Arts

Kevin Nikolas leads Ghiblinesia, an Indonesian fan community that sometimes perform songs from Ghibli film soundtracks. (Photo by Marcel Thee)
Arts

Spreading the Studio Ghibli bug in Indonesia

Japanese animation house in year-long campaign to promote its films locally

11 June 2017
Master Naohiko Umewaka posing with a suit and his golden Noh Mask, the stage attire he uses to break with tradition and modernize the art (photo by Thum Chia Chieh)
Arts

Japan's Noh theater breathes new life in Malaysia

Drama master seeks to extend boundaries of secretive 650-year-old art form

3 June 2017
The site already features a house based on the home of the protagonists of "My Neighbor Totoro."
Arts

Theme park to recreate Studio Ghibli's world of anime

New attraction to open in early 2020s in central Japan

2 June 2017
Conceptualist Svay Sareth carries "Ball and Chain" through Phnom Penh (Courtesy of Sa Sa Bassac Gallery)
Arts

Cambodian contemporary art comes of age

Provocative generation of artists tackles troubled history and current woes

21 May 2017
Hayao Miyazaki holds up the honorary Oscar he received on Nov. 8, 2014.
20 May 2017
Tetsuro Tamba, left, and Sean Connery in "You Only Live Twice"
Politics

007 shows how Tokyo and London can revive security alliance

James Bond and Tiger Tanaka point the way as Abe and May confront regional change

17 May 2017
Japan's aging population has left the Yamaha Music Foundation with fewer potential pupils.
Japan-Update

Royalty changes strike sour note among Japan's music teachers

Schools set to take copyright collective to court over scope of performance rights

17 May 2017
Stream article image
Business

Tiny Italian city hosts Asia's biggest cinema showcase in West

Top Asian filmmakers and stars flock to Udine for casual, low-key interaction with fellow filmmakers, audiences

16 May 2017
The China International Cartoon and Animation Festival in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, drew fans of Japanese media.
Arts

Anime a $21bn market -- in China

Young consumers with cash ready to splurge on Japanese content

2 May 2017
Installation piece “Infinite Mirror” by Mahima Singh echoes the rubble of Kasthamandap Temple, which collapsed in the 2015 quake. (Courtesy Mahima Singh)
Arts

Nepalese earthquake rubble inspires creative response

Two years after deadly tremor, local artists seek meaning in aftermath of disaster

22 April 2017
Opened last year, the MAIIAM Contemporary Arts Museum is expected to give local artists a big boost as they strive to be better recognized -- and paid. (Photo by Denis Gray)
Arts

Chiang Mai: Thailand's modern-day Left Bank

Evolution of Thai northern city into creative hub fuels hopes of gaining UNESCO status

16 April 2017
Alena Murang performs at the Rainforest World Music Festival in Sarawak. (Photo by Seth Peli)
Arts

Musician revives traditional Sarawak instrument

Reappearance of the sape helps to update heritage of Malaysia's Kelabit people

15 April 2017
Shiki Theater operates multiple theaters in Japan, including this one that opened last year in Nagoya.
Japan-Update

Japan's gateway to Broadway to license own musicals to China

Shiki Theater inks first deal with Chinese company to increase earnings

11 April 2017
Albert Namatjira with his sons. (Photo by Pastor Gross, courtesy of the Strehlow Research Centre)
Arts

Campaign seeks return of Aboriginal artist's lost copyright

Slighted watercolorist's landscapes now hang in Australian national museum

8 April 2017
Stream article image
Business

Studio-backed Japanese venture to stream anime music

Flat-rate service seeks to fill niche poorly served by the Western names

24 March 2017
Anime Festival Asia drew 210,000 people at events in three countries last year.
Business

Sony Music teams up with anime producer for big Asian crowds

Festival highlights Japanese culture, manga, music

22 March 2017
Three Go masters and the developer of an AI competitor pose for a photo before the start of the World Go Championship.
Arts

Human Go masters, AI begin world championship

DeepZenGo competing with players from Japan, South Korea and China

21 March 2017
Chung Yiu-kwong (Courtesy of Chung Yiu-kwong)
Arts

Dark chapter of Taiwan history memorialized in music

Hong Kong-born composer disclaims political intentions

18 March 2017
An encounter with Hollywood wildlife in Quang Binh Province (Photo by CJ CGV Vietnam)
Business

Vietnam makes tourism ambassador of King Kong director

Box office success fires official interest in attracting foreign filmmakers

16 March 2017
A street art installation is seen on Yangon's Merchant Street on March 4 as part of the "My Yangon My Home" art and heritage festival. (Photo by Fiona MacGregor)
Arts

Art finds its place in the new Yangon

Gallery walking tour throws fresh light on heritage and modernity

9 March 2017
K. Rajagopal, director of "A Yellow Bird," a Singaporean film that aired at the Cannes Film Festival (Photo by Peter Guest)
Business

Singapore reinvents itself as regional film hub

Foreign and local interests see growing potential in the former bastion of conservatism

8 March 2017
Angelina Jolie, left, stands with ​author​ Loung Ung at the press event for ​Jolie's ​new ​ film, "First They Killed My Father,"​ in Siem Reap, Cambodia on Feb. 18​. (Photo by G​e​orge Styllis)
Politics

Jolie premieres film on Khmer Rouge horrors

Hollywood actress turned director portrays child's eye view of Cambodia's 'killing fields'

19 February 2017
Miya Ando's allusive art is hard to pigeon-hole. (Photo by Fran Kuzui)
Arts

Seductively silent art bridges East and West

Miya Ando's work reflects her complex roots and Buddhist heritage

18 February 2017
A scene from the film "Close-Knit" by Japanese director Naoko Ogigami, which screens at the Berlin Film Festival in late February
Arts

Is Japan ready to love a transgender lead character?

Naoko Ogigami's gentle film 'Close-Knit' set to touch audiences' emotions

30 January 2017
Japanese students perform "The Legend of White Snake" in Beijing. (Courtesy of J.F. Oberlin University)
Arts

Peking opera by Japanese students warms icy sentiment in China

Room for Japan's companies to do more to promote cultural exchanges

28 January 2017