Abstract
The growing visibility of queerness in Asia is often taken up by capital force. Rather than sociopolitical/legal advancements, queerness often materializes as pink economy. However, in Taiwan, in part due to its contested nationhood, the connection between queerness and civil and political rights remains steadfast. This raises the question: How to preserve the essence of queerness in current times? The paper delves into Taiwan’s intervention in Sinophone cinema, manifesting itself in both conceptualization/production and exhibition/circulation. In particular, I conduct a case study of GagaOOLala, a Taiwan-based, LGBTQ-focused global digital media player. The promotion of Taiwan as the most queer-friendly country in Asia is, in this case, accompanied by the impression of exerting a seemingly non-chauvinistic cultural engine and ideological tool. I explore GagaOOLala’s original productions and examine to what extent Taiwan’s aspirations for cultural soft power is conducted non-hegemonically. A new light is shown on the evolution of Sinophone queer media and the simultaneous emergence of digital technologies and the Internet as information channels. I focus on the role and importance of cyberspace for community formation, highlighting the idea of occupying digital space as a means of supporting progressive values and advancing policy changes. The creation and consumption of queer media have the potential to expand the influence of queer communities and advance equality discourses. I explore GagaOOLala’s involvement in transnational cultural exchanges and examine how it employs and advances Taiwan’s queer-friendly image in the Sinosphere and beyond; industry studies on its overall structure and development plan are also conducted.
Presenters
Yayu ZhengPostdoctoral Fellow, Wits Centre for Diversity Studies, University of Witwatersrand, Gauteng, South Africa
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2025 Special Focus—From Democratic Aesthetics to Digital Culture
KEYWORDS
Taiwan, Sinophone, Queer, Liberal democracy, Soft power
