Topic Thirteen: The Making of a Cultural Super Star

Discussion Topic Thirteen (2009/12/28~2010/1/4):

Discussion Topic:
Do you think there is a need for our culture to make our own super stars whom we are proud of and can identify with?


Some reminders from Vinia:
There is a constant need to create a cultural super star in nearly every society.  As demonstrated in the class discussions, the architect and poetess Huei-yin Lin (1904-1955) is gaining more and more popularity  half a century after her death as a fore-runner in the fields of cultural legacy preservation, designing industry, and creative writing. 

In western Europe and  North America, the Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci and the Dutch master Vincent van Gogh have secured their iconic positions in western civilization.  Through international exhibitions, their works are displayed in front of the eyes of global audiences and new films on their lives and works are made and screened worldwide, including Taiwan.

We see the need to create a Chinese cultural star in Ms. Lin's case, and we also experience the western cultural (over)flows that take our breaths (as well as our money) away.   Now, let's take a good look at the situation in Taiwan.  Have any efforts been take to promote this cultural identification?

The following figures are portrayed in the TV/DVD series entitled "Portraits Taiwan 台灣人物誌," produced in a joint venture between the Government Information Office, Republic of China, and Discovery Networks Asian (2005-2006).

Dr. Henry Lee is an internally recognized forensic scientist, who has made tremendous contributions to criminal investigation, law enforcement, forensic sciences and education worldwide.

Mr. Hwai Min Lin is a renowned Taiwanese choreographer, who founded Cloud Gate Dance Theatre.  He has developed a unique dancing style basing on the spirits of tradtional chinese arts, such as brush works and Tai-chi.  With his creative vigors, Cloud Gate Dance Theatre has toured the world many times and has long won international recognition. Mr. Lin was celebrated by the Time magazine as one of "Asia's Heroes" in 2005.

Mr. Wun Yu Chen is "Taiwan's watermelon king," for he leads the world's largest watermelon seed supplying company "Know-You" and cultivates the best breeds of fruits for farmers all around the world.

Mr. King Liu is the founder and CEO of Giant, the world's leading brand in bicycle making.  Mr. Liu has input tremendous research efforts into the exploration of new materials and new technology of producing the world's best bicycles.

Dharma Master Cheng Yen founded the Tzu Chi Foundation for disaster relief missions worldwide. For her unfailing huministic care for people worldwise, she was awarded Eisenhower Medallion and later was even nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.  In a magazine poll conducted island wide, Master Cheng Yen was ranked at the top as the most beautiful person in Taiwan. 

In addition to this series, there is another DVD collection entitled "A World for Chinese 華人縱橫天下, " which features 108  people with Chinese cultural heritage from various professional fields worldwide.

Do you have a particular person in your mind that can be acclaimed as our cultural super hero?

Do you have Mr. Jay Chou in mind?  

Topic Twelve: The Popularity of the Taiwanese-made Film "Cape #7"

Discussion Topic Twelve (2009/12/21~12/28):

Discussion Topic:

Made by Taiwanese and produced in Taiwan, the movie "Cape #7" has won tremendous popularity from people in Taiwan.  After winning domestic and international awards, this movie was on its way to win applauses from Japan and China.

(1) There have been many locally produced movies, what particular qualities or elements did this movie possess that had helped to win the hearts of many Taiwanese people?

(2) Which particular scene(s) in this movie has/had touched your heart most deeply?  And, why?

Cape #7 was released in 2008 and won an immediate hit in Taiwan.  It  was later released in Japan and China in 2009.  The theme songs in Mandarin Chinese and Japanese remain extremely popular in Taiwanese culture ever since its release.

The leading hero Van is a popular song singer  both in the film and in reality.  Two of his most popular songs from the film is "South of the Border" (國境之南) and "Making Merries: (無樂不做). 

In addition to his marked trait as a energetic and original rock singer and song writer, he himself is one of the  descendents  of the native Taiwanese -- the aboriginal inhabitants in southern Taiwan. His cultural heritage adds more vernacularity to the film.

The film entitled "1895 in Formosa" recorded faithfully one historical event happening during the handover of Taiwan to Japan after the Ching Goverment lost the battle with the Japanese Empire in 1894.  The story described the brave spirit embodied in Hakka men and women in defense of their own home against the invasion of foreign forces.  Their efforts were fertile in the long run and the people engaged in the fierce battles all sacrificed their lives.  However, their decendants today are still proud of what their ancesters had tried to do in the old times, and the enduring spirit of the Hakka people--hard working and royalty to their own cultural heritage--is deeply appreciated and respected. 

In the 1990s, Ang Lee directed the film Triology on a Taiwanese Father:  "Pushing Hands" (1992), "The Wedding Banquet"  (1993), and "Eat, Drink, Men, and Women" (1994).

"Pushing Hands"  was Ang Lee's first film.  He so-wrote the script for this movie, modelling the hero of this film on his own father.

"The Weddding Banquet" touches upon the issue of homosexuality vis-a-vis Chinese/Taiwanese traditional compulsion to produce offsprings through legal (hetero-sexual) marriage..

"Eat, Drink. Men, and Women" explores the delicious world of Chinese crusine and the delicated world of human appetites for love and sex, especially in the context of modern Chinese culture on Taiwan. 

Lee examined Taiwanese people's longing for a sweet family and nice food across generation divides in a family, where the father was a famous chef who lost his wife as well as his appetite for life itself.  Lee then told a story of how all the characters in the family, including three daughters and the chef himself, succeeded (or failed ) in  finding his/her own home.

All the three films won international applauses and led Ang Lee toward the international ultimate recognition as an  Oscar Best Director Award winner.  Through Lee's depiction of  Taiwanese people's values and life styles in these films, international audiences got a glimpse into the complex fabrics of modern Taiwanese culture through the character of the father, who was trapped between the past and the present, and between the Chinese and the Western.

Topic Eleven: The Global Appeal of Japanese Animation Movies by Miyazaki

Discussion Topic Eleven (2009/12/14~12/21):

Discussion Topic: 

(1)What are the special attributes of Miyazaki's animation movies that have helped to appeal to global audiences and attract people in all ages and all walks of society?

(2) Please choose an animation movie produced by Miyazaki and then point out the reasons why (1)Taiwanese people and (2) people around the world love to see this film so much.

Some remarks by Vinia to help you organize your thoughts~

I.  Some of the best known animation films produced by Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli:

Ponyo (2009)

Howl's Moving Castle (2004)

Spirited Away (2002)

Princess Mononoke
Porco Rosso
Kiki's Delivery Service
The Valley of the Wind
My Neighbor Totoro



II. Who is/are your favorite character(s) in Miyazaki's animation movies produced by Ghibli Studio?

I like May-chan from "My Neighbor Totoro" the best, but I admire
Nausicaa's courage in "The Valley of the Wind."  I think the Little Wtich Ki-ki is my role model as a career woman.  However, to search for happiness as someone who is true to him/herself, I think Sophia from "Howl's Moving Castle" wins my heart. As to the best male character, I prefer Howl, who is learning, transforming, and growing matured in the story, as what has happened to the little girl in "Spirited Away."  In short, I like them all!

III. Which animation film is your favorite production by Miyazaki and Studio Glibli?

"My Neighbor Totoro" remains one of the most popular films suitalbe for viewers of all ages in the family. The loving and caring relationship between people and natural creatures re-asserts a sense of security in human life that many people have found lacking in their childhood and even in their entire adult life.

Many people in my generation and yours grew up watching this film during family reunions, especially on Lunar Chinese New Year  in Taiwan.

The surprising encounters with  magical and powerful creatures, such as Totoro and the Cat Bus, who willingly offer their timely assistance to those who believe in them, have become a dream that many children and adults would hang on to in the time of crisis.

"Spirited Away" is the first foreign movie production to win the Oscar Best Animation Film Award.  In addition to the dazzling visual images and touching music, this film has a flawless story that appeals to and conforms to people's expectation of a heroic quest: the departure for adventure, the inner growth in conquering challenges, and a return to where the story has started.  I think Miyazaki and his colleagues did a great job in following this traditional theme in western literature, which has been well known in western civilization since the Greek epic "The Oddysey. "

"Howl's Moving Castlte" is an adaptation from an English children/teenagers' novel by Diana Wynne Jones (1986), but Miyazaki and his colleagues did largely modify the characters and the plot so that the movie version was really a creative re-invention of Jones' story.  Personally, I enjoy this film better than "Spirited Away" because the characterization of the heroine Sophie embodies a problem for all people living in a cultural context with high traditional restraints:  the quest for one's self-identity and the courage to be true to one's heart.  The same transformation also happens to Howl, the young irresponsible wizard who initially did not have the courage to face himself or the maturity of being an adult.  The maturing process presented in these two characters is really intriguing.  By so doing, I think Miyazaki and his colleagues point out the key to true happiness.  We have to be careful not to miss it!

Topic Ten: Coco Chanel as a Fashion Designer

Discussion Topic Ten (2009/12/7~12/14):

Discussion Topics:
What qualities in Coco Chanel do you think have helped to mark her out as an outstanding fashion designer for women's clothing and accessories in her times? 




A few remarks about Coco Chanel:

 As a female fashion designer in her time, Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel (1883~1971)presented her particular vision for how a woman should dress herself for her own comfort.

Simplicity is her trademark,  Under the comfortable garment, the beauty of a woman's body is naturally revealed.

Functionalism is stressed.

The strict differentiation between male and female sports wears was discarded for the sake of women's comfort as well as functional concern.

Chanel adopted inexpensive fabrics,  originally used in male workers' clothing, in her designs of women's casual wears as well as working clothes.

Chanel guided her fashion design company for 20 years and created a style that could be passed on from one generation to the next.

Born to a poor family and raised in an orphanage, Chanel made herself a cultural icon in the twentieth century.

Source for the Photos cited above:

Chanel and Her World: Friends, Fashion, and Fame myLifetime.com

For general information, please visit:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coco_chanel

To view Coco's apartment in Paris, please link to:

http://www.coco-mademoiselle.com/amus

Topic Nine: The Michael Jackson Legacy

Discussion Topic Nine (2009/11/23~12/7):


Discussion Topics:

With Michael Jackson's sudden death in 2009, people started to look back what he had done for popular culture and began to look ahead for his possible influence on the generations to come.

In our class, we've explored various aspects of his life in the group presentation by our All Gentlemen's Team.  (Please refer to the presentation handouts uploaded in the "Group Discussions" section at this website.)

We also glimpsed his talented performance as the scarecrow in his ealy musical entitled "The Wiz," released by Universal Studio in 1978.  Michael's incredible body language and voice revealed the brightness of a future super star in popular music.

Michael went on to have great successes in his career but he also encountered numerous difficulties facing the world that he had tried his best to entertain.

What do you think is the marked trait of Michael Jackson's legacy?  What contribute(s) did he make to a whole generation of people through his music and his life?

Tribute to Michael Jackson!