Bringing heritage into creative spaces.
- This year marks the 50th anniversary of Vietnam's membership in UNESCO. In that context, what is the significance of the second World Cultural Festival in Hanoi, themed "Gathering Heritage - Shaping the Future," Madam?
- Our journey alongside UNESCO is also a journey of Vietnam's increasingly proactive and active participation in international cooperation activities in the field of culture. Through this festival, we hope not only to introduce Vietnamese culture to international friends or bring the cultures of other countries to the Vietnamese public, but more importantly, to create a space for cultures to meet, interact, and dialogue.
Each country has its own values, identity, and way of expressing itself, but when we are all present in a shared space, we can recognize similarities in diversity. That is also the spirit that the festival aims for.
The second World Cultural Festival in Hanoi is an opportunity for Vietnam to demonstrate its proactive and positive role in international cultural cooperation; and at the same time, to make Hanoi a meeting place for diverse cultures from around the world.
Fifty countries and international organizations are expected to participate in the second World Cultural Festival in Hanoi. Source: baochinhphu.vn
- Compared to the first time, could you please tell us about the outstanding new features of this year's festival in bringing heritage into contemporary life?
- One of the notable new features is the connection between heritage and technology and creative industries. The festival's theme emphasizes that heritage should not only be presented as existing values, but should continue to be disseminated in contemporary life through new forms of expression.
Within the framework of the Festival, the "Spreading Creativity from Heritage - International Festival Games" area is a new experiential space connecting historical and cultural values with technology and creative industries. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, in collaboration with Vietnamese businesses, introduces and operates video games inspired by Vietnamese history and culture, thereby helping the public directly explore heritage through modern interactive forms.
In addition, cosplay performances, combined with dance moves from the game Audition and LED screen effects, create a youthful and vibrant atmosphere. This is a way for culture and heritage to reach a younger audience, while also demonstrating how traditional values can become a source of inspiration for contemporary creativity.
It is crucial that, during the process of innovating forms of expression, the core values of culture and history are still respected. Technology and the creative industries are the means to bring those values closer to the public.
Director of the Department of International Cooperation Nguyen Phuong Hoa
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This year's festival space has been expanded. Besides activities at Thang Long Imperial Citadel , there will be parades and performances of traditional costumes from various countries in the Hoan Kiem Lake area and on the pedestrian street; and cultural exchange activities at the Vietnam Ethnic Groups Cultural and Tourism Village. Each space tells a cultural story, but when connected, they create a common picture of the world's cultural diversity.
Director of the Department of International Cooperation, Nguyen Phuong Hoa
- Is the inclusion of technology, video games, and new creative forms in the Festival intended to broaden the younger generation's access to heritage?
- That's right. Younger audiences have different ways of receiving information than before, interacting more with technology, video games, digital images, and creative platforms. Incorporating historical and cultural elements into appropriate creative products can open up more ways for them to access heritage. From the values formed in history, we can create new ways of storytelling, new ways of experiencing, and new products, thereby expanding the potential for disseminating heritage.
Culture - a resource for creativity and development
- This festival is also linked to the "International Decade for Culture for Sustainable Development" initiative proposed by Vietnam, which was recently officially adopted by the United Nations General Assembly. Could you please elaborate on this message?
- The second World Culture Festival in Hanoi is a kick-off event for the "International Decade for Culture for Sustainable Development" initiative, spanning from 2027 to 2036. This broadens the significance of the festival. Culture is not only a field that needs to be preserved, protected, or showcased, but also plays a crucial role in promoting dialogue, connectivity, and sustainable development.
Here, sustainable development is not just about strengthening dialogue and mutual understanding between cultures, but also about the ability to transform cultural values and heritage into resources for the creation and development of cultural industries; becoming a source of inspiration for creative products, from video games to experiential activities.
Through this festival, we also hope to give artists and creators the opportunity to meet and interact, thereby forming collaborative projects and co-productions in the future. When heritage is approached through creative methods, creating new products and attracting new audiences, cultural values are not only preserved but also further promoted in contemporary life.
Welcome performance at the first World Cultural Festival in Hanoi. Photo: Quoc Khanh/VNA
In a world with vast differences in history, traditions, languages, and development paths, culture can serve as a bridge to foster better understanding between communities. For Vietnam, this is also an opportunity to continue demonstrating its proactive role in international cultural cooperation, while simultaneously introducing the country's cultural values and heritage to the international community.
- From a cultural diplomacy perspective, what are your expectations after this festival?
- We expect the Festival to continue to attract public and media attention, both domestically and internationally. More importantly, it should be a genuine space for cultures to meet, interact, and share. With the number of participating countries and international organizations, along with its diverse range of activities, the Festival creates many more opportunities for Vietnam to showcase its image, people, culture, and heritage to international friends.
The gatherings at the Festival are hoped to open up new connections, collaborations, and initiatives in the future, especially among artists, creators, and cultural partners. More broadly, the Festival aims to spread the message that culture can create dialogue, connect people, and contribute to sustainable development. This is also the spirit of the theme "Convergence of Heritage - Shaping the Future".
Thank you, ma'am!
Source: https://daibieunhandan.vn/van-hoa-kien-tao-doi-thoai-and-phat-trien-ben-vung-10431672.html
