Events

This workshop is organized with the Cultural Studies in Asia Programme in Department of Communications and New Media, and Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore, in collaboration with the William Lim Siew Wai Fellowship Fund.

At the time of the publication of Chua Beng Huat’s “Conceptualising an East Asian popular culture” in 2004, Japan was considered the centre of East Asian content production and export that “sets the industry quality standard”. It had immensely influenced the production of trendy dramas in South Korea that formed part of the early Korean Wave. Hong Kong and Taiwan were crucial roles in Chinese-language productions for the region with substantial diasporic Chinese population. China’s contribution as a production centre was marginal at the time, even though its consumer market was increasingly important.

In the 30 years since, while urban dramas featuring beautiful and fashionable casts remain popular among audiences in the region, much has also changed with the transnational flows of East Asian popular culture. YouTube and social media have been instrumental in the proliferation of K-pop beyond Asia. Netflix brought South Korean and other East Asian content to a global audience, even as it changes local production practices. China is no longer merely a lucrative consumer market, as iQiyi is positioned as “the OTT platform” for Chinese content in its international expansion. While many have commented on the decline of Hong Kong cinema, two films in 2024 surpassed US$12.9 million in the Hong Kong box office, although overall box office revenue continues to drop. Taiwan is moving away from the production of “idol content” as it moves to build and attract international audiences via Netflix by developing content that discusses social issues. Meanwhile, Japan continues to have impact in animation, and it remains the region’s centre of fashion and technology, but Japanese media content struggle to globalise in a media climate where streaming platforms and social media dominate over legacy media. Genres such as Boys Love (BL) has transcended its origins in Japanese manga to live action dramas, and Thailand has emerged at the forefront of this genre. These changes have redefined East Asia’s cultural landscape as production and consumption centres shift and change.

The papers in this workshop critically examine the evolution of East Asian pop culture over the past three decades, highlighting its intersections with political, economic, social, and cultural transformations within the region, and beyond, to Southeast Asia and Latin America. The speakers challenge the tendency to frame East Asian pop culture through Western-centric perspectives, emphasising instead its dynamic transnational and inter-regional developments as a distinct site of cultural and geopolitical significance.

WORKSHOP CONVENORS

Prof CHUA Beng Huat
Asia Research Institute & Department of Sociology and Anthropology, National University of Singapore

Asst Prof Eunbi LEE
Department of Communications and New Media, National University of Singapore

Dr Bertha CHIN
Department of Communications and New Media, National University of Singapore

Dr SOH Kai Ruo
Department of Communications and New Media, National University of Singapore

REGISTRATION

The workshop is fully subscribed, and a registration confirmation has been sent to all successfully registered attendees. If you wish to be placed on the waiting list, please write to aritm@nus.edu.sg with your full name and affiliation.