Chris Coy and Professor Linda Sullivan, Graphic Design
The construction of national identity amidst an ever-increasing influx of external ideas and foreign ideologies is an interesting phenomenon. In what ways does the popular culture of a country with access to all forms of media, such as the United States of America, influence smaller communities of individuals in other parts of the world? Questions of a similar nature were posed as I prepared to travel to Thailand in the summer of 2004 with fellow Media Arts student Scott Christopherson. It was our intent to document the influence of American pop culture on the ordinary Thai individuals that we came in contact with during our month-long stay.
Using documentary film and photography as a way to visually record our interactions, we complied interviews with a wide range of people. The success of our project was in a large part due to our ability to approach most anyone and speak with them in the Thai language. Scott’s background as a missionary in Thailand coupled with his interest in documentary film allowed us to travel freely and interview everyone. The generous and hospitable nature of the Thai people made our trip a successful one filled with singular experiences and a profound love for Thailand. It also made us more aware of others’ perceptions and understanding of American popular culture and its influence on the rest of the world.
We met and interviewed taxi cab drivers, rock musicians in guitar shop, tuk-tuk drivers, a tattoo artist, a Rastafarian beach bartender, restaurant owners, employees of Coca-Cola, famous nightclub DJ’s, bottle collector, waiters and many other types of people. With Scott’s missionary background as a springboard we had the opportunity for a cultural experience and exchange that delved far below the surface into actual Thai homes and lives.
In order to empirically and quantitatively evaluate the level of common knowledge of American pop culture, a questionnaire was developed and distributed. Questions ranged from the pop culture-specific, “Who is your favorite movie star?” to “How much soda do you drink on a weekly basis?” Subject finding was based on a series of random street intercepts conducted as we traveled throughout the various regions of Thailand. In all, there were 100 participants who completed the 5-10 minute questionnaire. As of April 2005, we are still in the process of translating the responses and developing a report that shows the results of our research. Some general trends that we noticed as individuals completed the questionnaire was their familiarity with American movie stars like Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Julia Roberts and even WWF wrestler turned actor The Rock. We also were surprised at the high number of Thais who not only consumed considerable amounts of soda, but also recognized Britney Spears as a spokesperson for Pepsi. It was remarkable to see how the aggressive advertising and clever marketing of these mega-corporations has over-saturated the visual landscape (I counted over 400 separate instances of soda logos during a 10 kilometer bus ride in the north eastern part of Thailand). This over-saturation of soda brands and their infiltration of public and personal space is in a large part due to the prevalence of roadside food stands. In our discussion with one of the owners, we learned that many of the umbrellas and signage were given freely by Coke or Pepsi. The owners in turn received needed signage and other materials that doubled as free advertising for the products that they sell. In our subsequent attempts to meet with representatives of Coca-Cola we were frustrated by company mechanisms and approval procedures that would have taken longer than our trip in Thailand. Our lack of planning in contracting corporation representatives in advance was also a major factor that kept us from meeting them. I however wouldn’t consider any part of our experiences of cultural immersion and appreciation as we attempted to assess and better understand Thai mentalities and views toward western pop culture.
With the research and gathering phase of the project completed, we are currently in the process of compiling a website that chronicles our trip on a day-to-day basis. It is broken down into short films, photographs, journal entries and links that provide an approximation of our daily experiences. It is our hope that this website will be a resource of information and more importantly chronicle the method in which it was gathered- as dews distilling themselves daily in an accumulation of knowledge and love. The website is expected to launch in its final version July 2005. This coming fall/winter, we hope to visit local high schools in the Provo/Orem area and conduct forums at BYU and BYU-Idaho that discuss our trip, our thoughts and feeling regarding our Thailand experience. With strong graduate programs in Asian studies, both the University of Wisconsin and Cornell University have expressed interest in forums as well. It is our intent that these forums will expose students and community members to the effects of globalization, cultural perceptions/stereotypes, Thai culture and other issues that involve our ever-changing global landscape.
Students at BYU have already had the opportunity to view one of the short films completed last fall for BYU’s student film festival. The six minute film, “Live from Thailand” screened seven times and was favorably received. In it a number of Thai musicians play music and discuss rock ‘n roll’s influence on their lives.
As a designer and artist, the importance of global brands and their influence on everyday people is one that interests me. I feel it my duty to go and see the world before I am employed to sell things to it. As an artist I am fascinated with western popular culture and its transmission of values, both aesthetic and cultural to a vast audience of individuals from different backgrounds cultures. For this project, film was the medium of choice to record and share the many experiences we had. My love and affinity for Thailand and its people is a direct result of my experience there in the summer of 2004.
www.popculturethailand.com, www.thaifilmfund.org