13 August, 2014

“Mr. Fredric C F Mao and CGCC members explore future directions for collaboration between Hong Kong and Taiwan cultural industries.

To promote further cooperation between the cultural industries in Hong Kong and Taiwan, the Cultural Industries Committee and the Hong Kong-Taiwan Affairs Committee of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (CGCC) held a luncheon meeting on August 13. Renowned Convener of the Hong Kong-Taiwan Cultural Cooperation Committee, Mr. Fredric Mao, was invited to the event as keynote speaker to share his thoughts on the evolving cultural industries of Hong Kong and Taiwan and the prospects for complementary collaboration.

With a distinguished career in performance art, Mr. Mao is known in artistic circles as the “Godfather of Hong Kong Drama”. For many years, he has been a key driving force behind the development and professionalization of local drama as well as its cultural exchanges with the mainland and Taiwan.

Dr. Lo Man Tuen, Vice-Chairman of the CGCC in charge of the Hong Kong-Taiwan Affairs Committee, and Ms. Cora Chan Wan, Committee Member and Vice-Chairwoman of the Cultural Industries Committee of the CGCC, were among those present at the event, which was hosted by Mr. Kit Szeto, Chairman of the Cultural Industries Committee of the CGCC and Director & CEO of Dim Sum TV.

In his speech, Mr. Mao outlined the cultural exchanges with Taiwan that have been initiated by the Hong Kong-Taiwan Cultural Cooperation Committee. Since its establishment in 2012, the committee has been bringing Hong Kong’s own brand of cosmopolitan culture to Taiwanese audiences through the annual Hong Kong Week event. The luncheon meeting attracted a large turnout of CGCC members and art aficionados. According to Mr. Mao, Hong Kong Week 2012 was held under the theme of Cultural Creativity, and consisted of 19 different cultural performances in 8 categories. These performances embraced tradition and innovation, and included drama, multi-media shows, jazz, pop music, new music, Chinese music, modern dance, screening of dance videos and an animation exhibition. As a whole, the event was a splendid showcase for the creativity and vitality of Hong Kong’s cultural community. This was followed by Hong Kong Week 2013, with its theme of Inheritance and Innovation. It included exhibitions covering history, contemporary art, design and animation, as well as performances by two famed professional artistic troupes. Of these, the “One Hundred Years Of Style; The Story Of The Hong Kong Cheongsam” exhibition was especially popular. It told the story of Hong Kong women’s coming of age through evolving cheongsam designs. The exhibition included cheongsams that have been worn by some of the most celebrated women of their times, including Ms. Linda Lin Dai, 4-times winner of the Best Actress Award at the Asia-Pacific Film Festival; Ms. Bak Sheut Sin, the grand dame of Cantonese opera in Hong Kong and China; Ms. Loletta Chu, Miss Hong Kong 1977; and Ms. Teresa Teng, legendary Taiwanese diva. Mr. Mao said that the joint undertakings with Taiwan’s cultural and artistic communities has given him a deeper understanding of Hong Kong and what it means to be a Hong Kong person. Drama, of which he has much firsthand knowledge, has been built upon a foundation of cultural cross-breeding between East and West, and has become a distinctive part of the Hong Kong identity. He concluded by saying that Hong Kong’s creative expression should remain a vehicle for this unique cultural advantage.

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