{"id":5756,"date":"2025-03-21T23:27:07","date_gmt":"2025-03-21T15:27:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/asef.org\/aecfest\/?page_id=5756"},"modified":"2025-05-19T10:57:36","modified_gmt":"2025-05-19T02:57:36","slug":"archive-2021edition","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/asef.org\/aecfest\/archive-2021edition\/","title":{"rendered":"2021 Edition"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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2021 EDITION<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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15 & 22 NOVEMBER |\nBELGIUM<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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22 \u2013 26 NOVEMBER | CAMBODIA<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The\u00a03rd<\/sup>\u00a0edition of the ASEM Cultural Festival<\/strong>\u00a0titled\u00a0Asia and Europe: Cultures Connect<\/em>\u00a0is a multidisciplinary arts festival with on-site events taking place\u00a0in Brussels, Belgium<\/strong>\u00a0on 15 \u2013 22 November\u00a0and in Phnom Penh, Cambodia<\/strong>\u00a0on 22 \u2013 26 November 2021. Various events will also be shown online due to some existing mobility restrictions brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.\u00a0<\/p>

With the theme\u00a0\u2018Enhancing ASEM Partnerships through Arts and Culture\u2019<\/strong>, the Festival is the\u00a0official cultural side-event of the 13th<\/sup>\u00a0Summit of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM13)<\/strong>\u00a0to be hosted by the Royal Government of Cambodia on 25 \u2013 26 November. It aims to\u00a0promote\u00a0people-to-people connections<\/strong>\u00a0between Asia and Europe in the field of arts and culture, enhancing ASEM partnership through collaborations and networking. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a myriad of unprecedented challenges, and the\u00a0importance of\u00a0cooperation and mutual understanding\u00a0between Asia and Europe has been further emphasised<\/strong>\u00a0in these times of global change.\u00a0<\/p>

This year,\u00a0over 30 events featuring more than 100 Asian and European artists<\/strong>\u00a0will showcase the rich cultural diversity and creative collaborations from the two regions through\u00a0theatre, dance, music, visual arts and interdisciplinary presentations<\/strong>. The on-site programme of the Festival includes 6 art exhibitions hosted at the National Museum of Cambodia and 4 film screenings at the Major Cineplex in Phnom Penh. Many more events will take place online due to travelling restrictions posed by the pandemic. To ensure the widest possible reach of the Festival while ensuring public safety, virtual performances and screenings will be available on the Festival\u2019s official website.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>

On-site Festival curtain-raiser:<\/strong>\u00a0A curtain raiser offering a slice of the Festival programme to live audiences in Brussels, Belgium takes place from 15-26 November 2021. This includes an\u00a0art installation<\/strong>\u00a0featuring two giant, colourful inflatable heads inspired by popular Chinese masks with the addition of western elements; and the screening of\u00a0White Building<\/em><\/strong>, the debut feature film of Cambodian director Kavich Neang which won the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards as well as the Best Actor Award at the Orizzonti Venice Film Festival 2021.\u00a0<\/p>

Official opening of the Festival:<\/strong>\u00a0On 22 November 2021 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the Festival will be officially opened through a special presentation titled\u00a0Colourful Cambodia<\/em><\/strong>. This features classical, folk and contemporary dances to be performed by exceptional artists from Cambodia and ASEM Partner countries. The line-up includes a welcome blessing dance, a harvest folk dance,\u00a0Pounding the Gum-Lacquer, Rice, and Gems from Mozart at Angkor,<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0highlighting Asia-Europe partnership through artistic approaches and the ASEM flag dance. \u00a0<\/p>

Online programme:<\/strong>\u00a0With some mobility and gathering restrictions still in place due to COVID-19, the Festival will bring several events virtually for our audiences not only in Asia and Europe, but globally. The online programme consists of a very diverse lineup, including\u00a0performances, exhibitions, webinars and film screenings<\/strong>\u00a0from ASEM Partner countries. These will be shown on the Festival website from 22 \u2013 26 November 2021.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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