organizations among the culture and arts player in the region. The ability to access formal network affiliations is important because of the need to share information and knowledge among performing arts players and organizations in the region. In addition, formal organizations can establish trends and standards for the industry through joint agreement among its members. So there is a strong motivation, for some performing arts industry players to become part of a powerful organization. Moreover, formal network affiliations are a suitable way to initiate and foster communication with performing arts industry players from other regions, particularly from Europe and North America. As a formal organization, they can build a performing arts players database and knowledge about a specific region. By managing the information, they become primary information sources to make contact and explore promising opportunities with other players. Without formal network affiliations, arts players face obstacles obtaining information in order to create a clear picture of the who else is in the field and what opportunities may exist, brought on primarily because of geographic and language barriers.

4.2.2 Informal Network Affiliations

Although formal network affiliations are important, they just open the door for opportunity. In East Asia, we cannot deny the importance and power of personal relationships as a core for informal networks. Especially in East Asia, personal relationships and trustworthiness are valuable treasures. You need to establish a relationship first, before moving on to business concerns. It is routine that the most important business decisions are made in the informal meeting setting. While senior and powerful artists control and influence the formal network affiliations, informal networking is the communication channel among the small and medium size arts players. In this communication channel, small and medium performing arts players are able to exchange information and share experiences. They want to know about the latest trend in their field. In addition, many outstanding creations were started from deep within the community and society where the most vivid and flashy interactions occur between the artists. With better informal networks, young, small or medium size festivals (and performing arts groups) can benefit from

36

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia the ideas, information, and even financial support shared within the network. The large arts organization can also broaden their knowledge about innovative arts approach and grasp the grass-root trend. Another significant contribution from informal networks is their ability to promote a specific artist or group, particularly from other regions. Small and medium festival operators usually work under very tight budgets. They do not have many lavish opportunities compared to the large festivals: including seeing the performance directly from the foreign artists. Therefore, they depend on the recommendation of other festival operators and influential arts players to select foreign artists for their festival.

4.2.3 Government Role in Supporting Culture and Arts

Currently, culture is not the main issue for most governments in the East Asia region. The governments, particularly in the developing countries are more focused on economic and political stability issues. Furthermore, due to the dependence of collective and administrative decisions of government, culture and arts are led to become bureaucratic.38 The people who make the cultural policies are not necessarily coming from the arts or cultural expertise, but from a bureaucracy which means that they are more concerned about economic, social, or political benefits rather than the appreciation of arts and culture. Consequently, all the big festivals in Asia are held in wealthy Asian countries like Singapore and Japan, with the exception of China. Particularly to China, explosive growth offers its government a new perspective. The economic growth of China has grown dramatically since the reforms in 1979. It is the anxiety of catching up with the developed countries that makes the Chinese government wants to involve themselves with the arts and cultural activities in order to establish a national image and to become more visible internationally. The argument is that the Chinese government invests in the big shows or critical events that make an impression globally in order to prove the rising power of China. For example, more than 10 million euro is spent on an explosion arts performance of fireworks in one of the events for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in Shanghai. The arts and cultures have become powerful tools for the Chinese government in marketing the country in the international sphere. Although the Olympic Games will take place in Beijing in 2008, the government and the committee have already invited thousands of local and foreign artists to move to Beijing in order to strengthen the national image of a strong and creative arts and cultural environment at that time.

In the developing countries, the festival presence is brought to live by the resolute will and determination of the local artists. Are they brave enough to face the challenges of bureaucracy, corruption,
Greffe, X. (2003), Arts and Artists from Economic Perspective, Paris: Economica/UNESCO, p.8
38

37

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia etc.? However, the festivals without government support can not be sustained for the long term without alternative funding sources. They are heavily dependent on the festival founders determination. The Governments will to support the festival is a determining factor in the life-line of the festival. Therefore, to create wider and sustainable cooperation among festivals in Asia, government support is an essential element. In addition, according to Dr. Dragan Klaic, in the European context, there are four main roles for government to take for arts and cultural events: initiating cultural agreements; achieving political benefits; participating in multilateral events; and marking particular occasions.39

4.2.4 Technology
The rapid development of technology has an effect on the cooperation among the performing arts groups, festival organizers and audiences. The operational activities of the festivals take advantage of technology in order to gather information, to reduce the cost, to smooth the administrative activities, and to amplify the marketing effect. Internet and media are very effective technological factors in the performing arts industry. Internet technology provides a solution to the dilemma of great distances between any two parties by providing efficient communication. The artist and the event organizer can approach each other more easily through the use of a website and convenience of email. Therefore, the cost of communication is reduced and the frequency is more intense. Artists are able to communicate with each other more frequently leading to more artistic creations from both a quantitative and qualitative perspective. The administrative activities are more efficient because of the online interaction with the audiences, such as the online booking system. Internet marketing is occurring in every industry, and the performing arts industry is one of the most affected. With the development of multimedia, the performing arts company can provide the audience with the experience of a virtual performance via internet. The virtual reality of the internet can offer the audience the chance to experience part of the performance whenever the audience is online. It is a strong marketing tool. Meanwhile, the revolution of digital storage technology improves the content of these virtual performances, both quantitatively and qualitatively. The documentation of the performance is more complete because the digital video and the audio recording system reduce the cost, complexity, time, and manpower. The digital documents then become the powerful marketing and communication contents and tools to promote the performance. Another important contribution of technology is the development of the subtitle provider. Language is the essential element of theatre and opera. In order to promote the performance outside of the native country, the companies of theatre and opera have to overcome the linguistic barriers in order to access the foreign
European Forum for the Arts and Heritage (June 2003), Study on Cultural Cooperation in Europe (online), cited on August 12, 2005, p.146
39

38

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia audiences. The invention of subtitle machines, in the perspective of marketing and communication, increases the opportunities of international cooperation.

4.3

Potential Difficulties for Cooperation

Nevertheless, despite the speed of growth, we recognize several potential difficulties existing in the current cooperative environment. In the future, threat of similarity in the programming can be occur. Furthermore, a stable economic condition in East Asia countries is necessary in order to elevate the level of cooperation.

4.3.1 Similarity in the Programming

Singapore has already become a benchmark among festival operators in Asia, both in the programming and operational fields. Therefore, Pan-Singapore influence can dominate the cooperation and have significant impact on the development of cooperation. The two main formal associations of cooperation, AAPAF and AAPPAC were begun by the Singaporean industry players: the Singapore Arts Festival in the case of AAPAF and the Esplanade, Theatre of the Bay for AAPAC. In the future, when the cooperation among festivals becomes more intensive, the festival operators will face exclusivity issues, particularly in co-commissioning programmes. The information sharing among festivals creates the phenomenon of certain touring performing companies appearing in several festivals or arts centers. The more common festival programmes become, the less there will be resources available for new collaborative efforts. Although the festivals in two countries will not compete with each other in terms of the market, it could create the problem of losing originality and creativity in the festivals. If the festivals depend on more and more common programmes, gradually, the exclusivity which is one of the critical attributes of arts will begin to disappear. This has not yet happened, because Asia is diversified and festival organizers aim at the local communities for their primary audience. And people in Asia still face complex immigration and travel restrictions and requirements, making it difficult to move throughout Asia easily.

4.3.2 Economic Development and Social Condition

The Economic development condition can be a potential threat for further cooperation development among performing arts players in Asia. Most countries in Asia are still in the developing stages. Some of them are still struggling to acquire political and economical stability. Thus, culture and arts is not a priority for the countries. Without a strong and stable economic condition, the people have limited buying power. The have-nots only focuses to fulfill primary needs to live (food, clothing, and house), while the haves can get pleasure from their lives. Unfortunately, the haves are only a minority of the total population, and the gap between the two is getting bigger. Furthermore, young generations of the haves get more influenced by the Western popular and entertainment cultures and tend to ignore traditional culture and arts. This kind of situation limits the culture and arts development in the respective countries.

39

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia From the traditional performing arts group perspectives, this current trend gives them pressure in order to survive. They must deal with greater public preference towards western popular and entertainment cultures. The general public is likely to go to mall, cinema or watch MTV. To attract more audience, the traditional performing groups usually lower the performance tickets, but this strategy failed to attract enough audiences and give more economic pressures to the group. Therefore, many traditional performing arts group fail to survive in the competition. For instance, in Jakarta, the number of Betawi40 traditional groups has dropped by 40% within the years 1998-2002. The potential market for them is only the marriage celebrations held by rich ethnic Betawi in Jakarta. Moreover, governments in developing countries tend to ignore the cultural and arts development and education. In some developing countries, the cultural affairs are subject to the branches of the educational ministries or committee councils of a lower level in the government bureaucratic hierarchy. Without the awareness towards arts and cultures of the government, the appreciation towards arts and cultures of the general public cannot be established, either through the educational system or the social common practice. For instance, in many Asian countries, the classes of Music or Arts in the secondary school are usurped by the classes of the Mathematics and English because math and language are more useful and important for the children. Without the will and supports from the government, the arts and cultures are not able to have sustainable development. In addition, the country audiences buying power differences will also limit the cooperation. For instance, in joint production programmes among Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean performing groups, although they develop the programme together, can only perform in Singapore and Malaysia. They cannot go to Indonesia since the Indonesian cannot afford the performing and transportation fees. Moreover, the Indonesian market is too small and arts appreciation is too low. According to Ary Sutedja, The cultures elite audiences in Indonesia are limited. We usually meet the same people in every concert. Even though there is some level of cooperation, it will still be limited on several performing groups who have good personal relations with foreign players. Therefore, there are limited cross-cultural programmes for audiences in developing countries since the programmes are not presented well in respective countries. The uneven resources limit cooperation perspectives because festivals prefer to collaborate as equal partners. The inequality of financial supports and resources among collaborative partners is expected to be moderated by the government subsidies and sponsorships. However, the cultural policies and the social appreciation towards arts in the developing countries are not sophisticated and complete enough to realize the importance of the cooperation of arts and cultural industry players in the festivals. Consequently, collaborations will take place in the more developed and wealthier countries in the region, such as Singapore, Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong.
40

Betawi ethnic is native people in Jakarta.

40

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

41

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

5 Developing Opportunities in the East Asia Market

5.1 Why European Groups Seek Opportunities in East Asia
There are both artistic and commercial reasons for this phenomenon. East Asia provides the opportunity for the European performing groups to expand their market, their audience and increase their income. Performing internationally also fosters the ability for groups to meet other artists, or festival organizers, in order to exchange ideas with one another and work toward collaborative efforts in the future. It is the natural tendency of artists to share their work and talent. And in a time where the arts market is saturated by many different groups in Europe, the performing groups seek to increase their audience and experience new opportunities with people in a new environment and of a different culture. By pursuing opportunities in East Asia, the artists or performing groups are able to share their talent with a larger audience, and perhaps introduce a contemporary art form to people of a different culture. By performing on the international circuit the groups are able to reach new audiences and generate more awareness which may promote additional performances in new areas and generate more revenue for their company.

5.2

Typology of the European Performing Arts that are Favorable

In our study we have found that European performing arts in music and dance are received quite favorably among the festivals in Asia. Language, certainly, plays a role in this trend. Music and Dance are borderless with regards to language. All can enjoy and interpret the art in their own way, without losing any meaning since there is no need of translation which can be a problem when theatre and opera productions are performed. We recognize that European performing groups already have acquired strong recognition in East Asia because Europeans enjoy a strong cultural heritage, especially in the classical genres. It has lifted the prestige of European performing group and has created advantages in the programming selection process. In Figure 2 we can clearly see the breakdown of programming by participating regions in the Hong Kong Arts Festival. Hong Kong is a well-established festival (since 1973). As mentioned earlier, music and dance are dominated by foreign performing groups. Thirty eight percent of Hong Kong Arts Festival programming involved a European performing groups or artists. This is due, certainly, to the relationship that Hong Kong has with Europe as a past colony of the United Kingdom. Four out of the five dance performing groups came from Europe, and in the music category one quarter of the performance groups were from European countries. There is a strong European participation across each type of performance, Theatre, Opera, Dance and Music, offered at the Hong Kong Festival.

Figure 2:

Breakdown

of

Programming

by
42

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Participating Region in Hong Kong Arts Festival 2005

Hong Kong Arts Festival 2005 Programmes

20

15

10

0
Other Collaboration Europe East Asia

Theater 1 2 3 4

Opera

Dance

M usic 8 1

Circus

1 3

4 1

5 6

Notes: Other region include North America, Latin America, Africa, West Asia, Central Asia and Australia

For comparison, we will use Shanghai International Arts Festival. Shanghai is a relativity young festival, but because of the nature of the festivals to reach a broader audience, the festival looks for well established performing groups, typically in the traditional and classical genres. Although the majority of performance groups originate from local countries, Shanghai had 13% of its performing groups from Europe in 2005, again with the largest percentages in the music and dance categories (see figure 3). Interestingly, we found that Australia tries to cooperate more in Dance category (2 productions and 1 joint production), while American groups are focused in the Music category (2 productions). In the style-oriented festival, such as Hong Kong New Vision and Seoul there is greater focus on joint-production programmes. This seems logical as one of the objectives of their festivals is to encourage local creation. The festivals see themselves as a place to promote and to test experimental projects and ideas. In Hong Kong New Vision, 25% of the productions came from Europe. However all are collaborations with Asian, American or other European performing arts groups. In Seoul, almost 40% of the productions were performed by European groups. We can see clearly in figure 4 that European performing group enjoy some preferences from the festival organizer.

Figure 3:

Breakdown

of

Programming

by

43

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Participating Region in Shanghai International Arts Festival 2005

Shanghai International Arts Festival 2005 Programmes

14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0
Other Collaboration Europe East Asia 1 1 3 Theatre Dance 3 1 2 5 4 5 1 1 M usic 4 2 1 1 1 Opera Other

Notes: Other region include North America, Latin America, Africa, West Asia, Central Asia and Australia

Figure 4: Breakdown of Programming by Participating Region in Seoul Performing Arts Festival 2005

Seoul Performing Arts Festival 2005 Programmes

10 8 6 4 2 0
Others Collaboration Europe Local 1 2 5 Dance Theater 2 2 2 4 1 1 1 Combination

Notes: Other region include North America, Latin America, Africa, West Asia, Central Asia and Australia

44

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia Conversely, the rebellious festivals can not choose the origin of their foreign performing group or artist. This is because they depend on the artists personal network and foreign government (or foreign organization). Consequently, the foreign artists who participate usually come from developed countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, or Germany. In addition, Mrs. Ary Sutedja from JakART is against the idea that the festival should focus more on arts with high audience acceptance, like music and dance. She argues that the festival should not limit the performances type by taking the easy path. Why do we not try to present new things to our audiences? We do not know the audiences reaction until we try it. Some of the audiences will not like it, but for some of them the new things can be become inspiration in their lives. The festival should bring new and unique experiences to its audiences. The detail programme list for each festival can be found in the appendices.

5.3

The Entry Channels

The first priority for European performing groups to enter the Asian market is to establish a network among East Asia performing arts players. In East Asias culture high importance is placed on doing business with those with whom a relationship has been established. Consequently, it is important for European performing groups to take an active role in establishing relationships with performing arts players in Asia, including festival administrators and curators, local theatre groups, directors etc. We have identified six channels (agency, formal and informal forum, foreign government, company sponsorship, performing arts fair and festival representative) that can by utilized by the European groups to enter the East Asia Market.

5.3.1 Agency
The role of agencies in the performing arts industry is to actively promote the artists and (or) performing arts groups that they represent. Their goal is to find performing opportunities for these artists in their area of operation. They attend arts fairs with the objective of marketing the groups to the festival artistic directors, programming boards or cultural venue operators. They also aggressively promote their artists by providing a video, brochure and invitation to see artist performance. The agencies provide the artist or group with either single event opportunities or a broader tour of a certain region. Some agencies also work on developing projects for their artists to take part in. A downfall for the artists or groups who are represented by these agencies is that their scope of performances could be limited by the defined scope of the agency. An example of a performance group that utilizes the services of an agency is the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir. This group performs a repertoire that ranges from Gregorian chants to late baroque and 20th century music.41 They
United Singer International, (2005) Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir(online), cited on August 8, 2005
41

45

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia tour internationally, rarely performing in their home country of Estonia. This is due to the limited and small audiences they find at home (1.7 million inhabitants). Their primary performing activities consist of recordings and international performances. The choir has faced difficulties as they try to expand their performance schedules to new arenas and reach new audiences, also in Asia. They lack resources for an administrative staff to organize performances on an international circuit. The Choir has outsourced this responsibility to two international representatives, one in the US and another in the UK, to set performance dates in the international setting throughout the year. They are however bound to the resources, orientation and focus of these agents, as only occasional performances are set by direct contact with the choir.

5.3.2 Formal and Informal Forum

Formal and informal networks are very important to establish the first contact. Today many festivals incorporate a forum platform as part of the festival where professionals can participate in this networking opportunity. Festival administrators and artists have the opportunity to meet and build personal networking contacts, and start or continue the relationship process that may spur thoughts for future presentations, or create alliances for potential future joint commissions of work. While formal networks open the door of opportunity for knowledge exchange, it tends to take root in the informal network setting. As Angharad Wynne-Jones, director of LIFT (London International Festival of Theatre) stated in an interview, These networks and associations are important catalysts to the forming of professional relationships, but it is important for the individuals to take the next step and move in a personal circle where trust can develop between the two groups. She still relies on friendships she has established during her tenure in Asia Pacific region with regards to exchanging ideas and learning of new works. Therefore, many international artists and performing groups are sought after word of mouth recommendations from festival representatives. By having good recommendation from influential arts player, the chance to be selected in the festival is greater. There are also non-profit organizations established to assist artists wishing to cross the cultural border into the East Asia culture and arts field. They are initiated by governments (or international organizations) in order to boost cultural exchange or s a result of a cultural agreement between respective countries (or regions). They offer the opportunity for professionals to gather, meet and exchange ideas. Artists can learn from others experiences in traveling to East Asia and provide vital information on the process needed to succeed. The organization not only provides information and network connections, some of them also offer funding resources. One of the influential players in cultural exchanges is The Asia Europe Foundation (www.asef.org). It was established in 1997 to build bridges between the civil societies of Asia and European Union through promoting cultural, intellectual and people-to-people

46

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia exchanges, and creating a network of institutional linkages and personal ties between the two regions. The foundation is located in Singapore, and includes 38 countries from the East Asia and European Union. One goal of the foundation is to create a cultural portal and to supply real time information and serve as a gateway for greater mobility and cooperation in the cultural domain. A foundation project was founded with partners Universes in Universe, a non-commercial information and communication system for the visual arts of Africa, Americas and Asia Pacific with the intention of supporting cultural exchange among the visual arts. 42 Project CulturE-ASEF was established in March 2002 (http://www.cultureasef.org/english/ver/index.html) and founded to support the cultural portal and assist in cultural exchange between members. This is an online database that lists and provides the website links to cultural exchange foundations in each of the member countries. (see Appendix 11). ASEF also lists events and conferences that may be beneficial to individuals and organizations in addition to projects being funded by the foundation. The website fosters discussion among the members and in this way helps to promote the exchange of cultural ideas. Organizations such as ASEF are vehicles that can be used by individuals to further seek out the information they wish for, and provide a channel for further education and communication which could then lead to further relationships. There are other resources existing for the artist or performing groups hoping to expand their market into East Asia. They include, the Asian Culture Link (http://www.asianculturelink.net), which is financially supported by UNESCO, and The International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies (http://www.ifacca.org) whose primary goal is to provide a global network of national arts funding bodies.43 IFACCA vision is to create a dynamic network, sharing knowledge and creating understanding to enrich a world of artistic and cultural diversity.44

5.3.3 Foreign Governments

Foreign governments are another portal for foreign artists to use to enter the East Asia market. Through their embassy, particularly their cultural attach, they create bilateral agreements concerning cultural exchanges. They also provide information about their artists and cultures. In some cases, they greatly help culture and arts players in their respective country by offering subsidies and other facilities. JakArt relies on the support of foreign governments as a way to assemble and support the performing international artists. Until 2004, JakArt organizers collaborated with over 200 government, embassies and non-profit organizations to help support its festival since 1999.45 Moreover, many western developed countries have established their
Asia Europe Foundation (2005), About the Project (online), cited on August 17, 2005 The International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies (2005), What we do? (online), cited on August 8, 2005 44 The International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies (2005), Vision and Objectives, (online), cited on August 8, 2005 45 JakArt (2004), Festival la Carte Java and Bali (online), cited on August 14, 2004
42

43

47

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia own cultural centres abroad, and especially in the capitals of some key East Asia countries. Organizations such as the British Council (UK), and the Goethe Institute (Germany), were established to promote cultural relations among other countries. Their activities are very broad, including language centres, film festivals and students exchanges. In our study, we found that cultural centres also provide funding to festivals in international settings which promote their culture, share the knowledge, and foster the exchange of ideas with others. 2005-2006 is the Year of Germany in Japan. Therefore the Goethe Institute has provided funding to the Tokyo Arts Festival to bring a theatre group from Berlin to perform at the 2005 festival.

5.3.4 Company Sponsorship

Another possibility for artists to enter the East Asia market is to attempt to get sponsorship from a business organization. The local performing arts group can look to their sponsors domestically and explore the regions where those sponsors have a presence. This could be a solution for many groups as they look for financial resources to cross the borders and perform internationally. An example of such a sponsorship occurred in Taiwan, with the Taipei Philharmonic Choir. One of its prime sponsors is Foxxconn, a global manufacturer of PC connectors and enclosures.46 In 2003 the choir contacted the organizers in the Czech Republic to organize performances, and then looked to the sponsor at home to provide financial resources for the trip. The Taiwan sponsor Foxxconn, has a subsidiary and a presence in the Czech Republic, therefore saw the benefit for them to sponsor the choirs trip to Europe. Performing groups can look to multinationals as sponsors that would provide a larger network for traveling possibilities. By turning to a multinational company for a sponsorship, the performing groups open a larger network of performance possibilities. In return, the companies then have motivation for sponsoring a tour because they have influence in the desired location, and the company can reap the benefits of sponsorship, i.e. name recognition which supporting the arts can bring.

5.3.5 Performing Arts Fair

Attending a performing arts fair in East Asia could be beneficial as well. Currently, there are two cities in East Asia that conduct Performing Arts Fairs, Singapore and Shanghai. These fairs are visited by local and regional performing arts players. The visitor background is diverse: festival organizers, performing arts groups, agencies, arts venues etc. According to the cumulative statistics, in Shanghai International Performing Arts Fair, there are more than 50 countries and 585 performing arts agencies that have attended the
Foxconn (2004), Enters European Motherboard Market: Expertise and Economies of Scale Bode Well for New Venture (online), cited on August 14, 2005
46

48

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia Arts Fair resulting in 190 deals made.

5.3.6 Festival Representatives

Festival representatives are professionals hired by the festival who are typically located in those regions of the world where the festival would like to concentrate on recruiting its programming. They are hired by the festivals to scope the talent in the local area and recruit the groups and artists to perform at their festivals. Hong Kong employs a representative based in London. This representative chooses approximately 10% of the programming for the Hong Kong Festival. LIFT (London International Festival of Theatre) has employed three representatives in the East Asia region. These individuals are located in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia. The representatives focus in these regions and are responsible for finding performing artists and groups that fit the objectives that LIFT hopes to achieve in its programming. For LIFT, it is important to find performance groups that come from an area that had once been a colony of the United Kingdom. By having representatives in remote locations, the festival can make programming decisions based on personal recommendations by the festival representatives. Festival artistic directors have limited resources (time and money) to be able to observe the performances first hand. They must rely on the recommendation of the festival representative to seek out programming that fits the description and objectives of the festival. By establishing a relationship with the festival representatives, the performance groups are able to outreach their possibilities of performances into new areas where the representative can offer initial access to the new market such as East Asia.

5.4

Secondary Markets
There has been quite consumption of western arts and cultures in Asian since 19th century while Japanese were the first one opening their arms and minds to welcome western tastes in the second half of the 19th century. The rest of the region was the colonies of western nations until the first half of 20th century. Mahbabuni said, The cultural industries of the world, primarily in the field of ideas, continue to be dominated, in one from or another by the West. 47 The mentality of colonization is still apparent, even in professional performing arts industry. In addition, younger people in Asia are influenced by western culture because of globalization, thanks to TV and internet. Furthermore, the haves in East Asia send their children to experience western education. This phenomenon provides the motivation for East Asia performing arts consumers to purchase western performances. With the general appreciation of western arts and cultures, a secondary market for the European performing companies could be expected. The secondary market for European performers refers to the other opportunities to perform after the performers attending a certain festival. The value of the secondary market is effective

Mahbahuni K., AAPPAC (2005), The Elusive Asian Renaissance (online), cited on August 8
47

49

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia because the inter-continental airfares can be shared by many events. It is rare that the European performing arts companies perform in the same city or country with the same audiences shortly after the hosting festival period. The exclusivity of the programmes and artists is the main reason why the secondary market is defined outside of the country. Most of the festival organizers want to present the image of being unique and special to their audiences. Furthermore, the city difference in size and population should be taken in account. In the East Asia region, where most countries are in still in the developing stage, the country capitals usually are the most prosperous city. Although additional cities exist within the country, their size is significantly smaller. As a result, the potential audiences that are able buy tickets also drop significantly. For instance, the suitable city for European performing groups in Indonesia is only Jakarta and Surabaya where the inhabitants are rich enough and have the buying power to attend the events. Therefore, a secondary market will most likely occur outside the country. However, there are exceptions to this secondary market formation. In Japan a secondary market can be developed within its borders because the cities of Japan are relatively equal in size and purchasing power. While in China, it is not easy for the domestic audiences to travel because large territories and create geographical barrier in reason that the secondary market is within the countries. The types of secondary market for European performing arts companies vary from case to case, and from time to time. The secondary market can take place via universities, arts and culture centers, non-profit arts and cultural organizations or networks, private societies, national or international conventions, symposia, or the arts and cultural events of the embassies. For instance, Estonia Philharmonic Chamber Choir will be presented in Taipei by the National Chiang Kai Shek Cultural Center in Taiwan after attending the 19th Macao International Music Festival presented by the government of Macao.

Why Secondary Markets are Important? The secondary markets are important for both the European performing arts companies and the Asian parties, including the players in the primary and secondary markets. The clear result by having secondary market is to reduce cost for both markets, particularly by sharing intercontinental transportation expenses. In addition, European performing groups can increase their market and the scale of the performances. For instance, Hong Kong can reduce the airfares of the Nederlands Dans Theater if a secondary market is established in China with Beijing Dance Academy. In this case,

50

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia Hong Kong and Beijing Dance Academy will share the intercontinental airfares which usually occupy a large portion of the festivals cost. To have secondary market, the respective parties need to think about one critical issue, which is timing. It means that the time frame of performance in primary and secondary market should be close enough, in order to achieve the synergy. It will not work if the performance time in the secondary market is 10 days after the European group perform in the primary market. Although they can save some money in intercontinental transportation expenses, but the accommodation expenses will be higher and surpass the first benefit. In addition, primary and secondary markets can take a benefit from promoting strategy if the performing group performs in the circuit. It is the international feeling building up the popular image across various peoples for the performances and increasing the acceptance. If the audiences in the secondary market (or vice versa) see the group is invited to other prestigious place, it will increase curiosity from the audiences, whether primary or secondary. For instance, Il n'y a plus de firmament presented in New Vision by the Thtre Vidy-Lausanne E.T.E in Switzerland, Thtre de la Ville in Paris, and Berliner Festivochen in Germany can approach the French Embassy in Singapore which has a strong relationship with the Singaporean performing arts community. If the secondary performing opportunities are established in Singapore, the acceptance of the local audience in Hong Kong towards the contemporary theatre will be increased because of the joint promoting synergy. The secondary market also promotes a certain type of performing arts. By increasing the occurrence of the same artists in a shortterm timeframe in a limited region, the certain type of performing arts can be strengthened. Whatever reasons the European groups have to step into Asia, the effect will be reinforced by establishing a secondary market. For instance, the performances and image of live arts will be strengthened both in east and north Asian region if the foreign artists of DaDao engage with Live Art Work in Japan, which is the most important portal organization for the performing arts and live art and provides information of all kinds of performing opportunities in Japan.

How to Establish Secondary Market? With the high visibility and context of performing in the festivals, European groups can build up East Asia network through local artists, staffs, regional embassies, and venues to get further chance to perform in the region by themselves. But it is more effective if the hosting festivals become the initiators or organizers of this secondary market mechanism. In this study, this mechanism has already been noted because most of the festivals join the formal associations, and one of the associations functions is to exchange information, which refers to the touring companies, venues, and

51

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia others. However, there is little such circumstance for those festivals outside of the associations. Most of these festivals are facing the problems of lack of human resources and sustainable economic supports. They are only able to take care of their own festival affairs and hardly have the remaining strength to think from the other angle. In this study, it is recommended for festivals to team up with its peers to form informal exchange network of information in East Asia. It is the function for the network to achieve several synergies among the players of performing arts industry in East Asia. The festivals can broaden the scope being international and intercultural by providing extra stages through the network for the European groups invited. With the access of information of the schedule for various festivals or arts centers, European groups can arrange the circuits in a better order to reduce the unnecessary spending on international transportation. There is another possibility to initiate the secondary market in East Asia. Foreign embassies or cultural organizations can have significant impact on promoting the national arts and cultures. For instance, the German embassies or Goethe Institute branches in Korea, Japan, and China can form the cooperation by exchanging the information of touring German artists or performing arts companies. The Dorky Park Company from Germany presented in Seoul can be introduced to Japan or China. The embassy can strengthen the national image by promoting the German contemporary performing arts companies in the region. However, although it is not the problem at this moment for the festivals or event presenters from different country to have same programmes from the same European groups, it is suggested in the study that the European groups can have distinct programmes for different festivals. It is not only the exclusivity of arts per se to be expected, but also the diversification of the East Asia cultural resources to be interacted with. For instance, the History of Ronald, the Clown of McDonalds by La Carnicera Teatro from Spain will less likely be appreciated if the company presents the same programme in Shanghai.

52

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

6 Conclusions and Recommendations

Conclusions 6.1 Overview of Festival Operation in East Asia
After we have conducted our research, we have identified three main types of festivals in East Asia; they include the sponsororiented festival, state-supported festival and rebellious festival.

Sponsor-oriented festival In our samples, the festivals that fall in this category are Hong Kong Arts Festival, Shanghai International Arts Festival and Tokyo International Arts Festival. Sponsor-oriented festivals are usually organized by an independent organization. In the programming, most choose an interdisciplinary approach and tend to become larger festivals. The festival could act as a cultural lighthouse project to increase international visibility in the culture and arts field. Due to the size of the festival, although the festival organizer secures support from the government, it still needs to find additional resources in order to run the festival. To attract the sponsor and secure a festival reputation, sponsor-oriented festivals usually present famous local and foreign artists or well-known performances. The artists reputation is the magnet to reach larger audiences and can also create the buzz surrounding the festival. In return for the sponsors support, the festival sponsor could heavily influence the festival communication strategy. The festival sponsors may want to be associated with the whole festival or specific programmes. In terms of festival financial resources, sponsor contribution could be as much as 35% of the total festival budget. There is a fascinating fact regarding sponsorship in East Asia festivals. We found that a young festival, like Shanghai receives a lot of pressure in terms of the festival communication strategy from their main sponsor. The sponsor tries to put their interest in front of the festivals interest. Meanwhile, in Hong Kong because a long history and established high reputation - the festival organizer can limit the influences of the sponsor and focus more on the audience. Concerning the origin of sponsorship, we found similarities among the festivals. The majority of the sponsors are local companies (approximately up to 70%). This probably occurs because of a closer relationship between the sponsor and festival organizer. In addition, with financial support of the government, the government can influence local business companies to support the festival.

State-supported festival

53

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia In our sample, the festivals that fall in this category are Macao International Arts Festival, Hong Kong New Vision Arts Festival, and Seoul Performing Arts Festival. From the category name, it is explicit that the festival operates under the auspices of a government body. Minimum government financial contribution is 70% of the total budget. The statesupported festival enjoys the advantage in terms of near full economic support and work under less pressure to generate income, either from sponsorship or tickets earning. In the programming issues, we identify two different approaches. In Macao, they use interdisciplinary programmes to satisfy the needs of its people, while Hong Kong New Vision and Seoul are more focus on specific style of arts, in order to cultivate the local development of contemporary arts. Both festivals focus on collaboration with foreign groups or artists. The festivals encourage local creation and act as a place to promote and to test experimental projects and ideas. However, there is a clear distinction between New Vision and Seoul. Seoul has more focus on high-artistic subject, while New Vision attempts to bridge two different arts styles (classical and contemporary) by using combination between contemporary artists and popular (classical) artists.

Rebellious festival The festivals in our study that fall in this category are Jakarta International Arts Festival (JakArt) and DaDao Live Arts Festival. The rebellious festivals are operated by either an independent organization (JakArt) or an individual (DaDao). These festivals are ignited by an idea or the vision of the artist. The festival organization is set up to run on a voluntary basis, and it depends on the cooperation among its members. Without financial reward, the organization members are engaged by the organizations vision and purpose. In addition, to run the festival, they acquire more volunteers. JakArt could be an extreme example as they recruited more than 1,000 volunteers to execute 300 events in 2001 - 2003. The purpose of the festival determines the festival size and programming approaches. JakArt wants to bring culture closer to the society and state the importance of creativity in daily live, consequently they choose a large festival size and interdisciplinary approach. Conversely, DaDao wants to build up an environment for live arts since the art type is not recognized in China. They choose a small festival size and specific-arts approach. However, the first priority for them is the performance itself and the artists. Artists with a strong artistic motivation and non-commercial attitude are welcome and preferred in this festival. The rebellious festivals are dependant on the artists personal network and foreign embassies to attract the international artists. With regards to the communication issue, since the rebellious festivals are working under a very tight budget, they rely on free 54

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia media coverage and informal communication network, particularly from their volunteers to create the buzz. Furthermore, free entry and unique environment also attract curiosity from pass-by audiences. Regarding the financial resources, rebellious festivals depend heavily on donations, either personal or through organizations. This phenomenon occurs because rebellious festivals usually take place in the developing countries, where the government does not place much attention toward culture and arts development. Also, government officials and private companies want to put their own interest in front of the festival interest. In addition, based on our internet research, we found a fascinating fact that in Indonesia rebellious festivals are more sustainable compared to the official festival. The festivals also use the same approach like JakArt, by pulling all the internal resources and collaborate with the stakeholders. For instance, Jogjakarta International Gamelan Festival is an annual event for the last 10 years. They try to state the existence of gamelan48 in Indonesia since local people tend to abandon this music tradition. They successfully invited foreign gamelan players (United States, Japan, Australia) that come to Indonesia at their own expense.49 Meanwhile, Indonesia Arts Summit is struggling to perform on a regular basis. The festivals will most likely evolve over time. The change may be more prevalent in the rebellious festivals as they grow more popular, drawing more attention and publicity to their events. It is important that these festivals remain true to the original motivation in which they were established. In this way, sponsorship, although helpful could also prove to be harmful to the existence of these festivals. By opening the festival to sponsorship, the festival is also surrendering some of the influence over the festival to those providing financial resources. This could move the festival in a direction away from its original motivation, and may prove fatal for the festivals existence. Regarding the specific-type festival, it is in their nature to change. By continuously stressing the importance of innovation in art, they look for new and original and modern art forms to stretch the interpretation of the art in the audiences mind. It is in their very nature to change as contemporary art evolves over time. The larger more established festivals have a history and their traditions will pave a way for their future. They are established to please a broader audience. They remain true to the classical programming of the large performance groups who also enjoy a high reputation. Because these festivals have strong government support, it is less likely to see much change occurring in these festivals.

Table 7
48 49

Traditional Javanese Music Devices Kompas (2005), Main News (online), cited on August 7, 2005

55

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Characteristics Comparison between Three Types of Festival

Festival Type
Size Purpose

SponsorOriented
Medium Large Cultural light house project, to present foreign performing arts, encourage local production, and promote wider public interest in culture and arts Independent organization Interdisciplinary, specific arts genres Local communities Festival as a brand, using mass communication (TV, newspaper) to create awareness, while using booklet and poster to explain each performance Sponsor contribution is up to 35% of the total budget

State-Supported
Medium To present foreign performing arts, encourage local production, and promote wider public interest in culture and arts

Rebellious
Small - Large Want to challenge the general public practice because their sorts of arts are not recognized, they are oppressed by the mainstream, or they want to demonstrate their capabilities to do something. Independent organization, Individual Interdisciplinary, specific arts genres Local communities Depend on free media coverage and buzz from the volunteers. The performances are free of charge.

Organization Programming Target audiences Communication Strategy

Government Interdisciplinary, specific arts genres Local communities To target market, they rely on informal communication forum. Mass communication media is use to attract new audiences. Government cover at least 70% of the total budget

Financial Resource

Limited support from government and private companies, depends on donation from individual, foreign government or other organization

6.2

Cooperation among Festivals in East Asia

Current cooperation among East Asian performing arts festivals results in various consequences. The formal affiliations with the more sufficient and tangible resources and information exchange among members provide the opportunities for cost reduction, thanks to broader circuit and the co-production of programming. The formal affiliations also contribute to the image and positioning of the festivals by connecting the less exposed festivals to more reputable ones. In contrast to the celebrity club of the formal affiliations, the informal networks compensate for the shortage of the resources and enlarge the effect of all kinds of the under-table information, such as buzz, rumor, and gossip. Innovative works or unexpected collaboration is always driven from the personal relationship among individuals in the informal networks. In the environment of the festivals, the governments play the important role of facilitating cooperation in the performing arts.

56

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia Being the parents of the national culture and arts, governments and their agencies offer the platform for festivals and artists to meet together and distribute the resources. In East Asia, it seems that only festivals with substantial government support can create wider and sustainable cooperation, such as Shanghai, Tokyo, and Hong Kong. And only in these countries, can the festivals benefit from the more comprehensive cultural policies which reinforce the public appreciation of the performing arts. Only with the general awareness of arts and culture, can the technology be designed to serve the performing arts - by increasing the effect and efficiency of the managerial and administrative tasks, such as communication and marketing activities.However, there are weaknesses and threats accompanying the cooperation among those festivals. The similarity of programming may gradually result in the weakness of the festival in the future. The festivals may lose the uniqueness, and creativity drive and distinction because of excessive exchange of programmes and copied programming interests. Threats that exist in the social and economical environment lead to obstacles in the cooperation of the festivals. These threats include poverty, absence of arts and cultural education, lack of complete government policies, and uneven distribution of wealth among Asian countries.

6.3

Opportunities for European Performing Arts Group

In order to take advantage of the opportunities that Eastern Asia Festivals offer, European performing arts groups must overcome some obstacles. Relationships must be established with those in the programming decision making process. Performing art groups must understand the cultural component that personal networking plays in the East Asian business decisions. They need to develop personal relationships through networking with the festivals and festival representatives, or by outsourcing the services to a third party such as an agency that is part of an existing network. By creating a personal relationship with the festival organizers, some significant opportunities for the European group could open up, as they can then take advantage of the contacts of the hosting festival, and perhaps attempt to structure a broader tour in the secondary market. There are many organizations whose objectives are to support the exchange of knowledge and experience between the artists and the festivals, which could help to facilitate the contact and networking opportunities, such as foundations and other nonprofit organizations, foreign embassies and government cultural agencies (British Council, Goethe Institute etc.). Programming decisions are another component that affects the opportunities for European groups to perform in Asia. Language plays a large part in the decision making process as we have found that the majority of performance groups in East Asia that come from Europe fall under the music and dance genres. This art form is more widely accepted by the East Asia audiences where the interpretation of the art is not so dependent on the language. The larger festivals look to the European groups to provide more classical programming where the smaller festivals look to more

57

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia contemporary programming. This must be a factor when the European groups are deciding which avenue to take, in order to enter the Asian Market. Whether through a single venue or taking advantage of the secondary East Asia market as a tour, the European performing groups come to East Asia as a way to expand their audience market, generating more awareness of their group abroad. This could lead to more performances which not only increases revenue but also increases the prestige of the company as one that has performed outside of Europe. This high prestige could then be used to market the group for more performing opportunities in following years, or performances in other diverse locations.

Recommendations
After analyzing the operational issues and the cooperative situation of East Asia performing arts festivals, and the presence of European performing arts in East Asia, the recommendations can be drawn for several critical players in the performing arts. However, no matter what recommendations are made, the overall objective is to build up the relationship and seek the common interests for the cooperative parties, whether for economic benefit, artistic advancement or cultural and political understanding.

6.4

Recommendation for IETM

For IETM, there is a possibility to build up a connection with the informal networks in East Asia, such as Live Arts Work (LAW) in Japan. There is a vast amount of information continuously pulsating in the performing arts circuits. This informal exchanging platform, once developed by IETM, can process this information first hand. Because such networks are limited in East Asia, it is hard for European parties to gather information about the small and independent artists of performing companies in this region. Meanwhile, IETM can also articulate and amplify the input of the European performing companies which have already participated in East Asian festivals. In this study, the Asian experience and knowledge of East Asia appears as limited and weak among the European performing companies. By involving the performing companies with an Asian experience, IETM can then gather more information and ideas about the performing arts in East Asia and disseminate them among its members. Moreover, since IETM usually holds forums and meetings to discuss critical issues in the field, it may be helpful for IETM to invite the programmers or directors of the Asian festivals while they are visiting performances or festivals in Europe.

6.5

Recommendation for EFA

We believe that EFA may have the interest to broker the programmes co-produced by the AAPAF as EFA is one of the associate members of this organization. With 90 festivals, 11 national festivals associations, and 4 European networks, EFA can offer the possibility for a large number of performances of the Asian co-produced programmes, especially for those programmes which 58

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia have strong characteristics of Asian arts and cultures. It is also recommended that EFA builds a relationship with the festivals that are unable to join the celebrity club association, in order to reach a more diversified Asian performing arts context. Because most of the members of AAPAC and AAPAF are in the pan-Singaporean networks and are major performing arts players, whether festivals, centers, or other organizations, many festivals in North East Asia do not participate in these networks, such as those from Korea and Japan. For example, Japan has 74 festivals listed in the MOD 2003, and possesses the largest number of festivals in Asia. This is followed by Korea, with 14 festivals involving international artists. It may be constructive for EFA to establish a stronger connection with the Japanese festivals as the population has become westernized throughout all levels of the society. There are only a few major festivals involved with EFA from these countries at this time. However, there are many small and middle sized, innovative festivals with strong international content taking place in Japan each year.

6.6

Recommendation for European Performing Arts Groups

European performing arts groups should explore different channels in order to enter the East Asia performing arts markets. It depends on the targeted market. If the European group is driven by a commercial attitude, it should seek the opportunities primarily in the sponsor-oriented and stated-supported festivals. Thus the use of artist agencies and formal networks is the most efficient way to break the wall. In addition, particularly with the Hong Kong festival there is an opportunity to make direct contact with festival representatives in London. Conversely, if the European performing group is seeking primarily an artistic benefit and stimulus, it would be worth it to target the rebellious festivals in the first place and seek to benefit of own government cultural policy and initiate contact with cultural attach in the respective country. Whatever entry channel is chosen by the performing group, it is imperative to maintain established personal network and to continually expand on it.

6.7

Recommendation for East Asia Festival Organizers

Concerning the festival organizers, we recommend to them to take a more active role in order to establish a secondary market circuit. This action will benefit both sides. The visiting European artists can enter a new expanded market, enjoy a new experience and gain more income. On the Asian festival side, they can share the intercontinental airfares and travel expenses with the other venues. They also could have stronger bargaining power with regards to the performance fees by offering more performances of the European performing groups. In addition, the primary and secondary market can take advantage of a joint promoting strategy, as more international appearances will create curiosity in the potential audiences, and perhaps even enhance opportunities to attract sponsors. We also suggest utilizing more volunteers in their festival operations. This idea may not seem suitable for the well-establish

59

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia festivals because they have resources to hire additional employees. However, we argue by having more volunteers they can strengthen the ties between the festival and its audience. Although it will be more difficult to organize the festival, the local community will have the opportunity to actively participate in the preparations for the festival. They will be more than just a passive audience. We can see how the rebellious festivals successfully survive by utilizing their internal resources, maximizing the volunteers capability and cooperate with stakeholders. In the long term, this kind of relationship and specially designed educational and outreach programs will help the development of local culture and arts and create wider public interest, especially from the younger generation.

6.8

Recommendation for the Governments

In this study, most of the European governments usually act as the funders for artists who wish to perform in East Asia festivals. It would be interesting if the European governments can go a step further to become the initiator, the facilitator, or the commissioner and encourage the European artists to go beyond their habitual territories. For instance, the European governments can start special projects for European performing companies, initiate proposals of performances in certain East Asia countries. By exporting the national programmes or artists to East Asia countries, European governments are strengthening their national image and the political relationship with targeted countries. This variety of projects can go with any type of commercial fair, political summit, or tourism promotion activities. Concerning East Asia governments, it is more important for them to understand that arts and cultures are not just a direct by-product of the economic or social development. There is an urgent need for the governments to look squarely at the arts and cultures like other disciplines. If the East Asian governments only view the performing arts as giving something additional splendor, the relationship between two parties will stay in grantor and recipient, and the synergy of combining arts and political will not happen. Moreover, since most of the festivals in this study are influenced deeply by the governments will, it is necessary to sound the alert of absence of autonomy in terms of operation and conception in the East Asian region. The governments should put more efforts on the education in order to cultivate the ability of people to examine and appreciate arts and culture. By presenting and communicating the value of performing arts, festivals are the critical channels to offer social education of arts and cultures. This is what the East Asian governments should care rather than using festivals only as the tools to show off the wealth which will ultimately amount to lots of opportunism and poor decisions in the artistic sphere and will negate any political effect desired. The best position of governments towards festivals is to be the back-up in order to offer them essential resources and assist them to be independent as possible. And, eventually, the festivals grow with the appropriate support from the governments to be self-

60

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia sustaining, and even benefit the community with subsequent economic activities, such as job creation and tourism. For the cooperation on the governments level, since the arts and cultures are the best lubricator to build up relationship among nations and the best spokesman to promote the images, governments of both sides can discover more cultural exchange opportunities by associating with the festivals. Because the festivals make use of a large amount of social resources, including the public awareness and the support from the local community, it is an effective means for the European government to strengthen the relationship with the Asian parties via the festivals activities.

6.9

Recommendation for Business Corporations

The effective relationship between the performing arts and the corporations is based on mutual respect and reciprocity. The business parties should understand the value of the performing arts they support, if the relationship is to be sustainable. Therefore, it is essential for the business corporations to broaden their understanding of performing arts via contacts, discussions and performance attendance. Traditionally, the relationship of the business corporations and the performing arts groups means the involvement of the former as sponsors or donors. To a large extent, the relationships are established based on trading of activities. The performing arts parties come with proposals to the business parties and persuade the potential sponsors to buy the programmes. The sponsors will get the advertisement and sponsoring tickets in return, with perhaps some exclusive events. Rather than only giving the financial support, business corporations could provide performing art players with necessary operational, managerial, and technical support in terms of goods, knowledge, and services. For instance, since the festivals are seasonal, there are many short-term demands of goods and services which can be sponsored by the corporations, such as furniture, computers, staffs of call center, or even marketing affairs. In addition because of the shortage of human resources, most of the small (middle) size festivals are confronted with logistic nightmares, resulting from the lack of knowledge of arts management, marketing, finance and accounting. Therefore, the corporations can also provide this nonfinance support to help the festivals operating more efficiently. This more complex collaboration can benefit both parties. The festivals could gain necessary operational skills; conversely the business could learn more about how performing arts festivals work. Concerning the performing arts groups, business corporations are encouraged to broker the performances whether for the local or foreign programmes. For instance, an international Dutch bank can subsidize and introduce a Dutch dance company to China while the bank has a grand inauguration in Shanghai. This may also occur if the bank wishes to be a sponsor in 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Since there are a variety of performing arts programmes in the tradition of Olympic Game, the Dutch bank can offer the Olympic

61

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia organizer a programme sponsored by the bank and performed by the Dutch dance company if the bank is one of the international sponsors.

6.10 Recommendation for Future Research

It is the objective of this project to perform preliminary research and present a general overview to our clients on the structure and operation processes of the performing arts festivals in East Asia. However, to fully understand the dynamic framework of the East Asia performing arts festivals and their relationship with the concerned parties in Europe, we believe that further research is needed. Research involving the festival financial issues (fund raising and expenditure analysis), an analysis of East Asian governments cultural policies, secondary market circuit and further research on the informal networks established in East Asia among the performing arts players will provide a deeper understanding on the structure of the performing arts festivals in East Asia.

62

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

7 Appendices

63

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 1 Meeting 50

: Informal European Theatre

IETM (Informal European Theatre Meetings) is an organization established to help its members facilitate networking, and provide a platform for knowledge exchange among the 400 performing arts organizations from forty-five countries that make up their member base from 45 countries. IETM is composed three units: the Network Unit, Projects Unit and a Communication, Information and Training Unit. The Network Unit is the framework for which IETM was established. It provides the members a chance to meet and exchange ideas through semi- annual Plenary Meetings. These meetings include large group planning sessions, panel discussions, smaller discussion groups and project presentations. These events are created to pursue the goal of fostering the flow of communication among its members. In this way information is shared, ideas generated, and networking is established among the members of IETM. The Project Unit of IETM sets in motion the opportunities for global networking among the performing arts festivals. These projects are designed to bridge the cultural differences of regions worldwide and offer the chance for performing groups to work with groups of other regions. The Project Unit launched On the Move Project which was established as a web based information resource for performing arts professionals. It provides information on financial and informational resources that could benefit groups as they seek to participate in cross-border performances and activities. The Communication, Information and Training Unit was established as a means to deepen the networking connections between members by organizing training sessions in order to facilitate the spread of information throughout the network.

Informal European Theatre Meetings profile was created based on the information from their website (www.ietm.org).
50

64

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 2

: European Festival Association

51

EFA (European Festivals Association) is a nonprofit, non-governmental membership organization for performing arts festivals in Europe. It was founded in 1952 as a way to re-unite the countries of Europe after World War II, through cultural integration. It began with 15 festivals however, it has grown to represent 90 performing arts festivals, located in 31 countries. The goal of the EFA is to promote the significance of festivals and their important role in international cultural cooperation. It works to demonstrate the importance that festivals can play in the integration of culture across the borders. It provides the tools and the resources that support the exchange of information and collaboration between the festival members. They offer the opportunity to deepen the collaborative effort between festival organizers and cultural organizations by providing the opportunity to work together in organized way, and provide the tools needed for festival representatives to access the management, research and cultural data. EFA also aims to deepen the cooperation between the different parties through the coordination of events, conferences and training activities.52 Beside the ninety direct festivals members, in 1997 EFA opened it membership eligibility to include festival associations which oversee an additional 500 festivals throughout Europe. Four European network associations of the performing arts were added as members in 1999. This gives EFA the opportunity to exercise influence throughout the European Region and establish collaborating efforts within those countries and beyond.

European Festival Associations profile was created based on the information from their website (http://www.efa-aef.org/efahome/index.cfm) 52 European Festival Association (2005), Organization brochure (online), cited on August 14, 2005
51

65

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 3 : Hong Kong International Arts Festival Interview Summary

1. Festival Fact Sheet Festival Name : Country of Origin : Festival Organizer : Organizer Address : Website

Hong Kong Arts Festivals Hong Kong S. A. R Government, China Hong Kong Arts Festival Society Ltd. 12/F Hong Kong Arts Centre, 2 Harbour Road Wanchai, Hong Kong : www.hk.artsfestival.org

2. Interviewee Data Name : Mr. Douglas Gautier Position : Executive Director 3. Interview Report

The Purpose of the Festival

The Hong Kong Arts Festival (HKAF), presented by the Hong Kong Arts Festival Society Ltd. is an international arts festival with interdisciplinary programmes existing for 32 years since 1973. It is the objective of HKAF to present the highest standard of performing arts for the enrichment of cultural life in Hong Kong. The Festival also serves as a catalyst to arouse wider public interest in the arts and to encourage artistic dialogue and cultural exchange.

The Festival Features

Featuring overseas and local artists renown in an eclectic array of music, theatre, dance, popular entertainment, film and exhibition programmes, the HKAF offers a three-to-four-week-long cultural feast annually from February to March. The HKAF covers various contents of styles as a substantial arts festival, such as traditional, classical, contemporary, pops, and crossover. Since the early 19th century, due to the influence from the western society, the acceptance of western arts and culture in the Hong Kong local community were higher than other Chinese cities. Therefore, the contents of the programmes ranged over many niche markets of performing arts. Not only the most prestigious artists, but also those leading artists in specific sectors were both presented in the HKAF to establish high reputation in the general public, as well as in professional field. With commissions over a long period of time, the HKAF has been perceived as an incubator for novel contemporary pieces collaborating with other senior arts festival in East Asia. This was also the consequence of being presented for more than 30 years. HKAF also had to confront the challenges of instant change of interests of audiences and the environment and the challenge of creating more opportunities for the local artists within the high standard features of the festival. Moreover, some of the commissions had already toured

66

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia around the world. The HKAF was presented as a brand name in the performing arts market in East Asia.

The Programme Issues

The HKAF Society Ltd was responsible for the programme procedure by means of gathering information of performances, accepting proposals from all sorts of performing arts groups and organizations, and selecting programmes for every year. 90% of the programmes were viewed before selected, and the representatives from EU based in London proposed the other 10%. The Society worked in creating the programme, 4 years ahead and finalized the programmes 6 months before the festival. The HKAF also produced new works in terms of diversified commissions which were mainly Chinese programmes, while Hong Kong was a flourishing stage for contemporary Chinese performing arts. There were also considerable quantities of crosscultural original works composed by the HKAF resulted from the historical consequence that Hong Kong cultivated with the Chinese and Western cultures. In addition to the performances, the HKAF offered various programmes to cultivate the interests and appreciation of the performing arts among the general public and young generation. The Young Friends Scheme provided educational activities for students during the nonfestival period. The Festival Plus program during the festival period offered talks, master classes, workshops, meet-the-artist session, arts exchange programmes, exhibitions, and other events to facilitate interaction with the public, reduce the distance between artists and people, and promote performances of the festival. The average age of the audiences was 34 with the average income of HK$ 35,000 (US$ 1 = HK$ 8.01). 90% of the audiences were from local communities, and 10% were from mainland China and other countries. 10,000 tickets (1%) were sold for students this year.

About the Festival Organizer

The HKAF was organized by the Hong Kong Arts Festival Society Ltd., which is an independent private society. Government and charities organization form the strong resources props for the festival. The board was composed by representatives from various sectors, such as business community, private philanthropists, the government, Jockey Club, tourist board, and the financial sectors, and chaired by the Hong Kong stock exchanger chairman. The function of the board was to persuade and locate the sponsors and business network. None of the sponsors were directly included on the board. The volunteers were mostly intern students of arts administration, music, or theatre. However, the HKAF employs 60% to 70% of the seasonal workers. The types of part-time jobs available were for technical services, customer services, offices, and arts coordinators.

The Festival Financial Resources

The government subsidized 25% of the total budget for the festival,

67

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia and all kinds of sponsorship counted for 18.75%. The rest 56.25% was from earned income. The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust was the main sponsor charities. There were various opportunities of sponsorship, such as the Programme Sponsorship which offered the opportunity for the corporation to be associated with specific projects; Patrons Club which supported the whole festival in different budget levels; and Student Ticket Scheme which was a sponsoring program for those who would like to help students and was a mechanism to offer students tickets with half price. The sponsors composed of international corporations, such as banks and insurances companies, and local companies. Local companies included; transportation companies, airlines, and hotels. There were also individuals donating mainly on Student Ticket Scheme.

The Festival Financial Expenditures

The cost of the HKAF was about HK$ 62 million with 18% for the administration and salaries, 24% for marketing, and 58% for programme, such as artists fees, airfares, hotels, and royalties of the new productions. Sometimes, the artists and performing groups received subsidies from their own governments in terms of airfares. HKAF also seek opportunities of subsidies from the foreign cultural institutes.

Cooperation with Asian Parties

As one of the founders of Association of Asian Performing Arts Festival, the HKAF has cooperated with other festivals and is one of the leading arts festivals in East Asia. Most of the collaboration was through sharing foreign artists to reduce the international traveling costs. The HKAF has the reputation being a sustainable arts festival in East Asia and has become the major reference for them in terms of operational schemes and programme-making. Furthermore, the innovative production of new pieces always teamed up with other senior festivals, such as the Singapore Arts Festival. With the birth of the new works, the HKAF acted as a brand name, a performing arts company, to produce advance performances and performed in Asian region by allying with the artists and groups in terms of both artistic and technical levels, such as scripts and staging.

Cooperation with European Parties

The HKAF has a significant influence from Europe because Hong Kong was the colony of UK for 100 years. Part of the programmes was proposed by the representative located in London, who is the director the festivals in London has been cooperated with HKAF for years with the market knowledge of Hong Kong audiences. The Society also refered to many European arts festivals, such as the Holland Festival. The European artists were widely presented in the programmes, especially in classical music concerts, operas, and ballets. Many European artists also viewed the HKAF as one of the important stages in East Asia.

68

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 4 : Shanghai International Arts Festival Interview Summary

1. Festival Fact Sheet Festival Name : Festival Country of Origin : Festival Organizer : International Organizer Address : Shanghai Website China Shanghai International Arts Shanghai, China The Center for China Shanghai Yihai Building, No.211, Kang Ding Rd.,

China : www.artsbird.com

2. Interviewee Data Name : Mr. Xue Bin Position : Vice officer of external communication 3. Interview Report

The Purpose of the Festival

The China Shanghai International Arts Festival (CSIAF) is presented by Ministry of Culture of P. R. China, undertaken by Shanghai Municipal Peoples government, and organized by the Center for China Shanghai International Arts Festival. It is an international and interdisciplinary arts festival aiming at presenting the best world cultures, promoting Chinese traditional arts, enhancing the cultural exchanges, and expanding cultural markets. The CSIAF lasting for a month includes 40 to 50 different productions, and the numbers of performances ranges from 120 to 150 annually. It is not only one of the most important performing affairs in Asia in terms of the large scale and scope but the balcony for international performing groups and festival organizers to communicate, exchange, interact, and create new performance works.

The Festival Features

CSIAF is an interdisciplinary festival with all types of performances, such as music, dance, theatre, all sorts of Chinese opera, and multimedia with various style including traditional, classics, contemporary, folk, and pops. There are also exhibitions with diverse themes, such as arts exhibition, foreign cultural week, and public cultural section, in order to expand the participation of the general public. One of the key activities of the CSIAF is the Performing Arts Fair, which is a trade fair of performances aiming at developing the potential capacity of performing arts market in China and introducing the outstanding performing arts of China to the world, especially the traditional Chinese operas and the contemporary Chinese theatres.

In order to service the expectation of the general public towards arts

69

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia and culture, CSIAF is characterized by presenting the typical and classical style of all kinds of performing arts. Well-known artists and repertoire are the main streams in the programmes. Governmental promoting, civil supporting, corporations cooperating, and marketization operating contribute to the abundant resources of CSIAF, which can converge in all sorts of first-class performances in Shanghai in the same period. Moreover, 15% of the performances and exhibitions are programmed for contemporary arts to cultivate the innovation in artsform and development, such as new production with combination of east and west, classic and pops, and folk and culture. The International Performing Arts Fair, the climax of the CSIAF, displays a variety of performances, performing groups, organizations, festivals, and venues with marketing tools and activities in order to foster the performing arts market development. According to the accumulative statistics, more than 50 countries and 585 performing arts agencies have attended the Fair. Furthermore, 190 deals have been traded during the festival period to achieve the commercial cooperation. With the frequent communication and interaction, CSIAF has turned into one of the distributing centers of Asian performing arts.

The Programme Issues

Presented by the public authority and organized by the Center of CSIAF, the festival is operated in accordance with the guideline of marketization in terms of performances, exhibitions, and special projects. The Center collects the information in various means, such as collating the proposals from foreign ambassadors in Shanghai, artistic representatives overseas, and performing groups themselves, referring to other festivals, and contacting with international performing arts agencies. At the same time, attending the international performing arts meetings such as Association of Asian Performing Arts Festivals, Asian Fair, and Singapore Performing Arts Fair is another key source of programmes for CSIAF. And in order to foster the pops culture, the Public Cultural Section is open to the public to apply. The amateur programmes are held in the open space as a marketing means in order to promote the image of the festival. The selection of programmes is made by a committee comprising vice president of the Center (the artistic director) and several expert advisers of performing arts and approved by the president of the Center as final decision. The themes and the schedules of the performing groups are the main concerns of the programming; therefore, CSIAF sometimes contracts with the groups in the coming years. This helps CSIAF to extend the preparing period and to develop a sustainable operative mode. In addition to the existing programmes, CSIAF also seeks for opportunities to cooperate with arts and cultural organizations both local and international for coproductions, exhibitions, expositions, and special projects by the means of commission and project agency. Meanwhile, the Center not only teams up with other festivals very often to create original works with blending of different cultures but invests in other festivals to produce new works and introduces afterwards. The Shanghai Performing Arts Fair includes Opening Series, Festivals Theme Conference, Booth Display and Deal Making, Live Promotional Showcases, Briefings on Performance Touring Projects, and 3-Minute 70

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia Promotional Speech. It is estimated that the nationalities of the attending festivals, agencies, performing groups, and organizations have reached more than 30 countries. Furthermore, the deals and all kinds of cooperation have been made directly during the Fair.

About the Festival Organizer

The Center of China Shanghai International Arts Festival is a corporation organization delegated by public authority not only to be responsible for organizing, producing, and executing of the annual festival but to develop all kinds of arts and cultural businesses and events by leveraging the cultural capital. The practice departments of the Center include General office, Public Relations & Publicity, Performance and Exhibition, Resources Development, Computer and Net Service, and Finance. There are other cultural entities under the Center, such as Shanghai Cultural Exchange Agency, Shanghai Audio & Video Publishing House, Shanghai Mei Lanfang Culture and Art Communications, Shanghai CSIAF Public Relations Co. Ltd., and Shanghai International Arts Advertising Co. Ltd. The operation of CSIAF is promoted by public authority, supported by the local community, operated in the mode of marketization, and participated by the whole general public. Meanwhile, it is also crucial to attract the support from the business corporations in terms of various modalities, such as patronization of the entire festival, sponsorships of the specific projects, and cooperation in other manners to exploit the main resources of the festival and to inject novel vitality into the festival for the possibility of sustainable development. As the one of the key sub-organizations of CSIAF, the volunteer organization is composed of undergraduate and graduate students working as translators, reception personnels and desk clerks. The festival teams up with the colleges and universities in terms of internship organization to pull hundreds of students in as volunteers every year.

Festival Audiences
Thousands of audiences are attracted by CSIAF every year with the diversified contents and numerous numbers of performances in the festival period. The audiences comprise not only Shanghai residents but also visitors from 16 peripheral cities. Moreover, with the convenience of experience world-class performance in short distance and lower budget, visitors from other Asian countries also bring in significant tourism. In 2004, it is estimated that 200,000 audiences visited the exhibition; 1,000,000 audiences attended the outdoor activities; 300,000-400,000 audiences participated the indoor performances.53

The Festival Financial Resources

The budget for CSIAF from the government funding counts for onethird; private sponsorships counts for one-third; and the other one-third is due to the earning income, that is, ticket boxes. The sponsorships from the private corporations include patronizing for the whole festival

Shanghai population was 13 million estimated in 2004, China Government Popinfo (online), cited on August 3, 2004
53

71

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia and for the specific projects, and 70% to 80% of the sponsorships come from the local corporations. For the patronization of the entire festival, CSIAF has formed partnership with one of the major real estate corporations in Shanghai, the Shanghai Grand Real Estate Co. Ltd. And the strategy to develop the sponsorships of the specific projects or programmes focuses on finding more new companies to reduce the financial burden of long-term sponsoring. Therefore, CSIAF has built up relationship with more than hundreds of companies in the local community and established strong brand images both for the festival and the corporations. The sponsorship from the foreign ambassadors located in Shanghai to cover or to arrange the fees of performers and international airfares is quite often in order to reduce the operational cost of the festival. In addition, the government also helps the festival to lower the fees of performances by leveraging the exchange rate between different currencies.54 The festival, consequently, can offer cheaper ticket price and reach larger audience scale and scope. Regarding to the promotion budget which usually occupies large portion of the operational cost, 24% in Hong Kong Arts Festival and 15% in Macao International Arts Festival, CSIAF benefits from the public authority in terms of budget and distribution because of the nature of being presented by the government, and the Chinese media industry is controlled by the government at this moment. Furthermore, CSIAF also shares costs of performances and international transportation by establishing the Association of Asian Performing Arts Festival with Singapore Arts Festival, Hong Kong Arts Festivals, etc., to cooperate in the programming.

Festival Financial Expenditures Not available Cooperation with Asian Parties

Being one of the founders of Association of Asian Performing Arts Festivals, CSIAF frequently communicates with Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, and Korea. Also, the press conference and Promotional Showcases are presented in Hong Kong and Macao every year to tighten up the regional relationship among festivals. During the Promotional Showcases, The blending marketing activities of the Promotional Showcase contribute to connect the Chinese performing arts market with the world and also build up the brand image and publicity of the festival. With the interaction with other festivals and organizations in nonfestival period and the Shanghai Performing Arts Fair during the festival, the Center cooperate with others in terms of sharing performances, producing original programmes, and inviting western artists running circuits to perform with local artists.

It is indicated by the interviewee, that the foreign currency can not be traded, and it is the government to decide the exchange rate. For instance, the exchange rate of EUR/RMB ranged from 1/10 to 1/8 before 21st July 2005. And the government allows CSIAF to pay the performance fees to the Europeans with the rate of 8/1 while executing the transaction.
54

72

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Cooperation with European Parties

The Center refers to European performing arts field by visiting important arts festival frequently. Most of the programmes present in classical and traditional style are based on the acceptance of Chinese audiences, who prefer the famous pieces rather than contemporary ones. However, due to the advance of contemporary arts in Europe, the festival foresees the new trend in performing arts and employs certain amount of contemporary performances while some of the Europeans groups ask to arrange one or two contemporary performances during the traditional rows. The Shanghai Performing Arts Fair has established a long-term cooperative relationship with many commercial performing arts organizations, such as IAMA, ISPA, APAP, Asian Arts Mart, etc. in terms of communicating the various arts and cultures, exchanging views, and hosting forums to discuss the current situation and developing trend of the international performing arts market.

73

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 5 : Macao International Arts Festival Interview Summary

1. Festival Fact Sheet Festival Name : Macao Arts Festival (Macao) Country of Origin : Macao S. A. R. Government, China Festival Organizer : Special Project Division, Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao S.A.R. Government Organizer Address : Praa do Tap Seac, Edif. do Instituto Cultural Macao Website : http://www.icm.gov.mo/fam/16/indexE.asp 2. Interviewee Data Name : Mr. Charles Lam Position : Head of Special Project Division 3. Interview Report

The Purpose of the Festival

The Macao Arts Festival presented by the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao S.A.R. Government is a festival active in the East Asian region in March lasting for almost 30 days every year. The Objectives of the festival are to promote the Chinese Culture, to introduce the works of performing arts from all over the world, and to facilitate the artistic and cultural development in Macao local community

The Festival Features

The Macao Arts Festival is an international and interdisciplinary festival comprising music, dance, theatre, drama, Chinese operas, puppet theatre, and multi-media programmes in terms of performing arts activities. In order to present the diversity of the contemporary arts and cultures, the festival also includes exhibitions during the festival period, such, vision arts, digital arts, and film. Meanwhile, all kinds of lectures, workshops, and master classes are organized for the education purpose and to cultivate the knowledge of arts and culture. The programme characteristics of the Macao Arts Festival emphasizes on promoting and educating due to the comprehensive nature of the festival. Therefore the main programming shaft intertwines famous international artists, large-scale production, and original production with talking-points. Furthermore, the historical heritages showing the interaction between the eastern and western cultures more than 400 years also become one of the important distinctive marks in the Macau Arts Festival.

The Programme Issues

Because the local government presented the Macao Arts Festival, it 74

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia was important for the programmes to service and attract the interests of the community and to focus on the wide coverage and popularity. The Special Project Division subject to the Cultural Event Department under the Cultural Affairs Bureau was responsible for organizing the festivals twice a year (including Macao International Music Festival). The Special Project Division collected the international and local information of performing arts and referred to other similar festivals in the same region. The programme-makers collected the information both by visiting the programmes directly and accepting recommendations from other organizations, such as other festivals aboard. Another resource of the programmes came from public submissions within the fixed budget given by the Special Project Division. The selection was made by a committee comprising president, vice president, and artistic advisers of the Bureau, performing arts experts, and the programmers from the Special Project Division.

About the Festival Organizer

The Macao Arts Festival was presented by the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao S.A.R Government and organized by the Special Project Division in terms of programming and administration. There were no volunteer organization.

The Festival Audiences

It was estimated that approximately 90% of the audience were from 20 to 50 years of age. Furthermore 15% of Macao are come from China mainland. There were audiences from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and other Asian countries in the same region.

Festival Financial Resources

The budget of the Macao Arts Festival was funded by the government and regarded as special projects. 70% was funded by the government, 15% was financed by the local corporation, and 15% was from the earned income, that is, ticket box. The operational costs in terms of programme production, promotion, international airfares, and performance fees were about MDP$ 550 to 600 (US$ 1.00 = MDP$ 8.01).

Festival Financial Expenditures

Among the operational costs, 15% accounts for promotion affairs. There were also sponsors from the foreign groups in terms of subsidies from the ambassadors and cultural institutes, such as sharing the international airfares fees. The administration fees and salaries of the employees did not include the project annual budgets but were subject to the government directly.

Cooperation with Asian Parties

The Macao Arts Festival cooperated with other festivals in the same region very often, including Singapore, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, China mainland, and Hong Kong. In addition to introducing new programmes,

75

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia the festival also collaborated with other performing arts organizations to commission original production combining the contemporary Macanese Style.

Cooperation with European Parties

Due to the limitation of budget, the Macao Arts Festival rarely teamed up with European performing arts groups or organizations. The professional performing arts companies in Macao are still developing.

76

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 6 : Tokyo International Arts Festival Interview Summary

1. Festival Fact Sheet Festival Name Country of Origin Festival Organizer Organizer Address Website 2. Interviewee Data Name Position 3. Interview Report

: Tokyo International Arts Festival : Japan : Arts Network Japan : 4-9-1 Nishisugamo, Toshima-ku; Japan : http://anj.or.jp/

: Ms. Chiaki Soma : Head of the International Program

The Purpose of the Festival

The objectives of the Tokyo International Festival are to promote the Arts in Japan from abroad and to promote local regional productions. They believe the festival to be an interface between other cultures and the Japanese people.

The Festival Features

3 Types of Programs are offered each year at the festival. First, the Theatrical Program, which provides theatre performances from international companies, as well as regional Japanese programs. This years international performances are represented by countries such as Tunisia, Germany, and Palestine. Second, the Communication Program, which offers the opportunity for the audience to meet with artists and staff in a setting that provides the grounds to form a creative relationship and in doing so offering the chance to discover new, different perspectives in light of events and incidents occurring all around the world, within our own community and it's people 55 And finally, the IVP International Visitors Program. This program includes professionals in the performing arts field to meet, gather and network, in the hopes of establishing future international co-productions through open dialogue and exchanges. 56

The Programming
2005 marks the 11th annual festival for the TIAF. The festival runs in March of each year. The festival enjoys a very high reputation for its programming. Especially after 9/11 the goal of the festival has been to create a bridge between different countries and increase the awareness of other cultures arts in Japan. Because of this, from 2003 2006 they are concentrating their programming on performance groups from Arabic and eastern European countries. Their primary concern is not an exchange of culture, but rather includes introducing arts from other cultures to the Japanese audience.

Tokyo International Arts Festival (2005), Festival Program Brochure Tokyo International Festival, International Visitors Program (online), cited on August 5, 2005
55 56

77

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia Originality is very important to the programming of the festival. The festival was the first to bring in a performance group from the Palestine region. For the season of 2005-2006 the country is celebrating the German culture with a year of Germany in Japan activities. Because of this, the festival has received funding from the Goethe Institute to bring German productions to the festival.

About Festival Organizer

The festival is run by the Arts Network Japan which oversees the Tokyo International Arts Festival as well as the Nishi-Sugama Arts Factory. The employees of the festival are all employed by the Arts Network Japan. The director of TIAF, Sachio Ichimura, has the final determination on what programming will be offered each year. There is a staff that makes recommendations to him after learning and seeing productions abroad that could be potential programs for the festival. He reviews all recommendations and makes a final decision. There is a base of volunteer workers who contribute a great deal to each festival. They utilize about 50 volunteers for each festival. Many of the volunteers are university students from the area, interested in the arts.

Festival Audiences
The audience is primarily Japanese. They do not focus on promoting the festival to foreigners primarily due to the language barrier. They hope to promote the message of cultural exchange to the Japanese audience. Their mission is not to promote Japan outside of the country, but rater to promote other cultures to their audience. Japan performances tend to be very expensive, therefore the attendees tend to be in the upper middle and upper level classes. They tend to be higher educated.

Festival Financial Resources

Financial Revenue comes from 3 sources. Government funding (40%), corporate sponsors (30-35%) and ticket sales (20-25%). The financial structure is not stable each year. Budgeting depends on the year. They calculate how much they can use and what should be allocated to each programming, and change forecast ever year. Budget for 2004 was a big budget and thus a smaller budget was available for 2005. The money they receive from the government is under 2 categories. The Japanese Agency of Arts gives money to the festival once every 3 years. They have applied for another category for government support under the initiative to support cultural exchange. Although they do receive government support, the programming decision remains an independent function of the Festival.

Festival Financial Expenditures

Not available

Cooperation with Asian Parties

There is not a drive for TIAF to cooperate with other festivals in Asia. Primarily this is due to the fact that the festival wants to promote originality of its performances. They have participated in some coproductions; however it is not their primary concern. They are members of the association that brings together professionals from the Arts festivals 2 times a year. This allows them to see colleagues

78

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia regularly, share information and talk about prospective common projects. At one time TIAF created a piece 100% produced the piece and offered it to two festivals in Asia. These festivals put the production on in their own festivals. Chiaki Soma The key to coproductions with other Asian Festivals is to look for good artists. However difficulties arise because many of the other festivals in Asia are government run and tend to be more conservative in the programming. Chiaki Soma, of TIAF, is not very optimistic with coproductions. She states that they are not easy to achieve. The interest is to share the financial interests, however, if the resulting program is not interesting; it is risky to have the performance as part of their programming.

Cooperation with European Parties

The TIF is very focused for the next few years on East Europe and Arabic countries in order to maintain the goal of the festival. The Festival begins its programming options by being very clear of regions or themes it wants to pursue and then finding the performances that best fit the requirements of the festivals programming objectives. They tend to focus on contemporary theatre and dance groups. These are essential to their festival. However other art forms are interesting to them as well.

79

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 7 : Hong Kong New Vision Arts Festival Interview Summary

1. Festival Fact Sheet Festival Name : New Vision Arts Festival Country of Origin : Hong Kong S.A.R. Government, China Festival Organizer : Festival Office, Leisure and Culture Service Department of Hong Kong SAR Government Organizer Address : Level 5, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre 10 Salisbury Road, Tsimshatsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong Website : http://www.icm.gov.mo/fam/16/indexE.asp 2. Interviewee Data Name : Mrs. Elaine Yeung Position : Head of Festival Office 3. Interview Report

The Purpose of the Festival

The Theme Festival was presented by the Leisure and Culture Service Department, subject to the Government of the Hong Kongs Special Administrative Region. The main objective is to introduce the arts and cultures of Asia, China, and Hong Kong region. The general public was offered to broaden the field of vision in arts and culture by the means of performances, lectures, demonstrations, forums, exhibitions, and other supplementary activities. The festival also facilitated the goal to build Hong Kong as the Cultural metropolis of Asia in terms of operating in the international frontier. Artists were encouraged to pursue innovative and professional performances in order to promote the artistic and cultural exchange.

The Festival Features

The New Vision Arts Festival in 2002 and 2004 was to foster the innovative intercultural performances spirit by focusing on the Contemporary Asian Performing Arts. Including music, dance, and theatre, the festival covered all kinds of styles, such as contemporary, jazz, pop, crossover, and multi-media. Meanwhile, the festival also acted as the producer or co-producer to commission local and international artists to tailor programmes in accordance with the theme of the festival.

80

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia The principle of the new vision arts festival is innovation and unlimited vision, emphasizing the boundless freedom in arts performances. The artists and performers were encouraged to break the line and the boundary of the interdisciplinary to create novel contents and style, to extend the arts forms, and to offer richer and newer options of arts to the audiences.

The Programme Issues

The New Vision Arts Festival was organized by the Festival Office under the Leisure and Cultural Service Department. It was the obligation and responsibility of the Senior Manager to collect the information of performances, including those proposals from the agencies and public submission. The officers often visited the festivals outside Hong Kong to see the performance and decided if they will make decision instantly. There was a budget for programme-makers to travel, but sometimes there would also be invitations from other festivals. Only small parts of the programmes were chosen by second-hand information based on strong and powerful recommendations. A programme committee and a panel of expert advisors in various disciplines of performing arts made the final selection. The criteria regarding to selection included the professional and artistic merit of the programme, artists and production personnel concerned, the relevance of the proposed programmes to the theme and objectives of the festival, the overall programme balance of the festival, financial implications, technical viability and marketing consideration of the proposed programme

About the Festival Organizer

The Festival Office subject to the public authority, was in charge of the programmes and organization of the festival. The part-time workers were employed during the period of the festival. No volunteer organization was involved.

The Festival Audiences

It was estimated in an audience survey of 2004, about 78% of the audiences were 20 to 59 years of age; 54% of the audience has attained tertiary education or higher; Professionals accounts 28%, while managers 15%, and 86% were students. About 57% of the audience had an income more than HK$10,000. Furthermore, the average attendance of the new vision arts festival was about 86%.

The Festival Financial Resources

The festival was presented by the government; therefore the budget was funded by the government 100%. All the income generated from tickets contributed to the state treasury. In 2004, the annual budget from the government was HK$ 24 million for running two festivals, New Vision and Arts Carnival, and the daily administration. And the income generated from the tickets was HK$ 5.5 million with 86% sold tickets.

The Festival Financial Expenditures

Regarding to the expenditure, administration expenses accounted for 25.5% of the total budget, including salaries and daily administration. 81

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia Production was 60% including performance fees and airfares, and promotion was 14.5 %. The government allocated a budget based on last years actual expenditures and the current years festival expense projections. It happened each year at the start of the Financial Year in April and the festival operated on an annual funding cycle.

Cooperation with Asian Parties

The new vision arts festivals cooperated with other Asian performing arts festivals very often, including Singapore, Korea, Japan, and Macau in terms of co-commissions, co-presentations and touring programmes. The international traveling costs or cultural exchange of artists and sharing of programme information were shared. The New Vision Arts Festival usually line up with other festivals in the same region, such as Macao Arts Festival, Seoul Performing Arts Festival, and Singapore Arts Festival, to share the international programmes in order to lower the international travel costs.

Cooperation with European Parties

The interaction with European performing arts groups was one of the most important aspects of the new vision arts festival through the introduction of the European programme and art forms to Hong Kong. The government offered opportunities for Hong Kong performing arts group to perform overseas in special occasions, such as the Hong Kong week at a certain city, which normally falls within a major tourism or economic campaign to promote Hong Kong. The first criteria of selecting programmes were an artistic standard and followed by financial feasibility. The government also took a proactive approach to look for partners for presentations or encouraged the group to find sponsorship for airfare etc. in order to lower costs.

82

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 8 : Seoul Performing Arts Festival Interview Summary

1. Festival Fact Sheet Festival Name : Seoul Performing Arts Festival Country of Origin : Korean Festival Organizer : Seoul Performing Arts Festival Organizer Address : 4F. Sukma Bldg. 1-89 Dongsoong-Dong Chongno-Gu Seoul, Korea (110-809) Website : www.spaf21.com 2. Interviewee Data Name : Ms. Soyoung Jang Position : Overseas Programming Team 3. Interview Report

The Purpose of the Festival

The objective of the Seoul Performing Arts Festival (SPAF) is to establish an international performing arts market which will introduce and dynamically mediate contemporary artistic imaginations of the highest international reputation57 The festival pursues performances which are contemporary and innovative, and promote programs which include interactivity within the genres. SPAF is not designed to satisfy the citizens desire but was created by the government to elevate the cultural level of Korean people. It was established to celebrate and integrate the 2002 Korea Japan World cup with cultural events. The festival is offered in the autumn every year.

The Festival Features

The festivals programming consists of Music, Dance, and Theatre productions. The goal of the festival is to offer programming that is interdisciplinary in content. For example, the mixture of dance with theatre, and the combination of music with theatre could be portrayed in the performances. In addition the festival showcases programming in the individual genres as well. Innovation is the key factor with regard to the programming criteria of the festival.

The Programme Issues

Programming is determined by the Artistic Director (Kwang Lim Kim). In addition to the Artistic Director, there is the Associated Artistic Director, the Planning Team and Abroad Programming Team. For the 2005 season, there are twenty three performances being offered or sponsored by performing groups from countries including Korea, Tunisia, Canada, Spain and Belgium. The

festival works toward the promotion of innovative interdisciplinary contemporary performances. They aim to accomplish strong collaboration for joint-productions with festival
Seoul Performing Arts Festival 2005, Website Main page (online), cited on August 5, 2005
57

83

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

organizers, artists and performing arts organizations.

About the Festival Organizer

The Organization is comprised of the Artistic Director, Associated Artistic Director, the Planning Team and the Abroad Programming Team. Volunteers total 50 to 60 for each festival. The volunteers are involved in ushering, stage crew, ticket office, photography as well as video recording.

The Festival Audiences

The audience for the festival is made up of two groups. It is made up of primarily university students in their 20s as well as individuals who work in the performing arts industry.

The Festival Financial Resources

The Revenue Sources: The festival was established by the government; therefore it is almost fully supported by government funds. There is private contribution factor equals about 12% of their total budget. They have worked with individual sponsors who have wanted to sponsor individual events; however, this is an exception, and is not done with the main programming that is sponsored at the government level.

The Festival Financial Expenditures

The expenditures are broken down in the following manner; 70% of the budget is used for the programming, 10-15 % is used for PR and Marketing and 10-15% is allocated for other operational expenses.

Cooperation with Asian Parties

SPAF is a member of the Association of Asian Performing Arts Festivals. At this time they are working with members of this association in the hopes of establishing relationships with other performing arts festivals. Through these relationships they are hopeful to co-produce productions in the future.

Cooperation with European Parties

Types of European Performing Arts that are favorable for the Seoul Festival include interdisciplinary performing arts; exhibition and theater, Music and theater, and exhibition and dance. The most important factor in the selection criteria of the European groups is the performance itself. They look for works that are innovative and modern. The budget is the next important criteria. Factors such as staging costs and transportation are taken into effect of the decision

84

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 9 : DaDao Live Arts Festival Interview Summary

1. Festival Fact Sheet Festival Name : Country of Origin : Festival Organizer : Organizer Address : Website : official)

DaDao Live Art Festival (DaDao) China DaDao (private person) n/a http://www.araiart.jp/dadao3.html (non-

2. Interviewee Data Name : Mr. Shu Yang Position : Founder, presenter, artist 3. Interview Report

The Purpose of the Festival

Presented by independent artists, the DaDao Live Art Festival (DDLAF) is the first international festival in the field of live arts in China. Started in 2003, the objective of DDLAF was to present live arts in terms of individual performances, mainly focusing on visual arts. It was also the vision for DDLAF to provide opportunities and build up an environment for live arts artists to continue to perform and create new works, to promote the professional performing standards, and to educate the public since live arts are not recognized in China and oppressed by the main stream.

The Festival Features

The major presentation form of DDLAF is currently in visual arts and most of the artists realize their ideas with bodies rather than other materials. The acceptance of the general public restrains the development of live arts in China; therefore, the vivid types of live arts have not been obvious in the festival yet, such as the forms integrated with dance, theatre, and music. Because of specific political issues and social situation that the live arts confront, the programmes of DDLAF are characterized by small productions, easy to complete, and high artistry with relatively lower managerial coordination. The organizing team intends to exclude all the pressures from different stakeholders, such as the media, sponsors, and government, and to fulfill the purpose of the festival. In addition, apart from those live art performances deliberately made to attract the media attention, DDLAF looks for works, which doesnt employ social events, but with concerns of the environment of a human beings life.

The Programming Issues

Three to four independent live arts artists, including the director, are in 85

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia charge of programmes process. The sources of the programmes are the result of two steps, i.e. visiting other festivals and activities, and proposed by other artists and organizations based on the common consensus, whether locally or internationally. The director and coproducers visit festivals abroad and attend performances in other cities to seek the interesting pieces which comply with the theme of the DDLAF. Since 2004, Live Arts Development Agency in UK has contacted the director and visited DDLAF, and 18 artists were introduced to China. Consequently, Live Arts Department Agency and it members have been the main resource of foreign programmes for DDLAF. Another way that also comprises a part of the programme of the festival will be based on video selection. Location is an important consideration in the decision of the programme. It is one of the elements of the performances while the artists emphasizes on making a connection with the environment with their own bodies. DDLAF first step is to survey for the suitable place and then decide where the festival will be located.

About the Festival Organizer

The DDLAF was started by the current director and organized with other presenters. There is no official organization behind the festival for the reason that it is not allowed to form independent associations in China unless it is a commercial corporation. All the administrative and coordinative work is done by individuals, by several presenters. Volunteers are involved as translators for the foreign artists and mostly consists of students from the college of foreign language.

Festival Audiences
Lacking a legal status, DDLAF can only perform without charging tickets form the audiences. According to the location where it was conducted, the number of the audience ranges from 500 to 1,000 per performance. There is no systematical survey of audiences. The director said that most of the audiences are young, from 20-30 years old. The audiences were also composed by a large portion of artists.

Festival Financial Resources

Being a young festival and an unofficial organization, the DDLAF was not able to provide the complete financial figures. Although the government does not recognize the DDLAF, there are sponsorships from corporations who would like to associate with the novel art, such as companies with a city lifestyle and fast moving consumer suppliers. In 2005, the sponsors included SOHO China - a real estate company providing innovative living spaces and creating fashionable lifestyles, SUNTIME an international wine corporation, and Colorfulness, a fashion magazine publisher in China. Some of the sponsors are contracted via personal network. Individual donations (angel sponsor) were also the main income since the DDLAF is not allowed to sell tickets. A small portion of earning income comes through selling T-shirts. Providing performing venues and its equipments for free is another important mode of sponsorship. It is the strategy for DDLAF to find the resource for every expenditure according to the needs.

86

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia The annual budget is about US$4,000 to US$6,000 covering production, local transportation, and administration and is changed with the different presentation spaces. There were no performance fees for the artists. However, the foreign artists, private funds and public subsidies from their countries were necessary in order to cover the airfares and hotels.

Festival Financial Expenditures

Not available

Cooperation with Asian Parties

The DDLAF has invited Asian artists, especially from Japan, Thailand, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. The director started the festival 3 years ago while attending the Nippon International Performance Art Festival and has been supported by them in terms of inviting international artists and funding for the festival. Due to the style of individual performance and the limitations of the budget, there is no co-production at this moment. However, symposiums and workshops are held for the discussion of the current situation, exchange of ideas, and network building. The director and other presenters have also attended international meetings to share the information on live arts in China.

Cooperation with European Parties

Live Art Department Agency in UK has been working with DDLAF since 2004. 18 artists and 10 presenters visited the festival in 2004 and 5 presenters in 2005. And mutually, Live Art Department Agency has also invited Chinese artists, mainly those in the DDLAF, to perform in UK in October 2005.

87

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 10 : Jakarta International Arts Festival (JakArt) Interview Summary

1. Festival Fact Sheet Festival Name : Jakarta International Arts Festival (JakART) Country of Origin : Indonesia Festival Organizer : JakART Organizer Address : Jln Lebak Bulus II no. 20 A, Cilandak Jakarta 12430, Indonesia Website : www.jakart.org 2. Interviewee Data Name : Mrs. Ary Sutedja Position : Founders, Government Relationship Officer 3. Interview Report

The Purpose of the Festival

JakArt@2001 is the result of combined efforts of an impressive number of individual artists and concerned citizens who have collectively come to realization that some action is called for imminently. These same individuals have struggled for many years and to various degrees of success to address the concern of the lack of adequate educational and financial support (often due to lack of understanding of the important links between the arts and our everyday economic and social activities). In our city of 15 million people, most of the cultural projects and events address themselves to narrow and specialized audiences and seldom reach the wider public. What makes JakArt@2001 different is that for the first time in many years a consensus has emerged that if all these noble efforts in the various fields and disciplines can be pooled together for one moment in time (June 2001) and in just one space (Jakarta), then perhaps we can create a monumental event that will reach a wide audiences and draw attention to a number of important issues. We hope that this will start an on-going dialogue that will develop into a deeper level of understanding. 58 JakArt is a society movement festival, to bring cultures and arts closer to the society since Indonesian people tend to ignore cultures and arts in their daily lives. JakArt wants to facilitate intensive cultural campaign as far and as wide as possible, and to encourage a greater participation of the population, both as hosts and active participants. JakArt also wants to demonstrate our (artists) capabilities and show how we act through creativity to encounter numerous challenges, and do something for Indonesia with our style. To wrap-up, JakArt wanted to state the importance of CREATIVITY in our social, economic and cultural activities.

58

JakArt (2001), Preface statement in JakArt@2001 Festival Guide

88

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

The Festival Features

JakArt featured overseas and local artists, both professionals and amateurs through a diverse selection of arts programmes. JakArt programmes include exhibitions, architecture, happening art, live action events, workshop and seminar, theater, dance, food festival, music and film. In 2001-2003, JakArt hosted over than 1,000 events. The events were held in over 300 venues, ranging from conventional venues (concert hall and theatres) to the alternative venues (park, street, mosques, church, bus, dockyard etc.). JakArt transformed the city of Jakarta into a huge stage for a whole month. In 2004, JakArt presented Festival a la Carte, a unique traveling festival visiting cities in Java and Bali, with the participation of over 150 traveling artists (from Indonesia and overseas) and over 500 Indonesian artists. This happened because JakArt was not get officials permission because of high political tension since Indonesia will be holding a general election to choose new president. In August 2005, JakART planned to conduct an Imaginary Festival in Jakarta.

The Programme Issues

JakArt festival programme was decided by the JakArt artistic division, who worked under the supervision of the JakArt board. Concerning the festival performers, it divided into three categories; professional artists, amateur artists and international artists. Professional Indonesian artists were asked to contribute their talent in the festival, based on personal network and recommendation from influential artists.. Simultaneously, JakArt artistic division will choose and decide which amateur artists we will present and support. In addition to these artists, JakArt also presented international artists through collaborations with foreign embassies and international organizations in Indonesia and personal network. Some international artists that participated in JakArt were Rene van Helsdingen (Jazz/Dutch), Hye-Sook Yang (Flute/Korea), Giorgio de Chirico (Sculptures/Italy), Maximiliano Guerra (Ballet/Argentina), Luciano Bellini (Conductor, composer/ Italy), Oswin A. Schneider (Guitar/Austria), Theatre Knossos (Greek), Carrousel Dance Group (Russian) and many more. JakART offered various programmes to cultivate the interests and appreciation of culture and arts among the general public. 90% of JakArt events are free of charge.

About the Festival Organizer

JakArt was established in 1999, as a grass root organization to demonstrate, exposes, share, encourage and promote: The benefit to be gained from development and promotion of the arts The importance of creativity in our social, economic and cultural activities The significance of Human Value and Freedom of Expression in development 89

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Indonesias image internationally by placing it on the cultural map of the world.

JakArt is a voluntary based organization, with 300 members from various backgrounds (artists, bankers, auditors, lawyers etc.). Each member is assigned according to his or her specific fields. Moreover, to become JakArt members, the candidate should take a psychological test in order to know the candidates personality and motivation. To conduct the festival, JakArt acquires more volunteers mostly from college and university students. In 2001-2003, JakArt used at least 1,000 volunteers. However, JakArt does not give any financial rewards, even for meals or transportation. In exchange, JakArt gives their volunteers a unique experience, challenges and freedom to solve the problems. JakArt organization model is based on collaboration among its members and project stakeholders. For instance, to re-paint kampoeng (i.e. an Indonesian word for under-developed neighborhoods/villages) JakArt organized the painting artists, provided paint applicator, utilized organization network to find sponsors, while the local neighborhood provided meals and volunteers to help the artist.

Festival Audiences
Concerning the audiences, JakArt didnt have a specific target audience. JakArt aimed to bring cultural campaign to as many people as possible. JakArt used Jakarta as our stage and artists can select their own venues as their stage. Therefore, everyone who passed by these venues and anyone who was interested became our target. However, to communicate the festival, JakArt provided festival guide book and brochures. It distribute freely to the public. In 2001-2003, the majority of JakArt audiences (95%) came from Jakarta and the surrounding areas. The number of audience was diverse for each performance, but there is no actual data. In 2004, our audiences depended on the size of the visited cities; a bigger city meant more audiences.

The Festival Financial Resources

JakArt major financial resources were donations (80%) from artists, foreign embassies and personal donations. Our philosophy was from the society, by the society, to the society. Artists present their talent, and some of professional artists cover their own performance costs. The foreign embassies provided us with the infrastructure (concert hall), foreign artists and (or) some money for donations. For foreign artists JakArt usually only cover their accommodation and meals by use our network to provide it. For instance, if JakArt need paints or accommodations, we ask our friends to provide it for free or with significant discount. Another significant contribution was from the neighborhood community who provided meals, accommodation and tools. Another 20% comes from the government and private sectors. However, we faced some problems with them. With government, JakArt received some support in the form of obtaining event and security permits. However, we did not receive a lot of funds since the officials 90

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia wanted to keep some of the money for themselves, and JakArt rejected those kinds of deals. Concerning private sectors, our definition for private sectors is if the companies want to sponsor our project without influence from our network However, if we talk with middle management in the company, they tried to squeeze us, and ask almost 70% of the sponsorship back to marketing and promotion tools in mass communication, such TV and newspaper. Problems that occur included inaccessible luxurious marketing and promotion tools since JakArt was working under very tight budget. JakART budget in 2001-2003 was roughly around $250,000 each year. In 2004, for Festival a la Carte, our budget was around $150,000.

Festival Financial Expenditures

It is hard to separate JakArt expenditure because of our unique models. JakArt spent 90% of our fund raising activity to cover the programmes and infrastructures (hall rent, sound system, lighting etc). These costs are incurred because JakART programmes were usually conducted in outdoor stages. Another 10% was for administration and printing expenses.

Cooperation with Asian Parties

JakArt is still in the early stages of cooperation. Although JakArt has several networks such Association of Asian Performing Arts Festival (AAPAF), we needed to shift the cooperation level to another level. Currently, East Asia festival organizers have tried only to promote each other, and share some information and knowledge. However we needed to break the wall, since we have different purposes of the festival and different attitudes. In the short term, commissioning work (one production that can be play together) is the most feasible one; it also can strengthen an Asian collaboration.

Cooperation with European Parties

JakArt cooperation with Europe was initiated with the cooperation with foreign embassies and foreign culture centers in Indonesia. In JakArt festival, we worked together with the British Council, CCF (French), Goethe Institute (Germany), Erasmus (Netherlands), Russia and Greece. Presently, our cooperations were limited to arranging workshops or conducting European artists performances in Indonesia. However, JakArt also have some good personal connection with European artists which brought international flavour in our festivals. On the international level, in August 2004, JakART was the representative of Indonesia in the Cultural Olympiad, offering Festival a la Carte, The Stage Bus from Indonesia, Touring the Peloponnese, visited 15 cities and municipalities in Greece. It was a government-togovernment programme in order to commemorate and support the Olympics in Athens.

91

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 11 Foundation
Asia
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Japan South Korea Malaysia Philippines Singapore Thailand Vietnam

: The Member List of Asia Europe

Europe

Austria Belgium Denmark Finland France Germany Great Britain Greece Ireland Italy Luxembourg Netherlands Portugal Spain Sweden

92

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Appendix 12 List

: East Asia Festivals Programmes

Hong Kong Arts Festivals

Hong Kong, 16th Feb. 20th Mar. 2005 performance
Type / Style
Opera Chinese opera Classical Music

Programmes / Performers
Otello, Polish National Opera Cantonese Opera Masterpieces, Tong Tik-sang Kun Opera The Palace of Eternal Youth Beethoven Symphonic Cycle,Orchestra of the 18th Century, Frans Brggen Leif Ove Andsnes & Norwegian Chamber Orchestra Freiburg Baroque Orchestra Mozart Requiem, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, Guben kian Choir Tenor Recital, Wei Song, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra Esemble Antipodes Ysae Quartet Brazilian Guitar Quartet Piano Recital, Fazil Say Piano Recital, Rachel Cheung Russian Orthodox Choir The French Kiss Amber, National Theatre Company of China Johan Padan and the Discovery of America, Compagnia Thetrele Fo-Rame Vassa Zheleznova, Hong Kong Repertory Theatre Perchance to Dream, Footsbarn Travelling Theatre Jess Betz, La Troppa Kazahana, Saburo Teshigawara, Karas Bjart Ballet Lausanne Compagnia Aterballetto Nederlands Dans Theater III Little Prince Hamlet

Nationali ty
Poland Hong Kong China Netherlands Norway German Hong Kong Hong Kong Switzerland France Brazil Turkey Hong Kong Russia Hong Kong Hong Kong Italy Hong Kong Britain Chili Japan Switzerland Italy Netherlands Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea, Japan United States United States China United States United

Note
3 shows 5 shows 3 shows 4 shows 2 shows 1 show 1 show 1 show 1 show 1 show 2 shows 2 shows 1 show 3 shows 5 shows 7 shows 3 shows 3 shows 4 shows 5 shows 2 3 3 2 3 shows shows shows shows shows

Contempora ry Theatre

Puppet Theatre Contempora ry Dance

World Music / Jazz

Regina Carter Quintet Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band All the Shanghai Jazz Brad Mehldau Trio The Blind Boys of Alabama

2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 1 show 2 shows

93

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Lila Downs Divana, Musicians and Poets of Rajasthan States Spain India 2 shows 1 show

Type / Style
Entertainme nt Pop music

Programmes / Performers
The Fresh Air Brass Quintet I-City Come Out & Play The Nightingale L'Oratorio d'Aurlia Material Girls

Nationali ty
Hong Kong Hong Kong Hong Kong Hong Kong France Hong Kong

Note
2 shows 6 shows 2 shows 12 shows 3 shows 2 shows

Entertainme nt Music, Theatre Circus Collectif AOC, La Syncope du 7 Source : Hong Kong Arts Festival website

France

4 shows

Macao International Arts Festival

Macao, 7th Mar. 2nd Apr. 2005
Type / Style
Chinese Opera

Programmes / Performers
Kun Opera The Peony Pavilion, Suzhou Kun Opera Theatre of Jiangsu Province Cantonese Opera The Jade Hairpin, Macao U Lok Iao Chinese Opera Performance Association Yue Opera Excerpts: Farewell, from The Butterfly Lovers, The Nine-Catty Girl, Xiaobaihua Yue Opera Company Yue Opera The Story of the Livrary of the Fan Family, Xiaobaihua Yue Opera Company Mozart Series, The Macao Orchestra Carmina Burana by Carl Orff, The Macao Orchestra, the Shanghai Opera House and the Macao Conservatory Pilobolus Dance Theatre Leitmotiv, Les Deux Mondes A Mermaid from Heaven, Theatre in Patois Dci Papiam di Macau Drama Group Our Life, Musical Theatre, Farmers Theatre Group The Wedding of the Mice, TTT Puppet Centre Commemorative Concert of the 100th

Nationali ty
China Macao China China Macao Macao, China United States Canada Macao Macao Taiwan Macao

Note
2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 1 show 1 show 1 show 2 shows 2 shows 3 shows 2 shows 2 shows 1 show

Classical music Dance Theatre Multi-media music theatre Theatre

Puppet theatre Entertainme

94

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Anniversary of Chinese Cinema, The Macao Chinese Orchestra Srgio Godinho Divana, Musicians and Poets of Rajastan and Dulsori, Sound of Nature Elba Ramalho Retrospective of 100 Years of Chinese Cinema Source : Macao International Arts Festival website nt Pop music World Music

Portugal India, South Korea Brasil Macao

1 show 1 show 1 show 1 show

95

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Shanghai International Arts Festival,

Shanghai, China, 18th Oct. - 17th Nov. 2005,
Type / Style
Opera Classical music

Programmes / Performers
The Barber of Seville Sir Roger Norrington, Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra Myung-Whun Chung & Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra Cello Concerto, Yo-Yo Ma Chord of Prague, Suk Chamger orchestra Clarinet Due, Michala Petri, Lars Hannibal Amsterdam Piano Duo Requiem, Shanghai Opera House Cairo Symphony Orchestra Chamber Orchestra Berlin Philharmonic Soloists Raymonda, Bayerische Staatshalleett La Boheme, West Australian Ballet The Dream of the Fed Chamber, The Cloud Gate Dance Theatre Mulun, Shanghai Song & Dance Ensemble Egyptian Night, Cairo opera Ballet Company Song & Dance Ensemble of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Burn the Floor Leningrad Symphony, Shanghai Opera House The Taming of the Shrew, Teatr Dramatyczny in Warsaw Mime Theatre Sit, Tricicle Magnate KK Liquid Blue Cincinnati Pops Orchestra

Nationali ty
China, others Germany Korea, Japan United States Czech Denmark Netherlands China Egypt Switzerland Germany Germany Australia Taiwan China, Australia Egypt Ukraine Australia China, Russia Poland Spain Icelandic United States United States Canada China China China China China China China

Note
2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 1 show 1 show 1 show 1 show 1 show 1 show 1 show 3 shows 2 shows 2 shows 3 shows 2 shows 1 show 3 shows 2 shows 2 shows 3 shows 1 show 3 shows 1 show 1 show 2 shows 3 shows 2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 3 shows 1 show

Ballet Contempoar y Dance Theatre Dance theatre Dance Gala Show

Dance Symphony Theatre Jazz Pop music

Chinese opera

BLOU Band Dianju opera Tong Xin Jie, Yunnan Dianju Opera Guangxi Caidiao Opera, Liu San Jie Shaoju Opera True and Fake King Monkey, Zhejiang Shaoju Opera Jinju Opera- Fanjin Passing the Imperial Exam Shanxi Jinju Opera Ganju Opera the Peony Pavilion Kunju opera The Palace of Eternal Touth Suzhou Kunju Opera House Peking opera Tales of Hunchback Liu Beijing Peking Opera Theaere

96

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Peking opera Struggle for imperial Power Shanghai Peking Opera Theater China 3 shows

Type / Style
Chinese opera

Programmes / Performers
Huqiju opera Han Fei, Shanghai Huaiju Opera Yueju opera The Butterfly Lovers Shanghai Yueju Opera Theatre Yueju opera Jade Love, Shanghai Yueju Opera Theatre Rendezvous in Shanghai, Shanghai Peking Opera Theater Shaolin in the Wind, Zhengzhou Song & Dance Ensemble Visitor from the Ice Mountain, Sinjiang Song & Dance Ensemble Red River Valley, Wuxi Song & Dance Ensemble Brilliant Lanterns in Yunling, Huadeng Song & Dance theatre Malan Flower, Shanghai International children Culture Development Ltd. Co. Wild Snow Ne Zha Defeats the Dragon The Lost Opera, Shanghai Dramatic Arts Center Era, Shanghai Circus World, Cirque du Soleil

Nationali ty
China China China China China China China China China China China China China, Canada

Note
2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 1 show 2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 3 shows 2 shows 3 shows 4 shows 1 show

Chinese Opera Gala Ethnic Dance theatre

Ethnic Gala Show Childrens theatre Multi-media Musical Puppet Show Theatre

Acrobatic Show Source : China Shanghai International Arts Festival website

97

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Tokyo International Arts Festivals

Tokyo, Japan, 2nd Feb. - 28th Mar. 2005
Type / Style
Theatre

Programmes / Performers

Nationali ty
Japan, Palestine Tunisia Germany Japan Japan Japan Japan Japan Japan Japan Japan

Note
8 shows 4 shows 4 shows 8 shows 7 shows 3 3 2 3 shows shows shows shows

The Wall, Stories Under Occupation II, Tokyo International Festival, Al-Kasaba Theatre Junun Insanity, Familia Productions Endstation Amerika, Volksbhne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz Quaqua, Beckett Live, Vol.6, Produced by 3 points Konsui (Coma), Creative network Committee, Ort-d. Red Room Radio, Tobu-Gekijo Barber Orchestra, Mugen-Jyokisya Natsu-no Kumoyuki, Jinko-Shikuyu Keppaku-shoujyo, Boshu-shimasu, TORIKOA SL (Steam Locomotive), SEN-NEN OHKOKU Seikurabe (Competing the inches), The Osaka Municipal Space of Art Source : Tokyo International Arts Festival website

3 shows 4 shows

98

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Hong Kong New Vision Arts Festival

Hong Kong, 19th Oct. 21st Nov. 2005
Type / Style
Contempora ry Chamber Opera Contompora ry music Contempora ry Dance Dance Theatre Contempora ry Theatre World music / Jazz

Programmes / Performers
Opiume, Checkpoint Theatre

Nationali ty
Singapore

Note
2 shows

The Map & Paper Concerto, Tan Duns Organic music with Symphonic Multi-media Amplified, Sal Vanilla Meeting with Vajrasattva, U Theatre of Taiwan Spiritual Girl, Yeung Wai0mei Lotus, Poetry Dance Theatre Il ny a plus de firmament, Theatre VidyLausanne E.T.E., Theatre de la Ville, Berliner Festwochen Rotate 270, Hong Kong Repertory Theatre E Never Forget, Theatre du Pifs

China Japan Taiwan Hong Kong Hong Kong Swiss, French Germany Hong Kong Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan Hong Kong, United States Japan Norway, China Hong Kong Hong Kong

2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 3 shows 2 shows 2 shows 12 shows 3 shows

Around the Musical World in 2 Nights Tamashy Voices of the Heart, Yamat Secret Garden, Ding Fei Fei, Ding Wei

2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 3 shows

Yan Hui Chang and Wang Yong in Dimensional Pursuits, Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra Entertainme The Great Entertainer, Edward Lam nt theatre Dance Theatre Source: Hong Kong New Vision Arts Festival website

99

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Seoul Performing Arts Festival

Seoul, South Korea, 23rd Sep.-16th Oct. 2005
Type / Style
Dance

Programmes / Performers
Do we Ever Know?, La Cie Michele Noiret W; Encountering Revolution, Shin-hea Jung, Yoon0Jin Kim, Hyo-Jin Kim H2- 2005; Break Dancers Keen on Philosophy Grupo de Rua de Niteri Twin Houses, Mossoux-Bont Company Terminal, Sam-Jin Kim Dance Company Little from Tentland, Project Group Blue Stone, Cance Theater CcadoO Three Colors from Modern Ballet, Seoul Ballet Theater Let me change your name?, Eun-Me Ahn Company Back to the Present, Dorky Park Company The Two, Kyung-Eun Lee, Evis Sammoutis La Historia de Ronald el Payaso de McDonalds, La Carnicara Teatro School for Fools, Formalny Theatre Junun, Familia Productions K, NUID (Not Yet Its Difficult), Dolgoji Theatre West Pier, Theatre Golmokjil Terrorists, Performing Art Group Party Red Demon, Seoul Performing Arts Festival 2191 Nuits, Les Deux Mondes Romeo and Juliet, Mokwha Repertory Company Sadari Movement Labs Cherry Orchard, Sadari Movement Lab Tolstoy in Music, Korea Festival Ensemble

Nationali ty
Belgium Korea Brazil Belgium Korea Iran, Germany Korea Korea Korea, Multi National Germany Korea, France Spain Russia Tunisia Korea, Australia Korea Korea Japan, Korea Canada Korea Korea Korea

Note
2 shows 2 shows 3 shows 2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 2 shows 3 shows 1 show 3 shows 3 shows 3 shows 5 shows 6 shows 5 shows 6 shows 3 shows 2 shows 6 shows 2 shows

Dance Theater Dance Music Theater

Music Theater Source : Seoul Performing Arts Festival website

100

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

DaDao Live Art Festival

Beijing, China, 18th - 22nd May 2005
Type / Style Live Art Programmes / Performers Geographic Discovery, Shu Yang Joy is Fleeting, Wang Ting Big Family-Fire, Fu Yu Soul, Li Haijun Bind, Xu Dian Beautiful Coat, Yang Jiaoyong Ritual, Tang Limi Endless Climbing, Yang Quihong Water Writing, Hu Geping Addition and Subtraction, Zheng Yong Blind Chess, Li Yang Becoming a Butterfly, He Liping Perspective, Dai Na 1+1+1, Du Qiuye Edible Human Nature, Zhou Yuechao Communication Barrier, Chen xi Deer, Li Yan Untitled, Chen Si Taoist Priest and Leaves , Hao Lei Complement and Eliminate, Jia Qianlan Reason Why?, Paisan Plienbangchan 6th Sense, Paivi Maunu Red/Blue/56, Cang Ying AbortionPolitics, Liang Tao Hourglass, Hu Xing The Suffering Tea, Mongkol Plienbangchan Tourists #11, ARAI Shin0ichi Smudging, Paivi Maunu You Are My Shadow, Gao Na & Gao Ya Xxxx Yyyy The East Is Red, Qi Yang Untitled, Li Mengyuan Dialogue Beijing, Wei Wei Its Only Ketchup, Lennie Lee Pacific Avenue, Marcus Young Nationalit y China China China China China China China China China China China China China China China China China China China China China Finland China China China Thailand Japan Finland China China China China China Britain United States Note 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show show

Source : DaDao Live Arts Festival website

101

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Jakarta International Art Festivals (JakArt)

Jakarta, Indonesia, 1st -30th June 2003
Note:

Regarding the special forms of programmes used as social movement, only some performing arts programmes are listed in this table. In average, JakArt has held 350 events per year from 2001 2003. The sample was selected based on the types of performing arts with more detail provided. In 2004, JakArt held a touring festival, in which 14 cities were visited in Java and Bali with 500 artists. JakArt 2004 presented music, dance, theatre, visual arts, architecture with workshop and other educational activities. JakArt@2005 will be held in Jakarta in August September 2005 Type / Style
Pop music

Programmes / Performers
Anggun and Guest Stars, featuring Anggun, Housy Galleon, Julien Cely and Cyno Musik Akustik, Street performers from Kampung Melayu Demi Cinta SEMESTA, Neo Progressive Rock Neon Band Fusion Night with Cop Adam Baldych, Young jazz violinist The Joona Toivanen Trio Today for Tomorrow, Nial Djuliarso Trio, Adam Baldych The Ronald Douglas Quartet Jazz Night, Jakarta Jazz Society, Bimasena Soesja Citroen and Her Piano Trio The Bill Heid Trio

Nationali ty
Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Poland Finland Indonesia, Poland Britain Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Germany Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia

Note
2 shows 6 shows 4 shows 2 shows 3 shows 5 shows 6 shows 1 show 6 shows 1 show 2 shows 9 shows 1 show 1 show 1 show 3 shows 1 show 12 shows 1 show

Rock Music Alternative Pop Rock Fusion Music Jazz Music

Classical Music

The Parahyang University Choir Soprano Linda Sitinjak & Diani Sitompol Soli Deo Family Choir Shubert : Winterreise, Bertl Mutter Classical Music Recital, Students of the International Music Foundation Guitar recital, Ireng Maulana

Contempora ry music

100 ABG Babu, Slamet Abdul Syukur & 100 teenagers from Jakarta Playing Kentongan

102

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia Type / Style
World music Film

Programmes / Performers
Guitar and Percussion, Reinkarnasi, Ghita, I Ketut Budiyasa Max Havelaar, Fons Rademakers French Film Festival Swiss Sensations Month, Galeri Manca

Nationali ty
Indonesia Netherlands French Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia, Egypt Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia

Note
1 show 2 shows 9 shows 4 shows 3 shows 5 shows 10 shows 1 show 20 shows 20 shows 5 shows 5 shows 20 shows 20 shows 1 show 20 shows 10 shows 10 shows 20 shows 8 shows 10 shows 4 shows 20 shows

Music Dance Earth Song, Komunitas Hitam Putih Contemporary Balinese Music, Dance and Perfromance arts incl. 85 artists Creative Art Workshops for Children The Reda Folkoric Troup, Traditional Music and Dance from Egypt When Ratih Sang Recites Poetry, Ratih Sang Because of greed, The old man and the mouse, Yayasan Anak Bangsa Script of Mask, Teater Bambu Peaceful Life, Teater Tukank Choice & The Hunters Machine, Hitam Experimental Theatre with Verbal and Non Verbal Expression The Old Elections, Betawi Drama Cockroaches, Teater Tiang Contemporary The Engagement, Sanggar Pondok Cipta Modem Theatre 4 Madams with a Mission Tricks, Bengkel Lenong Jakarta Drama-Comedy Theatre Because Amoi is my name, Monologue by Teater Kail The Little Frog, Teater Cinta Lakon Music Drama Charlie & Charles, Teater Gerak Pantomime Song of the Nation, Sanggar Lentur Contemporary Theatre Aphrodite is Looking for Love, Kotak Pensil Theatre Group Contemporary Theatre A Small Hope in Facing Death, Teater Redam Robber Teater, Jakarta Timur Modern Theatre Source : JakArt@2003 Festival Programmes Guide

Theatre

103

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

8 Acknowledgements
The project team would like to thank the following individuals whose guidance was critical to the success of our project. Dr. Dragan Klaic who mentored the project team throughout each stage of the project. From the beginning, helping the team focus the scope of the research project by providing invaluable ideas and resources whenever possible, and providing us with key contacts in the Performing Arts field. We thank him for his unending support and guidance, and for his ability to not only share his vast knowledge but also his enthusiasm for the performing arts. Dr. Jacqueline Roeleveld whose continuous guidance of our team from the project determination stage through the final draft presentation. For listening and offering advice when we faced limitations in the projects, and for helping us focus the paper, through editing of the drafts and providing us the opportunity to learn the process of project management. We would like to extend sincere gratitude to the following individuals in the Festival Organizations, and Performance Groups, who gave of their time and knowledge to help us gain a deeper understanding of the festivals and the context of East Asian performing arts

Performing Arts Festivals

Mr. Xue Bin, Vice Officer for External Communication China Shanghai International Arts Festival (China) Mr. Roger Christmann, Administrator KunstenFESTIVALdesArts (Belgium) Mr. Douglas Gautier, Executive Director Hong Kong Arts Festival (China) Ms. Soyoung Jang, Overseas Programming Team Seoul Performing Arts Festival (Korea) Mr. Charles Lam, Head of Special Project Division Macao Arts Festival (Macao S. A. R. Government, China) Ms. Chiaki Soma, Head of the International Program Tokyo International Arts Festival (Japan) Mrs. Ary Sutedja, Founder, Government Relationship Officer JakART Festival (Indonesia) Ms. Angharad Wynne-Jones, Director LIFT - London International Festival of Theater (United Kingdom) Mr. Shu Yang, Founder, Presenter, Artist DaDao Live Arts Festival (China)

104

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia Mrs. Elaine Yeung, Head of Festival Office New Vision Arts Festival (China)

Performance Groups
Mr. Reinhard Auer Freies Theater Bozen (Italy) Ms. Elona Bajoriniene, Artistic Director International Vilnius Theatre Festival "SIRENS" (Lithuania) Mr. Mingchang Hsieh, Theatre Manager Performance Workshop (Taiwan) Mr. Esper Linnamgi, Producer Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir (Estonia) Mr. Goh Boon Teck, Founder Toy Factory (Singapore)

105

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

9 Bibliography
Book References
Alain Charles Arts Publishing Ltd. (2003), Music, Opera, Dance and Drama in Asian, the Pacific and North America 2003 Brockett, O.G.(1995), History of the Theatre, 7th ed, London: Allyn and Bacon Carr, C. (2000) The Book of War, New York: Modern Library, 2000 Getz, D. (1991), Festivals, Special Events and Tourism, New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, Greffe, X. (2003), Arts and Artists from Economic Perspective, Paris: Economica / UNESCO Hagoort, G. (2003), Arts Management Entrepreneurial Style, Delft: Eburon Publishers Friedman, T. (2005), The World is Flat: A Brief History of 21st Century, New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux Meredith, J.R., and Samuel J. (2003), Project Management: A Managerial Approach. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Article References
Allen, K. & Shaw, P. (2000), Festival Mean Business: the Shape of Arts Festivals in the UK, British Arts Festival Association. Available from www.efa-aef.org Bachella, U., Bollo, A., Di Stefano, E., Klaic, D. & Hansen, K. (2004), Festivals: Challanges of Growth, Distinction, Support Base and Internationalization, Tartu Davis, E.L., (2005), Knowledge Continuity Management in Festival Organizations, Utrecht School of Art European Forum for the Arts and Heritage (June 2003), Study on Cultural Cooperation in Europe (online). Available from http://www.efah.org/en/indexen.htm Klaic, D. (2002), The Future of Festival Formulae: A Holland Festival Symposium in De Balie Background Paper, Amsterdam

Online References
Tomlinson, J, Globalization and Culture (online), cited on August 15, 2005. Available from http://www.optimistmag.org/gb/0014/one.php?id=1137 US Immigration, Singapore people (online), cited on August 8, 2005 Available from http://www.immigrationusa.com/wfb2004/singapore/singapore_people.html National Arts Council, (2004), Arts Statistics (online), cited on August 10, 2005. Available from http://www.nac.gov.sg/sta/sta01.asp

106

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

CIA Fact Book, Hong Kong People (online), cited on August 8, 2005 Available from http://www.classbrain.com/art_cr/publish/hong_kong_people.shtml HK Leisure and Culture Service Department, (2005), Cultural Statistic Report (online), cited on August 8, 2005 Available from http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/ppr_statistic_cs.php HK Leisure and Culture Service Department, (2005), Ticket Info (online), cited on August 14, 2005. Available from http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Entertainment/Ticket/en/index.php Lynch D. (1999) The American Institute, Short-term Travel Grant Application (online), cited on August 4, 2005. Available from http://www.la.utexas.edu/research/mena/aims/samples/LynchAIMSPROP.htm Reding, V., European Festival Association (EFA), (2000), EU Commission for Culture and Education (online), cited on August 8, 2005. Available from http://www.efa-aef.org/Archives/reding.eu.cfm Live Arts Development Agency (2005), what is Live Arts? (online), cited on August 8, 2005 Available from http://www.thisisliveart.co.uk/about_us/whatisliveart.html. European Forum for the Arts and Heritage (June 2003), Study on Cultural Cooperation in Europe (online), cited on August 12, 2005 Available from http://www.efah.org/en/resources_for_culture/policystudy/interarts.htm National Arts Council (2005), Financial Assistance: International Collaboration Grant (online), cited on August 8, 2005 Available from http://www.nac.gov.sg/mus/mus02.asp#intc United Singer International, (2005) Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, cited on August 8, 2005 Available from http://www.singers.com/choral/estonianchoir.html The International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies (2005), what we do? (online), cited on August 8, 2005 Available from http://www.ifacca.org/ifacca2/en/default.asp The International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies (2005), Vision and Objectives, (online), cited on August 8, 2005 Available from http://www.ifacca.org/ifacca2/en/organisation/page09_Vision.asp JakArt (2004), Festival la Carte (online), cited on August 14, 2004 Available from http://www.luluk.com/2004%20Festival%20a%20la%20Carte, %20Java%20and%20Bali.html

Foxconn (2004), Enters European Motherboard Market: Expertise and Economies of Scale Bode Well for New Venture (online), cited on August 14, 2005 Available from http://www.foxconnchannel.com/press_releaseDetail.cfm?pId=7

107

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Mahbahuni K., AAPPAC (2005), The Elusive Asian Renaissance (online), cited on August 8 Available from www.aappac.net/events_calendar/transcript_kishore.pdf Kompas (2005), Main News (online), cited on August 7, 2005 Available from www.kompas.com/kompas-cetak/0507/09/utama/ Asia Europe Foundation (2005), About the Project (online), cited on August 17, 2005 Available from http://www.culture-asef.org/english/about.html Universes in Universe (2005), World of Arts (online), cited on August 17, 2005 Available from http://universes-in-universe.de European Festival Association (2005), Organization brochure (online), cited on August 14, 2005 Available from http://www.efa-aef.org/Resource/brochure2005/EFA_en.pdf China Government Popinfo, Shanghai Population (online), cited on August 3, 2004 Available from http://www.popinfo.gov.cn/popinfo/pop_docrkxx.nsf/v_by4id/FBA1465B55ABB8A54 8256FE7000D03EF Tokyo International Festival, International Visitors Program (online), cited on August 5, 2005 Available from http://tif.anj.or.jp/en/ivp/ Seoul Performing Arts Festival 2005, Website Main page (online), cited on August 5, 2005 Available from http://www.spaf21.com/eng/

Other References
JakArt (2001), Preface statement in JakArt@2001 Festival Guide JakArt (2003), JakArt@2003 Festival Guide JakArt (2004), JakArt Internal Publication

Useful Links
Asia Europe Foundation, http://www.asef.org Asian Culture Link, http://www.asianculturelink.net

108

The Programmatic Interests and Financing Modalities of Festivals in East Asia

Change This, http://www.changethis.com DaDao Live Arts Festival, http://www.araiart.jp/dadao3.html European Festivals Association, http://www.euro-festival.net/efahome/efa.cfm HK New Vision Arts Festival, http://www.icm.gov.mo/fam/16/indexE.asp Hong Kong Arts Festival, www.hk.artsfestival.org Informal European Theatre Meeting, www.ietm.org Jakarta International Arts Festival, www.jakart.org Macao International Arts Festival, http://www.icm.gov.mo/fam/16/indexE.asp Shanghai International Arts Festival, http://www.artsbird.com Seoul Performing Arts Festival, www.spaf21.com The International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies, http://www.ifacca.org Tokyo International Arts Festival, http://anj.or.jp Tom Peters, http://www.tompeters.com

109