um
ac fall 2
Kaleid
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oscop
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Course Instructor
Prof. Wu Mei
Teaching Assistant
Joel, Ma Zhihao
Project Manager
Heather Jean Birkeland
Editor-in-Chief
Charlotte, Lei Ka Tong
Deputy Project Manager
Fio, Lei Ian Leng
Layout Designer
Charlotte, Lei Ka Tong
Miki, Lei Mei Kei
Authors
Adrian, Lei Chon Ngai
Jennifer, Iun Lok Io
Charlotte, Lei Ka Tong
Miki, Lei Mei Kei
Evelyn, Hsu Pei Tzu
Momo, Mou Weng Fong
Fio, Lei Ian Leng
Priscilla, Lo Weng Hin
Heather Jean Birkeland
Queenie, Leong Weng Kuan
Javen, Lin JiaWei
Steven, U Sio Cheong
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Evelyn, Hsu Pei Tzu
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EDITOR's
Notes
never forget how much I was fascinated by my very first glance into a kaleidoscope when I was little. With every twist, what we see has changed and may never appear in the same pattern again. Now I'm grown up, the ever-spinning world is my kaleidoscope, every corner of which fascinates me in the same way and I enjoy every twist I make. Umac Bridges Fall 2017 is made like a kaleidoscope, we share our glances at the Community, Youth, Creativity and Culture with our readers. We hope our readers share the nostalgia, synchronize the present and imagine the future with the magazine. What's more? Be sure to check the last page, you can literally get a DIY paper kaleidoscope. Have fun! Twelve of us have been working so hard in this fall and the fallen leaves draw an end for our project. We can work this out only with the guidance of Prof. Wu Mei who endorses every idea we have, and the assistance of Joel Ma, Barbara Chin, Jenny Lou and Hugo Lok. We would like to give special thanks to all our unsung heroes! This KALEIDOSCOPE is now in your hands, we hope you keep “twisting� it when searching for a unique way of your own in our stories. Enjoy!
Charlotte, Lei Ka Tong Editor-in-Chief
ProjectManager's Notes Being a Project Manager is like being an artist, you have the different colored process streams combining into a work of art," a quote by Greg Cimmarrusti, if only the reality was as graceful as he described it. Publishing a magazine includes a hand full of important parts, you'll need a theme, the articles, the design and a budget plan. Believe me when I say I didn't know what I was letting myself into by being the project manager, but It's a relief typing it out now because the process has been completed and you're reading the finished product. Still remember the first time I walked into our classroom and wondered "how we will be able to publish a magazine, there's only 13 of us. Thirteen!". Well, what I've learnt through the making of "Kaleidoscope" is that numbers don't matter, people do! A team doesn't exist without teammates, and teammates don't exist without working together. That's what we are -- a wonderful team.
I want to use this opportunity to thank my team. Thank you for coming up with amazing theme ideas and agreeing without a doubt to change the theme even after the vote. A thank-you to Charlotte Lei, Miki Lei, Priscilla Lo, Evelyn Hsu for the amazing layout design. Thanks to Fio Lei, Jennifer Lun, Queenie Leong, Javen Lin and Momo Mou for assisting with the budgeting. Thanks to Steven U and Adrian Ngai for perseverance. Thank you, Professor Wu Mei for guiding us through the process and having faith in us, and Joel Ma for teaching assistance. Actually, in a small group like us, everyone is indispensable in this project! I hope when you read this magazine, you will not only see a finished product with amazing layout and stories, but also the love that we've poured into it.
Heather Jean Birkeland Project Manager
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10 The Obscure House 16 Why does MLM want you 18 Hato catastrophe and seniors 20 Where does the waste of the city go?
24 Money vs passion: Fresh graduates’ dilemma 26 Flowers of dreams 30 Once a young entrepreneur 32 The World Supermodel in Macao 36 Education in Macao: The left-behind 40 The “Cultural Mission” Program
48 Sound and Image Challenge: Films in the city 52 10 years adventure in local cultural and creative industry 54 A gift of music 56 Journey of art: Obstacles and opportunities 60 Magazines in Macao 62 Manner: Creativity matters most
66 The last rattan shop 68 The Fading - Macau Canidrome 70 Pride and prejudice 74 eSports: Take every game seriously 78 Pattern jungle
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The e r u c s b O s e s Hou nd a l e k n Bir
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When that [building] is built, this house will be no more,” heart breaking words from the mouth of 83-year-old Yuan, the owner of a small historical house situated just a few feet off a busy street in the center of Macao. As a girl living in this fast-growing city, I can’t help but wonder how my view of this place I call home is different, compared with someone who has seen its past and its dramatic transformation. I can’t help but wonder, how exotic it will be to see an actual historical house co-existing and blending in with the new and modern city. If there was, then I wonder why. Little did I know, the answer to all those years of wondering and dreaming was hidden in plain sight - at the corner of the street where I have been living for 22 years. The two houses located in the Travessa do Búzio alley have withstood the test of time and are still standing till this day. Pedestrians who walk by the buildings don’t really know that these are actual houses where people still live in. Some who pass by the houses on a daily basis didn’t even realize of its existence. The minimalist small grey house, a family heritage built by Yuan’s grandfather has been a home to him for over 70 years. Over 20 years ago, Yuan also bought the small yellow house next to his childhood home and has been living there ever since.
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“Back in the day, the whole street was filled with rolls and rolls of small houses like these two houses,” said Yuan. However, most of the houses have already been taken down and replaced by newer and taller buildings as the city develops. I was intrigued by the fact and reason behind why and how these two houses were the only two still standing when the others on the street were taken down? To my surprise, the answer was not as complicated as I could have imagined. “If it wasn’t for the street Rua do Padre António Roliz, the government would have taken down this house a long time ago,” says Yuan sarcastically. Yuan states that since it’s located on the street, the government has an unascertained rule that prohibits taking it down or build a new building on the land. “They will not even permit you to fix the house if it’s broken,” Yuan claimed and explained that the government will not sign the papers nor provide subsidies and workers for the maintenance of the two historical houses. He presumed that the government will even be “thrilled” if the houses collapse one day, and they won’t even have to give any compensations for it at all.
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Retired around 20 years ago, Yuan is a former architect, therefore, fixing things is in his blood. He said, “if the government doesn’t help, then I’ll do it myself.” Every day for the past 10 years, I remember walking by his little house and see him fixing many different electrics, and sometimes he does it as a favor for friends and neighbors but the main reason is to stay awake. He has even built the bathroom, kitchen and the little wooden room on the pavement due to the lack of space. When asked what will happen after the construction for the building is complete the second time, Yuan was uncertain and said that maybe the government will leave it as an “antique” and “let me live here as long as I could,” adding that although he has the land deed and is currently paying the land tax, he may need to follow the government’s decision in the end. The building under construction behind the two small houses is going to be a 23-floor residential building and is expected to be completed by the end of 2018. “Supposedly, the government will turn this road for transport after the building is built,” says a construction worker from the building site residential building. Yuan states that he had already bought apartments in case the government demands to make a road which will take down the two houses, he’ll still have a shelter in the end. Macao, once known as the “City of the Name of God” (Cidade do Nome de Deus De Macau), has transformed from a fishing village to the biggest gambling capital of the world in less than two decades. While the Historical Center of Macao has become a famous tourist attraction which the whole world now admires, many valuable historical buildings, small houses, alleys and villages are on the verge of vanishing. The two small houses of Yuan are exceptions that have miraculously survived through all the changes, but what would happen in the future as the city continues to grow? No one knows. Maybe the government will take them down after the residential building is completed or maybe the little houses will still be standing as a silent witnesses to this ever changing city.
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Ka is a Polytechnic Institute student, who prefers not to give her surname, has been an MLM distributor for half a year. “Most importantly, the working hours are flexible and you can travel for free every year. Moreover, it will be easy to build relationships with various people and make their life better with the products,” she adds. Every year, we can see a lot of fierce competition in society during the season of graduation. Everybody is ready to fight for their dream job. In fact, only a few graduates can be hired for the job they desire during the first shot.
Ka further explains that she has paid more and more attention to her health after joining the MLM company. There are tutors teaching her about nutrition and the approaches to achieve success in business.
Yet, there is one industry which has seen an impressive growth in Macao over the past decade. It has become increasingly popular among young people, especially college graduates.
“I got into this business for about half a year now. I might probably find another job and keep on being a MLM distributor at the same time after graduation. Currently I am just a beginner in this business. In the future, if I can achieve the ideal monthly income in the company, I will give up the other job just to focus on MLM,” she says.
In contrast with traditional businesses, Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) companies seem to welcome all people. However, what exactly do MLM firms have to offer to attract people?
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“You can start your own business without any capital, and you’re not working for anybody. Anyone can do this job as long as you are willing to learn regardless of your personal background,” Ka explains.
By Priscilla Lo
Later, this reporter had the chance to attend a brief introduction of the products. It introduced the advantages and the attractiveness of the products. Ka’s enthusiasm was easily spotted, which is like the passion in religion. You really have to believe in your product in order to succeed in this business. “It’s really delightful to help others through these products and earn money at the same time. Hopefully one day I can depend on this job whole-heartedly,” Ka adds. There are more and more industries emerging in society. Deciding what you want to do after graduation can be hard, it is important to know yourself, explore your options and make a decision. Analyze the job thoroughly and think critically of what is suitable for you.
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Hato catastrophe and seniors By Adrian Lei
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big impact was brought by typhoon Hato, lack of electricity and water brought a big inconvenience to senior people in Macao. With the help of “Pin An Tong�, two senior ladies were interviewed by this report about their experience during the typhoon.
The impact of Hato will linger in residents' minds for a long time.
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Hato, a very strong typhoon assaulted the coast of China, bringing massive winds and flooding to the city of Macao on August 23,2017. The typhoon, with pernicious winds of more than 200 kmph, came to Macao on Wednesday morning, making a landfall in the morning and causing an extensive power blackout in many places of Macao. Surging waves, flooding and collapsed scaffolding across the island were shown from photos and videos posted on social media during the typhoon. Many places lacked electricity and water. Also, many large casinos, hospitals and CTM in Macao were reported to be on back-up generators.
Mrs Ku is a 60-year-old lady with disability. Although she has a son and a daughter, she still lives alone. Her husband left home to live with another woman. Her son ran away from home for a year and she had lost contact with him. But her daughter did visit her with her husband on the day when Hato hit Macao. She said, “I was really afraid because the strong wind seemed like to pull me away from the house, so I had to hold something to make myself stable.� Her home was without electricity for several days, but luckily the supply of water did not stop. The windows of her room were blown off. This typhoon made her memorize another strong typhoon which was 53 years ago. She was not in Macao at that time, but she said it was really a strong typhoon. According to the Macao government, it was the strongest typhoon to assault the city in 53 years. It brought a big impact throughout the city. 10 people were reportedly killed in the disaster. Among the dead, there was a 62-year-old man who died from a fall, a 45- year-old man who was hit by a car, also a 30 years old man who was trapped under a wall.
Mrs. Wong, 92, also lives by herself.
Mrs. Ku, 60, lives alone with disability.
Mrs Wong is a 92-year-old lady who also lives by herself. She said that on the day of the typhoon, she saw the glass windows of her balcony ruptured in the middle. The strong wind swept her entrance door as it opened. When she went to the entrance trying to close the door she was stuck there. She finally escaped but her foot was hurt and started to bleed. Luckily the building administrator and a neighbor saw her and told her come out of the home as it was too dangerous to stay there. But she could not walk, so she just sat on the stairs. She said she still felt pain on the day of the interview. She guessed the reason was that she lost too much blood. The government strived to resume the order in the city of 600,000 people as some residents queued for water from fire hydrants. Hillocks of rubbish and ruins including felled trees were cleared from streets, and some buildings required extra repairs after windows were destroyed by the typhoon.
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S E O D E WH ER F O E T THE WAS ? O G Y THE CIT
e v i v r u s o t s e v ri t s y n a p m o c g Local recyclin Umac Bridges Fall 2017
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The whirring sound from a shop without a signboard never fails to catch the passersby's glance. Iong Seng Fun, 40, throws piles of old cardboard behind him into one of the two cardboard balers in the shop and sprinkles the papers with water as the machine starts crushing. Iong has worked in a 30-year-old recycling company in Rua da Barca for eight years, saying that the recycling industry has been very helpful for the management of waste in Macao. He reveals that more than 10 tons of old cardboard are baled in their shop every day and associating with their partners, a barge loaded with recyclables in an estimated weight of 300 tons is sent offshore twice a month. "The industry is struggling to survive in society and many members have quit in recent years," says Iong. He indicates that the main challenges are high costs in logistics, labor and rental, falling prices of the export and the shortage of laborers.
The recycling industry which relies on exporting recyclables to the mainland has suffered the brunt of China's recycling policy. In July, China notified the World Trade Organization (WTO) of the import ban of several types of "foreign wastes" including plastics by the end of 2017. Iong says the shop has stopped to collect plastics and they can now only live on cardboard, newspapers, electronic appliances and metals. The local companies can only trade recyclables to the mainland with a permit. Iong is concerned about the issue of approval in the future, saying that the corporation with recycling plants in the mainland is decisive to their business.
According to Iong, there are six people including him and the owner working for the recycling company which has two stores in Macao peninsula. "Even sons of our boss refused to take over the shops," Iong says, adding that the industry is coming to an end as young people no longer consider it as a career prospect. The recycling export industry offsets the lack of local sorting infrastructure which depends on the only existing waste incineration plant in Macao. However, the government's new policy of granting subsidies for machinery does not seem to reduce the pressure of the industry. Iong was disappointed when he learned that their shop's grant application was rejected, and so were the applications of other recycling companies. Iong hopes for more assistance from the government and believes that new machines could enhance the capacity and efficiency of treating a vast volume of collected wastes. The recycling industry in Macao is facing its downfall but, for now at least, many members in the industry like Iong continue to hang on to it, stacking up bushels of cardboard and scrap newspapers in their stores every day.
By Charlotte Lei
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Taiwanese people receive low salaries, but they have dreams," Tina Sou, a sophomore in University o f M a c a u s a i d. S o u i s ve r y interested in art, but she has chosen her major in business.
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By Evelyn Hsu "It is difficult to be an artist in Macao, and it's hard to find a job, business on the other hand can give me a stable life," She said. The choices of young people in Macao and Taiwan are totally opposite. "22K", is now a term shared by most of the youth in Taiwan which refers to the frustration of low income. The average income of new graduates in Taiwan is about 22K (equivalent to MOP 5,800). Although young people feel very helpless in their life, most of them can find jobs they love. On the contrary, young people in Macao earn higher salaries, as new graduates in Macao on average have a monthly salary estimated at MOP 15,000 but the jobs seldom relate to their majors.
big advertising company. She loves her job, but the salary is MOP7,300 a month, and her working hours are over 14 hours a day. Sometimes, she has to work on weekends. Salary is not the only standard in job selection for Taiwanese people. "I will choose the job I love instead of the job l dislike even if it offers a high salary," Fan said. Even when people don't have enough money for the "next meal", most Taiwanese people would still be courageous to chase their dreams despite the low salaries.
After Clarisse da Silva is a all,reality and Macanese who just graduated from a university dream,money and in Taiwan. She has decided to come back to Macao to Actually, this situation reflects passion,which is work after her graduation. "The workload in Taiwan is the differences in society. beyond the salary I might Macao is a very prosperous more important? receive," Silva said. She city while the government and business can offer high salaries. However, the significant disadvantage of Macao is that it is so tiny, and there are limited career opportunities. According to the statistic from the Macau Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC), there are 10 categories of careers in Macao, and almost 45% of people work in hotel and casino industries. Therefore, some people find it hard to have jobs they love. Sou said that most people in Macao choose jobs with stable income instead of their "dream jobs".
In Taiwan, it isn't difficult to devote to careers people love. Nevertheless, the salary rate has been a "deplorable" situation to employees for many years, which is attributed to the economic recession. Tanya Fan, a fresh graduate in Taiwan, works in a
added that if she works in Taiwan, she will have to pay for the rent of the apartment. Silva's major is Public Relations and Advertising, and the PR industry is popular in both Taiwan and Macao nowadays. After comparing the salary and the condition, Silva considered returning to Macao as the best choice. So far, she has sent an application to PR departments of local resorts, and aims to be an outstanding PR practitioner. Fresh graduates in the two places, Taiwan and Macao, have their own concerns, and everyone has a different attitude towards challenges. Regardless of the salaries, it is advised that everyone should keep a positive attitude in their jobs and lives. Choose what you love, and love what you choose!
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Flowers of Dreams By Jennifer Iun
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wning a business is now a dream of many young people. But a great number of them would think this is an unreachable dream as they are not confident enough to start. It is a hard decision to make to become an e n t re p re n e u r w h i c h n e e d s c o u r a g e and passion, according to local young entrepreneur, Carol Wong. Wong, 21, Year 4 student in University of Macau (UM), is the owner of Forever Handmade, a local online florist, offering stylish bouquets and floral arrangements. Wong said that she has been in this business for more than two years.
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R: Did you apply for a funding or sponsorship from the government startup program? W: I didn't think about it, but I'll certainly take a look at the program of the evaluation. R: What inspires you to open a business based on soap flowers? W: I have always loved flowers since I was young: my mother used to buy them every week from the market, and I can still remember the smell of my home filled with fresh flowers' smell. It usually lasted a day or two, and I always looked forward to next week when my mother would refill the flowers. And flowers have always been my favorite gifts. And two years ago, a friend showed me soap flowers during an event, and I immediately realized the potential of them: package and sell them as gifts online. I did some research and studied some overseas cases, and sold my first product within a month. R[Reporter] : What are you selling? W [Wong]: My product is called "Soap Flower", which are flowers made from soap. They are sold in packages or bunches, usually, accompanied with accessories. R: What's the difference between your product compared with real flowers? W: Our flowers are 100% handmade from soap. Soap flowers smell very similar to real flowers, but it's a lot more lasting - our flowers will last at least 12 months and up to 36 months, with all the fresh smells and looks. Compared to real flowers, which can only last up to a week, and soap flowers are more cost efficient and environmentally-friendly. R : W h e r e a r e yo u r s a l e s p l a t fo r m a n d customers? W: Currently, my store is an online store - I use social media to host the store, and most of my customers can reach us from social media like Instagram and Facebook. The store was set up two years ago, and now we have around 3000 fans through social media who are either our customers or potential customers.
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and social media. At first, to draw attention through social media, I needed a marketing strategy. With no experience, I spent a lot of time trying different ideas, and most of them failed. An online community does take time to build, and I think it took me three months to make dozens of flowers I designed, then photo shoot them and promoted them online. Finally, it worked, and I had a constant stream of likes and shares on social media, among which around 5% of them became customers.
R: Can you describe the current status of your shop? W: I am currently a university student. I started the shop on my own, and I will keep running it myself until I finish university. It's simple: the shop is a great opportunity for me to try and learn, and the income can certainly help to pay the bills. During this two-year journey, I've built a retail business network, and I am looking forward to evaluating my performance this year and see if I should expand or retain my business. Another problem I need to overcome is pricing: our price is currently based on demand, ranging from MOP200 to 5000. I received a lot of criticism because customers are not clear about pricing, and usually I spent a lot of time explaining this to them. Pricing has to be standardized.
Another main difficulty was communication, and here's the case: a customer ordered my soap flower two weeks in advance before St. Valentine's Day. Due to a high demand, I made a bad mistake during the process, and with seven days left, I had no choice but to refund the money to my customer. To my surprise, or due to my lack of experience and face-to-face communication, the customer complained and demanded compensation from me. He initially demanded four times the retail price, and after negotiation, I still had to double the refund to him. It was a
R: Were there any crises you needed to overcome during starting up? W: Of course, the first six months have been up and down. Customers were unpredictable and random, and it was not easy to build customer relationship through an online community
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erry Lao, 27, who used to own a sushi takeout shop called Yim Sushi Takeout ( 焱 壽 司 外 賣 ), had a short experience of being an entrepreneur. But the business lasted just nine months and he has an IT job in Macao Polytechnic Institute now.
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At the beginning, Terry just helped his friends to set up a new bar-and-grill business, learning skills such as how to cook, how to decorate the shop, even how to buy suitable chairs and of course, how to create and try new specialties and manage a good control flow. Six months later, he thought he had the ability to have his own shop.
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According to Macau Daily, the government's Young Entrepreneurs Aid Scheme, launched for the first time in 2013, has now been updated to be more focused as a result of several adjustments. Until now, some requirements remain unchanged, such as the qualification for the applicant to be a permanent resident of Macao aged between 21 and 44, and owning the applicant company for a period less than two years. Additionally, the maximum loan is MOP300,000, and the repayment period of eight years remains the same. Attracted by the scheme, Terry decided to set up his own shop. He created a menu, practiced culinary skills, hired workers and designed the shop. He said he wanted to run a sushi takeout shop because it was easily approved by the government as it required no open fire and just needed a cheap and small working area.
Once a young entrepreneur By Momo Mou
Terry was very satisfied that customers loved his food and service. Some parents would even ask him to take care of their children after school for dinner from time to time. There were some kids helping out on the last day of the shop and enjoyed their last meal. As more and more people knew Yim, the business was getting better and better at first. Terry needed more helpers, but the government did not approve his application for an extra foreign laborer as his shop's space was limited. It was too expensive to hire local people. To make matters worse, the owner of the property wanted to raise the rent during that time. Terry was then forced to close down the shop.
Terry said it was a great experience. Although it failed and he even could not repay the loan of the shop, it is a good lesson for his next business adventure. He encouraged young people to start their own business, and he said the key is to preserve, keep learning, and have a good service attitude. He said that it would threaten the business if customers complained on the Internet. Comparing the job he is doing now with the job as a shop owner, Terry found his current job less stressful and said, "I feel like I'm on a holiday."
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d l l r e o d W o e rm o Thpe ca a u S M n i ou
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nnabelle Lin, who became the first World Supermodel Macau, is just a Year 4 student in University of Macau (UM). She won the Best Swimwear in the 10th annual World Supermodel Production in May 24-27 this year.
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Annabelle loved to watch fashion shows on TV when she was a little girl, hoping someday she could be one of the models standing on the T stage and show her dazzling light to people. But fashion model resources in Macao are scarce, model courses are not offered frequently and demands for models are quite low. Annabelle started by being a photo model, and her first teacher was actually a photographer. Later on, she became more and more professional and attracted more attention. But the model demands in Macao are limited, usually the market needs a promotion girl, so most of her contracts were from other places, like Hong Kong. She said if she only accepted local jobs, it is impossible to afford her daily life. Her beauty and experience gave her confidence to apply for this year's The World Supermodel Production, which was hosted in Macao. Her crowning of World Supermodel in the ceremony has made people remember her name. During the 4-day competition, Annabelle went through a lot of things she had never experienced before. She needed to face the camera from the time she woke up at 4:00am until she got back to her room at 1:00am. She had to have brainstorming sessions on how to answer questions from journalists
Annabelle said most models are unique, have special personalities and are kind, so she learned lots of skills from them. There were 40 models totally from different places, Annabelle successfully entered the first 14 and won The Best Swimwear award. For her, this was a turning point in her life. She said she had never taken such challenges before, on her body as well as her mind. Although these challenges brought her so much stress, she is thankful as she has found a lot of things to improve. After this victory, Annabelle has become more confident and has developed greater ambition. Her next stop is The Global Model in Portugal. For her wish, she wants the world to see Macao, and know there is a super model called Annabelle from Macao. She provided advice to people who want to be a model while still in school; you need to strike a balance according to your ability. And the most important point for a successful model is to find your own style and don't be afraid of hard work and fighting, she emphasized.
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By Steven U
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a c a o h a s b e e n d e ve l o p i n g at a fast pace in these last few decades. Based on the agenda of the New Urban Zone, there will be more infrastructures and casinos built. It's believed there will be a high demand for human resource for the prosperity of the future. Therefore, education for the next generation is the key for the future. However, there is a group of youngsters who have failed to fit into the local education system, being neglected and left behind by the mainstream. They are considered as a marginalized group, who lack higher academic certification which makes them unable to attain a higher social status. Peter Zhuang, a 21-year-old Form 6 student, who has repeated his grade four times in his middle school, said that it's nice of Macao to have such a middle school like Sam Yuk which accepted his application after several second expulsion by other schools, adding that there aren't many options for the students with poor academic performance.
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"I failed to form a good foundation in my primary education, hence I may have a difficulty adapting to the formal education in Macao," said Zhuang.
It's believed that there is an issue facing the education o f M a c a u, a g l o b a l j o u r n a l a r t i c l e p u b l i s h e d by The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development a few years ago showed that there were nearly 45% of students under 16 years old who repeated at least one year of schooling in Macao, and it was the highest repetition rate in the world. In other words, almost half of the Macao students repeated their grade. Also, another report done by the Macau Education and Youth Affairs Bureau (DSEJ) in 2015 showed that there were 1,260 teenagers over 15 years old dropping out of school, which accounted for nearly 1.8% of the total number of the formal education students. Ko Seng Man, a local scholar with a PhD in education, discussed the grade repetition issue in Macao in a conference article. He claimed that this issue happens in Macao because over 90% of the schools in Macao are private and they don't share a common recognition of the standard of repetition while they hope that their students can achieve better results in the admission examination. "I have already wasted much time on my study and I think rather than keep studying, I should get to work once I have finished my high school," said Zhuang. However, according to a report by the DSEJ in 2017, over 4,700 high school graduates seek higher education standing for 92% of the total. That's to say, there are still 8% of students who would be left behind with only a high school diploma or even lower. They are the least competitive in the job market. To conclude, there is a group of teenagers who fail to fit in the education system in Macao and they are very much marginalized and left behind. The public should not ascribe their misfortune to their poor academic performance, instead, the government should assist these people by establishing a guideline for schools to educate students with poor performance and build more vocational institutes like the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education (IVE) to provide more education options. options. Umac Bridges Fall 2017
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The “Cultural Mis
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sion” Program By Queenie Leong
Do you agree that every human being is imperfect? Would you stand out and say that you have never been wrong in your life?
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ome teenagers in our community are striving to get rid of drug abuse and seeking working opportunities to reengage in society. However, most people opt to shut doors and keep away from them. They need a hand, but they seldom got one until a program was established. The “Cultural Mission” Program, launched in 2012, has been operated jointly by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (ICM), Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) and Teen Challenge Macao (TCM). It aims to provide paid internship opportunities for marginalized teenagers to build up proper values and a healthy lifestyle through cultural work in a positive environment in ICM. The interns have various job responsibilities in ICM such as archaeological excavation and conservation, theater management, video production and so forth. Many people might doubt about the difference between a full-time civil servant and a teenage intern in ICM. In fact, the positions are completely and systematically different. The marginalized teenagers are paid as interns and do not enjoy the salaries, benefits and welfare system of fulltime civil servants. TCM is the only youth rehabilitation centre in Macao which offers residential facilities for marginalized teenagers to live on site. Its main goal is to help these teenagers to get rid of drug addiction, and develop job connections with enterprises so that they could be employed after detoxification. In addition, TCM is associated with the “Cultural Mission” program, which operates as a social enterprise with financial supports from IAS.
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Chan Chi Leng, manager of TCM who supervised the program said that the job matching process is the most difficult part in obtaining jobs for marginalized teenagers. “I once asked a marginalized teenager about his professional skill. He asked me whether a casino dealer is a professional skill,� Chan said. It is extremely hard to persuade entrepreneurs to hire these teenagers when they do not have any valuable professional skills. Before sending them to work in ICM, these teenagers are required to complete one-year diverse cultural courses provided by ICM in TCM. During the courses, they can discover what they are most interested in, so that they can learn the particular cultural work more in depth while they work in ICM. Moreover, they are required to have 30 training hours in their spare time per year. They are free to choose anything to learn with their own payment and they have to submit certificates or related documents to prove their participation.
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In ICM, the teenage interns are divided into groups and have group leaders. Different groups working in different aspects of cultural work such as archaeological excavation and conservation, theater management and so on. And there are full-time professional ICM staff as supervisors in each group to provide guidance for them. Sometimes their supervisors will arrange workshops and suggest external training courses for them to learn more in a particular cultural field. In terms of rewards and penalties, the ICM supervisors submit monthly reports to TCM about their subordinates performance. The report scale scores are in 5 points and achieving 3 points means qualified. And there is an annual professional award to remunerate the outstanding interns. Interns with poor performance will be given only one year to improve. If they still have poor performance in the second year, their internship at ICM will be terminated by TCM. “I think the program period should be extended to whenever I want to quit voluntarily,” suggested a pro-
gram participant, Tony Lam. Tony has already worked in the group of archaeological excavation and preservation for a year. He said that 10 years are still insufficient for him to get prepared to earn a living as he will be in his early thirties by then. It is still a long way to go and it is hard to find a job in this specific fields of archaeological excavation and preservation in Macao, he said. In the meantime, Tony is attending a free training course in electricity in Macau Polytechnic Institute and planning to obtain a Western cuisine chef certificate in Institute for Tourism Studies. His life goal now is to become a chef in Western cuisine as he believes that he really has an interest and passion for it. Another program participant, Richard Lam, works in the same group with Tony and has participated in this programme for the longest time since 2012. He reflected, “The program provides us a transitional period to get rid of the previous working environment and lifestyle.” Umac Bridges Fall 2017
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According to to him, him, the the program program allows allows them them to to According have another another job job option option other other than than going going back back to to have For instance, there are regular urinecompanions. tests that the casinos where they had made bad It casinos where had made bad companions. It interns have to they take at least once a week and somewas also agreed by another program participant, was also agreed by another participant, times irregular urine tests areprogram conducted to ensure Vincent Un. “When I was working in the casino in Vincent Un. “When I was working in the casino in that they remain clean of drugs. the past, past, there there were were fewer fewer vacations vacations and and the the shift shift the system did not allow me to do so. ” system didLeng, not allow me toofdoTCM so.” who supervised Chan Chi manager
the program said that the job matching process is Apart fromdifficult this, Tony “It is notjobs easy get the most partadded, in obtaining forto marApart from this, Tony added, “It issites not easy to get even a labor job on construction since comginalized teenagers. “I once askedsites a marginalized even a labor job on construction since companies are about hiring outsourced laborsskill. nowadays othteenager his professional He asked panies are hiring outsourced labors nowadays other than local citizens in Macao. And the criminal me whether acitizens casino dealer is a professional skill,” er than local in Macao. And the criminal record certificate limits ushard to find jobs rightentreafter Chan It is extremely to persuade recordsaid. certificate limits us five to find jobs right after detoxification in the first years. ” Hence, preneurs to hireinthese teenagers when they do this not detoxification the first five years. ” aHence, this kind of program functions crucially as transitionhave any valuable professional skills. kind of program functions crucially asto a transitional period for marginalized teenagers rejoin the al period for marginalized teenagers to rejoin the community. Before sending them to work in ICM, these teencommunity. agers are required to complete one-year diverse Working strenuously in thebylabor is not opcultural courses provided ICM force in TCM. During posed by marginalized teenagers. Vincent said, the courses, they can in discover what theyisare most Working strenuously the labor force not op“I’ve realized that it is definitely impossible for us interested in, so that they can learn the particular posed by marginalized teenagers. Vincent said, to work comfortably and earn as much money as cultural workthat more in definitely depth while they work in “I’ve realized it is impossible for us people who graduate from colleges. And I am willICM. Moreover, they are required to have 30 trainto work and rather earn asthan much money as ing to docomfortably ainhard labor none. ” free ing hours their sparejob timecolleges. per year.And TheyI am are people who graduate from willto anything tojob learn with their own ingitchoose to do ahard hardto labor rather than none. ” payIs find after detoxification in mentreally and they have to jobs submit certificates or relatMacao? Does Macao SAR Government provide ed documents to prove their participation. enough resources and aid to these marginalized Is it really hard tothem find jobs after detoxification in teenagers? All of answered withinto onegroups voice In ICM, the teenage interns are divided Macao? Macao Government provide that theyDoes did not knowSAR any other groups job connection and have group leaders. Different working enough resources and aid to these marginalized program which will help them except the “Cultural in different aspects of cultural work arteenagers? All of so them answered withsuch one as voice Mission” program far. chaeological excavation and conservation, theater that they did not know any other job connection management and on.them Andexcept there are full-time program which willso help the According toICM Chan, approximately 90% of“Cultural marginprofessional staff as supervisors in each group Mission” programwho so far. alized teenagers had finished the cultural to provide guidance for them. Sometimes their su-
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According to Chan, approximately 90% of marginalized teenagers who had finished the cultural training courses of the “Cultural Mission” Program in TCM, participated in the internship in ICM. Today, there are 24 such interns at service in ICM. However, Chan said that there is still a lack of job opportunities for marginalized teenagers. He expressed, “These interns work with great passions and effort. However, there are limited vacancies to place many others. Hopefully, these teenagers can perk up, create companies themselves, and thus offer more job opportunities for younger ones.” Some interns in ICM continued their study in secondary education and even further study in higher education. She continued, “Hopefully, the program could be widespread and extended to private companies in our community rather than in public organizations only.” To echo her point, Chan revealed that the student council of the Macao University of Science and Technology recently discussed with him about marketing drawings of marginalized teenagers into commodities in order to raise the concern for the welfare of marginalized teenagers in society. The “Cultural Mission” Program is a milestone. In fact, it is not only about the inheritance of cultural work, but also the inheritance of love and tolerance between human beings to create a pay-itforward community. Every person needs a chance. If you can offer, don’t hesitate. As the ICM staffer emphasized, “May the program pump confidence into people’s hearts to accept these marginalized teenagers and give them hope to turn over a new leaf!”
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Sound and Image Challenge: Films in The City By Miki Lei
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eople become familiar with “Macao” from movies. The streets, architecture and legacy from colonial times, have always attracted many filmmakers. It is a hot spot for movie shooting, but there are very few “real” Macao films. Macao has lacked indie production t o r e f l e c t l o c a l p e o p l e’s l i f e . D u e to limitations in various aspects, achievements in film creation are not very satisfactory. The local industry is not as flourishing as it is in the neighboring city, Hong Kong. After the handover of Macao, some local producers began to seek their own uniqueness and tell their stories through audiovisual media. In order to promote the development of local film talent and Macao film culture, a non-profit organization, Creative Macau- Center for Creative I ndustries, organized an international film competition to provide a platform for people to communicate and improve the film art. “Sound and Image Challenge International Festival”, which has been held for eight years, encourages local and overseas productions to compete i n M a c a o. T h e f e s t i v a l i s o p e n t o both audiovisual professionals and beginners. There are more than 4000 works submitted from the whole world in the international short film c o m p e t i t i o n – “ S h o r t s” a n d m u s i c video competition – “ Volume”. The honor guests are influential and the film selection is deliberated. U m a c B r i d g e s i nv i t e d t h e fe s t i v a l d i re c to r Lú c i a Le m o s to s h a re h e r views on the festival and Macao films. Le m o s i s t h e D i r e c t o r M e m b e r o f the Festival Committee, and also the Coordinator of Creative Macao. She h a s b e e n wo r k i n g i n t h e C re a t i ve M acau as a projec t manager since 2003, responsible for operating the programs, which include competitions, workshops and master classes and so on.
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R (Reporter): How did the Festival start? L (Lemos): It started in 2010, in the form of competition of audiovisuals for creative people in Macao. As we knew the gaming industry was looking for local talent of audiovisual for event marketing, the festival would help both the creators and casinos. R: What is the difference between the festival this year and the previous years? L: The festival has become an international short film festival since 2015 and is getting better year after year. For the submissions of “Shorts” and “Volume”, we accept films in the following categories: Animation, Fiction and Documentary. For the festival in 2017, we will organize more master classes and the increased number of films will be the major attraction for local audiences. We have films from all continents, so the variety is huge as well as the genres. R: What are the specializations of people involved in this project? L: Currently, we have three full-time staff with degrees in the areas of Management of the Arts, Design and Business of Information System. Until now, we have had two interns majoring in Communication from the University of Macau, two interns majoring jn Communication and Media from University of Saint Joseph, part-time staff with academic background in Journalism and Media, and Visual Arts. There are six volunteer students from Film Production, and Communication and Media.
R: Is there any suggestion to promote the development of small-budget movies? L: Now, people want to make big and good films to compete in the worldwide festivals, which mean they want to be known and recognized by their peers. However, it is more important for small and good films to deliver specific messages to the world or community. The audience can tell if the film is good or not despite its budget. What a movie director should consider is to express creativity and himself or herself. Umac Bridges Fall 2017
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R: What are the practical difficulties the project encounters? L: None. In fact, we just do what the budget can afford. We do enjoy organizing it every year and we are creating a program to attract more audience.
R: How do you find new potential producers and works from the candidates? L: It is very easy. The best films usually get the same scores from each Grand Jury member. The result is unanimous.
R: What are the differences between a “film curator" and “festival director” to you? L: A film curator is a film critic who usually writes film reviews and advises organizers of film festivals. The festival director in my case is a planner and organizer who executes the program, making the Festival happen.
R: How can local independent films be improved and well-known at the festival? L : E v e r y y e a r, w e s h o w c a s e e x t r a l o c a l f i l m productions at the festival and set up the Best Local Entr y Award to encourage our local producers. The music video competition “Volume” also advocates local music and inspires Macao filmmakers to produce videos based on the original songs.
R: How are winning films selected from a huge amount of materials? L: We invite the six winners of last year to serve as pre-jury selection. They will score the films from 1-10, films scored the highest become the finalists. Those finalist films will be sent to the Grand Jury consisting of the Portuguese News and Program Controller TDM João Francisco Pinto, Shanghai film director Liang Cheng and Hong Kong film director Zeming Zhang for the evaluation of winning films.
R: What do you think of Macao’s local movies? What is the issue? L: Macao is very small. Although there are more than 20 Macao professional filmmakers, the scale is small due to the nonexistent market. The filmmakers are struggling with the limited range of consumers, production and investors. If the government decides to open the film market and gives facilities to international investors, producers, movie directors in a way similar to the policies of casinos, Macao will be one of the centers of the film industry.
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By Jennifer Iun
10 years adventure in local cultural and creative industry 5 2
By Jennifer Iun
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0 years ago, Macao didn’t have a cultural and creative industry, but only some independent artists. Since October 2013, the Macao government set up a foundation to invest in the cultural industry. With an annual budget of MOP200 million, local artists are creating local brands in different corners of the city. What is the direction of the development of Macao’s cultural industry? The local entrepreneur William Keong has much to say about it. Keong, 37, a graduate from King’s College London, is the chairman of the local cultural company 100Plus Cultural Development Limited. Keong claimed that he has been in the field of cultural and creative ndustry for more than 12 years, starting as a local music producer. R (Reporter): Why did you start your music career in Macao when there was no music scene and business 12 years ago? K (Keong): During 2003, it was difficult in Macao. During the outbreak of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) within the region, the city was “pretty dead”. I came back to Macao after SARS to see if I could help to rebuild our damaged tourism industry. After SARS, our government came up with some policies to attract tourists, including many free music shows as stimulations. There were many gigs in Macao and musicians were able to make a living. Of course, there were offers from Hong Kong too, so I usually traveled between Hong Kong and Macao for shows and music productions as a freelancer. R: When did the business sector start to spring up? K: It was 2006, when there were more casinos operating in Macao, the entertainment and music business started to grow, and there were many opportunities. We built our services around music as a start and connected with many clients. From 2006 to 2011 it was a fast-growing period, and we expanded our team and services. We also connected with many international clients and optimized our quality to fulfill different challenges. For example, we started to have the “Global Stars” concert in Macao, and the “Global Entertainment Events” worldwide.
R: What did you achieve during the last 10 years of adventure? K: Music wise, I individually produced more than 50 songs and 10 albums, some were awarded winning songs. I produced and composed theme music for some International events organized in Macao, such as the 2007 Asian Indoor Game, Lusofonia 2017 and Parade through Macao, Latin City 2014. I am the founder of 100 Plus Music, and we organize the biggest local music festival called “Hush!!Full Band Festival.� We also nurture local artists and bands such as C-Plus, Blademark, Catalyser, Aki and Jason Chang. In 2014, we started to fund and develop different creative startups. Manner Production as one of them, has become the most popular online entertainment channel in Macao. R: How about the local cultural development? K: In March 2010, the government established the Department for Promoting Cultural and Creative Industries to foster the industry development. Two months later, they set up the Cultural Industry Committee for the purpose of collecting public opinions on the development of Macao’s cultural industry, and formulating policies and measures that met the needs of local communities. As an experienced operator and enterprise in Macao, we were invited for consultation about
our industrial needs, and in order to develop our creative industry, we certainly need funds and policies for cultural development. We are then committed to the creation of multiple platforms for artists, platform operators and consumers to interact closely. We endeavor to facilitate the collaboration in the three key areas in the cultural and creative industries: creativity, production and distribution, and sales and marketing. Our mission is to raise the overall quality of local cultural development and to promote the cultural and creative industry of Macao. R: What is the current situation of the creative industry? As a further step to support the development of local cultural and creative industry, the government set up a fund with an annual budget of MOP200 million so as to boost the local cultural industry. Since the fund was established, there have been more artists and companies who use the fund for different projects. There are more than 100 projects now since 2015. We are yet to see the result of all these projects, but the creative scene is looking positive and we have many young people joining the industry. Hopefully, we can see some successful cases and projects by 2020.
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he Putong concert, t h e f i r s t co n ce r t organized by the Putong singing club, was held in the University of Macau (UM) Student Activity Centre on September 15. It was also the first charity performance in UM this year, which was supported by about 200 students and raised funds of MOP4000.
"Singing is a form of beauty, and so is charity," Leung added. Solo by Sherley Leung
A gift of music By Javen Lin
Performers are dressing up
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Putong means "common" in Chinese. The leader of the organizer, Sherley Leung, who is also the director of this concert said that all the earnings from this concert would be donated to Fuhong Macau, a non-profit local organization devoted to helping the disabled. Leung shared her story about voluntary activities with Fuhong Macau, "I'd like to convert a singing party to a meaningful charity contribution. After discussing with my groupmates,
we finally decided to donate the funds to Fuhong Macau since we share the same vision." Audience gave positive comments about the concert. One of the audience members, Hanwen Wang said, "I'm surprised that they handed out the albums as gifts to all the audience and I'm glad to be able to enjoy a different version of these beautiful s o n g s a t h o m e ." To a n s w e r t h e question whether the charity purpose influenced his decision to come, Wang said, "Absolutely. I even promoted this message to my friends and asked them to come to support this significant concert." Another audience member Niko who preferred anonymity also agreed with Wang. "Well, even though it didn't change my mind since I am here to support my idol, I do believe there are a lot of students who were attracted by it," she said.
A spectator is taking photo of ticket and album
Niko's idol is Dingyuan Xu, who is a member of the Putong singing club and a student in UM. Xu looked shy when he said, "The reason I took part in the Putong Club is that there is a very relaxing atmosphere to enjoy the happiness of singing. I have never thought about being an idol and having fans, that is complicated." Leung, however, believed that was good news not only for singers but also for the whole singing club. "The expectation from our audience can inspire us to become better," she said.
Performance in the concert
The China Mainland Student Association (CMSA) of UM also gave a strong support in stage management and media control. The Putong singing club was founded as a sub-club under CMSA. With the growth, the club members are confident to promote the art of singing to more audiences. Earlier this year, they have just released their first album also named in Putong. As Leung said, the reason they call themselves "Putong" is that they believe each one in the club is just a normal student in UM, but their enthusiasm in singing makes the club blossom on stage and help charitable organizations in society.
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Photos by Paula Miranda Umac Bridges Fall 2017
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Op
By : Priscilla Lo
Journey of art :
Obstacles
TUNI T IES Por And
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L Every artist faces a unique set of difficulties especially for artists in Macao. But what makes them keep on creating and promoting art in Macao?
aura Sofia, 31, artistic director of performing art group Macao Artfusion, says that one of the biggest issues for them is the venues. Venues for rehearsal and venues to perform. Macao has wonderful places but the prices are extremely high and the availability is always limited.
“Despite the fact that Macao is small, it is an amazing destiny for art lovers. We have several festivals, events and parade. Art could be easily spread to the streets and indoor venues due to the diversity of performances. These inspire us to create something special and unique. Macao provides opportunities to local institutions, associations and groups to bring their expressions of culture and art to life,” Sofia says Sofia goes on to to explain that Macao is a multicultural destination and it is able to create a closer relationship between the city and artists; sculptors, writers, painters, performers, musicians, poets, architects, designers and so on. “We can actually make Macao a better place,” she says.
Photos by Paula Miranda
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Photos by Nico Fernandes
"The awareness of collecting and appreciating artwork is very weak in Macao. I can only sell my artworks once in a while so a lot of my artworks are used for exhibition purpose, "explains Lai Sio Kit, a local artist, who picked up a brush at the age of six, had been studying art in Beijing for seven years. “There are a lot of limitations of doing art in Macao. For instance, some exhibition halls or museums usually have a limited space. Therefore, large pieces of artwork can not be perfectly displayed,� he adds. Lai goes on to explain that the limitation also means inspiration. "It motivated me to turn the same piece of artwork into a totally different way." Because when the artwork makes connections with the space, it can be recreated and reverted through imagination according to the offered conditions and space. As a result, it can deliver brand new perspectives to the audience. Lai thinks that it is very tough to survive in Macao as an artist. Apart from creating artworks, he has to teach part-time at Macao institutions because most of the time, an artist will be paid insufficient income if he does not work in other fields. Therefore, this makes it very hard to continue the journey of art. Umac Bridges Fall 2017
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Magazine in MACAO BY Evelyn Hsu
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ith a flourish of Internet media, fewer people use paper magazines to catch the news. However, some values of magazines can’t be replaced.
The content of magazines in Macao gives “Life” as a priority, the style is relaxed and fun. The editor in SD Magazine, Tek Cheang said that most people in Macao aren’t interested in political issues or some serious topics, so the subjects of local magazines are concentrated on food, travel, and some interesting reports. “I want more people to know Macao,” Ally Li, publisher of local magazine SD Magazine shared the motivation of establishing a magazine publishing company. “When it comes to Macao, people will always associate it with casinos and gambling, therefore, some negative stereotypes are in tourists’ minds. ... However, there is lots of delicious food and fun things in Macao, but no proper intermediary channels to introduce Macao to the world,” Li said. So she decided to publish SD Magazine, and let people know wonderful Macao. SD Magazine has been publishing for eight years, and increased its reputation in the region successfully. But the magazine is considered as book publication with the “Book Number”, the laws don’t recognize magazines as a media. As a result, magazine publishing companies are not qualified to get media subsidies from the government like newspaper publishing.
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"Paper media is NOT dead” SD Magazine publishes 45,000 copies monthly and is distributed free of charge to audiences. So the main revenue is from the advertisement. They will find some stores or activity organizers as their sponsors, and report their products, events or carry their ads in the magazine. With new media springing up like mushrooms, people change their use behavior with the new media. New media is more convenient and immediate, lots of people thus prefer to use the Internet media instead of print media. Will paper media disappear in the future? Cheang doesn’t think that magazines will be defeated by the new media. He said different media has different functions. The Internet media reports urgent news, and the magazine carries indepth converge. Li agreed. She believes that there are unique designs in magazines that make a story more powerful. “A magazine is not just a magazine. It is a content producer,” Li said. The most important value in a magazine is its unique “content” which can’t be replaced by other media. Despite the content, Cheang considered “typographic design” is another main feature in magazines, as it brings multi-style reports and more vitality. These functions cannot be achieved on Internet media.
Despite the characteristics of magazines, Macao people’s habits are also a crucial element for the development of magazines. Cheang said that Macao people are used to accessing information by reading books, because a substantial object brings people a sense of security and reality, and the quality is examined thoroughly. In addition to audience, sponsors are the other powerful supporters of magazines. Compared to the Internet media, they prefer to invest in the “visible and tangible things”. With financial support, magazines remain in an invincible position in the era of information explosion. With changing times, one type of media can’t exist independently nowadays. Li said SD Magazine turned to an integrated media named “SD Media” about four years ago. It not only publishes magazines, but also holds some PR events and performs content marketing in Facebook now. With multiple media, audiences can access different concepts and information. Different media has different values, but when they are integrated together, the influence is unlimited.
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anner Production is a local entertainment brand which mainly focuses on comedy video promotion on social media platforms. One of the founders, Luk Chi Ho (Six Cents), who is also the CEO of Manner, came to UM on October 11 and shared his entrepreneurial story.
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Manner: Creativity matters most By Javen Lin
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The founding of Manner started from a bigger dream," Luk said. In his perspective, children always have unbound probability and creativity, which becomes limited gradually when they grow up. He used himself as an example, "I wanted to become a superman or a scientist when I was young. Even though I realized it was impossible when I grew up, I still have a dream of being different." On his way to follow the dream, he produced the music video "Those were the days" which was the first video broadcast on Manner's YouTube channel. It earned about 100,000 clicks in several days after its release as it brought up a common childhood memory in Macao people's mind. Recently, since Manner has achieved a success not only in the Macao market but also Great China and Southeast Asian markets, Luk has a bigger dream to build a Chinese entertainment brand. High-quality content that caters to the target audience is the foundation of Manner. From 2013, when Manner was founded, to now, Manner has grown from just two founders to five departments; Manner's business was broadened to not only video production but also marketing, artist management, cultural per formance, manner music, ac tivity design and other peripheral products; Manner's audience grew in multiple social networks, including Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Weibo, WeChat, Meipai, and
Miaopai. However, their aspiration to create more high-quality content, has never changed. It is a pleasant discovery that its nine-secondlong short video about "Ice-cream in hand" was spread widely. Even the audience from South Korea and Australia gave appreciation comments which inspire the Manner team. "H igh- qualit y content is universal," Luk summarized. The entrepreneurs' story can never be an easy ride. Manner is also facing several challenges from many aspects like the high labor cost in Macao, and the limited market of local culture. However, Luk held that worrying about failure can kill the creativity. "When we explored our business in HK, I was shocked by peers there. The mature industry, the experienced peers, especially their executive ability, all of these aspects are better than ours. So, the only advantage of Manner is the creativity. And I believe it is sufficient to sustain us to go further," said Luk. Unlike many We-media initiators, Luk believed that creativity is not the patent which belongs only to talents. It is hidden in everyone's mind and the value depends on how to explore it. "Manner pays attention to the field we have a mania for. No matter how hard it will be in the future, I will always be honest with myself," he added.
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B y H e at h e r Je a n B i rk el a n d The rattan industry might be in its final season in Macao. Some even believe that it has the longest history among all other “traditional” industries in the city. Once flourishing with over 20 factories in the 70s, it has scaled down to one last surviving store – Rui Ji Rattan Company ( 瑞記籐器公司 ).
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rs. Tang, wife of the owner of Rui Ji, has been in the industry for over 30 years. According to Tang, the shop has been around for 19 years, but they stopped making their own rattan furnitures around three years ago due to old age, the lack of workers and high labor costs. She stated that people from Macao nowadays seldom choose to use traditional rattan furniture. Although the business is diminishing, she stated that there will always be a certain group of people looking for rattan furniture so “it will never be completely dead”. This type of traditional art of furniture making has been around Macao before WWII and had a prominent place in our trading history with Europe. However, most of the industries didn’t survive the development of the fast-growing city and the process of making rattan furniture remains vague to many of us. “Rattan”, a word originated from the Malaysian word “Rotan” is the main stem of climbing palm. It's an extraordinarily versatile material extremely durable and strong, flexible yet resilient. Mrs. Tang explained that one rattan chair takes three to 10 days to complete. “Back in the day,” she said, “there would be 3-4 workers working in our house and each in charge of a specific task.”
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There are the seven steps of rattan fur niture making: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
The outer soft layer of the rattan is first peeled, sanded and measured The rattan needs to be soaked in sulfur to prevent insects from decaying the rattan Heat is then used to shape and blend the rattan to from and create different curves The burnt rattan skin must be scraped off before nailing the main frame together Then the process of cane binding is used for both decorative purposes and additional strength of the joins, but canes must be applied wet, because the binding will shrink as they dry 6. Polish the whole furniture and then spray color if necessary, this process will be repeated a few times 7. Varnish and lacquer are then painted on the rattan furniture
The art of making rattan furniture might be on the verge of disappearing in Macao, but everything has a beginning and an end, all new things must have a past. Nowadays, instead of the traditional rattan furniture, we see more and more plastic rattan furniture emerging into our society, which according to Mrs. Tang is actually “more durable against the rain and the sun�. The old Macao is passing as the old rattan industry is passing, but it is the foundation of the city we are building upon, and hopefully it’s giving birth to a new and better version of Macao. Umac Bridges Fall 2017
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By Queenie, Leong Weng Kuan Almost midnight, I was on my way home after the delightful acoustic gathering at my friend's home. I was walking along the Macau Canidrome ( 逸 園 賽 狗 場 ) when I kept hearing dogs' howling in a soft and low volume. This is the first time I felt tangibly the existence of the Macau Canidrome.
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ith the gambling policy in Macao, the entrance of the Macau Canidrome is restricted to people who are under 18 years old, except in daytime while it is used as a public stadium for young and old to do sports. Ten years ago when I was still in primary school, the Macau Canidrome was meant to be a “2C” stadium“Cheap” and “Convenient” for high schools to hold their annual sports day. And I had been to the Macau Canidrome once or twice for this purpose. However, I had never seen any greyhounds and races in it until now. I have already turned eligible to enter and experience this conventional and unique gambling in Macao. I decided to come in and take a look. There are 12 races on every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday night. Before entering the Macau Canidrome, every viewer is charged MOP10 for admission fee at the entrance. Six to eight starved Australian greyhounds chase after an electric rabbit in a race, and cameras are prohibited in the Macau Canidrome, the same as in all the casinos.
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By my own eyes, there were just a few members of the audience inside and most of them were elderly. Although the betting methods are diversified to mobile betting or Internet betting nowadays, I believe most people tend to bet in glamorous casinos rather than in the Macau Canidrome. Also, the minimum bet amount of MOP10 probably explains why elderly would be the vast majority of this gambling. The Macau Canidrome has over 80 years of history. However, the size of audience is significantly decreasing and is now in a world of difference compared with the early years. Decades ago, people reserved boxes to watch races and queued in long lines for betting in the Macau Canidrome. But now, you may probably see less than a hundred people in the audience at a random night in the Macau Canidrome. Anima Macau, a non-profit association promoting animal rights and welfare, claimed that a year of revenue in the Macau Canidrome was just equal to four hours of revenue in a casino. However, there were 360 dogs at a minimum being killed due to injury and illness each year in the Macau Canidrome. The coming July 21, 2018, the Macau Canidrome will be closed and the land has to be returned to the Macau SAR government even though there is still no concrete construction plan on this site. However, the closure means almost 650 dogs from the Macau Canidrome will be waiting for their future fate, adoption or else. Therefore, for those who want a pet, kindly consider adopting the dogs in the Macau Canidrome or the Macau Greyhound Adoption Program for adopting retired dogs in the Macau Canidrome.
Today, the Macau Canidrome is the only place for the dog race gambling on the globe. Leong On Kei, executive director of the Macau Canidrome, suggested to build a museum for this fading tradition. Although many people may welcome the closure of the Macau Canidrome because of noisy dog barking, a girl in her early 20s who lives with her family in one block of Iat Lai Garden said, “I got used to it and was not annoyed with the dogs bark at night. And the closing of the Macau Canidrome would be a loss of convention and a pity, since the Macau Canidrome was the symbol of my living district.�
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Pride By Fio Lei
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Hong Kong
T
he prosperous sk yscrapers with shiny light decorations seem to be the heaven of freedom to all the outsiders. Yet for Hong Kong locals, they are a high-rise cage which entraps their dreams and possibilities. "If you really live in Hong Kong, you will understand the pressure of being squeezed and crashed by reality, and you are only the follower of your life, not the master of it," Si Chan, a fresh graduate of Hong Kong University, said. In this fantasy city, even people with graduate degrees couldn't really make a difference in their life and career because of the "insane" standard of living. "That's what we call losing at the start line," Chan said sarcastically. "It is not the point of welcoming elites or not into this city. Of course we all want the best for Hong Kong, but when people keep crowding into our place, it leaves us no place to develop while we have already been struggling all our lives." Indeed, Hong Kong is a highly competitive city and suffocates people with compelling pressure.
ger's perspective
Despite the stereotype of manners and cultural differences between mainland Chinese and Hong Kongers, it's the imbalance and attitude that caused the tension. "Locals can hardly live peacefully without worries about housing and jobs. Look! Mainlanders could easily spend HK$5 million for housing just to get a better chance for their kids entering a kindergarten. That's just squeezing our resources under this imbalanced condition." From the perspective of Hong Kongers, their anger seems reasonable as they encounter tremendous stress and pressure in their daily life while there are hundreds and thousands of people rushing into this city. In this ridiculous city, it is already impossible for them to fight for their future in their own place based on their effort, "You can't control it and you can't escape it," said. For Hong Kongers, living in this stressful situation day by day, is unimaginable when we put ourselves in their shoes. "We do accept mainland students but they are just different from us, from living to working or even language. There are barriers for us to communicate. Most importantly, the situation is just unfair for us." Without any protection from the government, the imbalance even gets worse and fur ther destroys the feeling of accommodating and understanding. "I think if the government could revise the regulation to protect, or just give a little preference for locals, we won' t have that anger or rejection." Living in this unescapable cage, all they wish for is peace and ease to walk through and continue their lives without continuously bur ning down their hope.
Courtesy : Donny Herlambang
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Hong Konger voyager's perspective
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unnels with yellowish light, buildings covering the skyline of the city and the racing crowd from day to night are the lively symbols of this fantasy city - Hong Kong - where most people cherish a dream for their future. There are a large number of people from all over the world who want to squeeze into this busy city every year, including those from neighboring regions of mainland China and Macao, who dream about the freedom and creativity of this city, but never foresee complications caused by "cultural differences". "Yet it is a good experience this year," said Elsa [she prefers not to give her surname], a master student in Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU). Elsa was a communication student from Fudan University, one of the top universities in China. With all her efforts and resources, she made at HKBU and looked forward to all the freedoms and diversities. "People here aren't as I expected them to be," she said, exhaling a deep breath after the tough year. From the perspective of mainland students, Hong Kong should be a place with diversities and acceptance for educated people, especially if they are within the same country. They never thought of the problem of "cultural differences". Yet this acceptance doesn't apply to them in general - the complications between Hong Kong and mainland China caused negative feelings between Hong Kong citizens and dream chasers from the mainland. "They don't generally accept us as part of their own because we are from mainland China!"
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For mainland students, the main reason that they want to crowd into this fantasy city is because they are aware of the restrictions in the mainland, while Hong Kong is a transition place for them to seek more freedom. There is an immigration rule that for any individual who works and lives in Hong Kong for seven years, they could be granted a permanent resident identity. For those educated dream chasers, even though these seven years might be a tough torture, it is still worth it for the pay off. "It's laughable when people tease you because of their limited perspective. Just like they will tease us because we don't know the unwritten rule of not using coins in common places but in most mainland cities, we hardly bring any cash because all we use is mobile payment, even for grocery shopping in a marketplace." From the perspective of Hong Kongers, welcoming more mainland students means that their welfares are being shared instead of increasing the productivity of this city - this is one of the main reasons for the dispute. "No matter how hard we tried to fight for respect, they teased us and attributed all the wrong doings caused by cultural differences as the mainlanders' fault," she continued. "Sometimes you are just discriminated against because you speak Mandarin or use Alipay, but when you speak English or use Apple Pay, it is totally another case. It is funny that we both are Chinese but because of minor cultural "Chinese" differences, we are being excluded," Elsa satirized with a helpless face. Indeed, the complications between Hong Kongers and mainland students become more dramatic due to the political relationship and media amplification, which have caused the pain and wounded cultural bonds of both places. "Though is it tougher than I thought, I hope this situation can be resolved with my persistence, that's the insightful thought of the Hong Kong voyager," Elsa said with determination.
Macao Perspective
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ecalling the time when I was about to start my Hong Kong journey a year ago, I was yearning for the experience of diversities and superiorities of Hong Kong which is celebrated as "the international city". Aside from education and "cultural experience" in Hong Kong, an insight into the "Chinese dispute" is one of the best episodes of my experience in this journey. As a student coming from the "Oriental Las Vegas", the image of luxurious casinos and prosperities of the city become the symbol of Macao, yet people do not dig deeper into the city. While fighting over such stereotypical questions as "do all people work as casino dealers" or "is there any television station in Macao" from the Hong Kong side, you still got to deal with the concepts and ideologies from the mainland counterpart of "China's little brother" or even sometimes being expected to join the singing of the "Seven Songs of the Son" which symbolizes Macao as a lost son of China yearning to return to the motherland.
Unlike either side of the dispute, I as a rare international student coming from Macao stood at a neutral position. While Hong Kongers hold a positive attitude towards Macao people yet with a stereotype from the 1980s; mainland Chinese think we are a little brother of them. This in-the-middle position enables me to understand the difficulties of Hong Kongers and at the same time feel the compassion for dream chasing from mainland classmates. There is no right or wrong in this situation but just different position and perspective. After a year of mesmerizing experience in Hong Kong, instead of caring about fulfilling expectations in Hong Kong, I embrace the environment which has widened my perspective to understand my surrounding. All I wish and hope for is the resolve of this innocent, yet complicated dispute. It is not only about the harvest of the year but the personal growth within this mess. This is often my answer to all the queries I receive about my one-year graduate life in Hong Kong.
Courtesy : Healthycliff Syndor Umac Bridges Fall 2017
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: s t r po
eS
e k Ta
he Internet serves as a ubiquitous medium connecting the whole world. There’s a burgeoning industry, eSports, which is getting more and more attentions nowadays. The eSports is a form of competition that is facilitated by electronic systems, especially video games. With an infinite potential, the industry keeps growing at a fast pace. The eSports offers a new field for Macao to develop.
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Cheang Chi Hou, a 20-year-old local semi-pro player, has been playing the online game “Counter Strike” for eight years, he said that it’s tough to make a living in Macao as a pro player since there is nearly no support from the government in eSports. He said that one of his teammates quit eSports and went to Taiwan to study his bachelor degree, but he would like to stay in this field for new opportunities. The eSports players are hired to take part in competitions and online streaming so as to attract audience and spectators with their advanced skills. “There’s only MOP5,000 a month for working as a pro player in Macao, but a mainland team would offer me RMB4,000 a month.” said Cheang, adding that the local salary for a pro player is unreasonable. In fact, eSports has enjoyed a progressive increase both in revenue and audience following on the Internet, which indicates its popularity. Subordinated businesses like streaming, KOL marketing, advertising and so on benefit from eSports. According to an article written by Peter Warman, CEO of a Market research company Newzoo, the eSports revenue in the globe will reach US$696 million this year and will grow to 1.5 billion by 2020 as brand investment doubles. Umac Bridges Fall 2017
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eSports also provides high prize for the players. League of Legends, the most popular game in the world, has its own professional world championship hosted annually with US$5.07 million of the prize pool in 2016. Only 32 teams were invited from different parts of the world to participate in this event. South Korea is believed to have the most developed eSports industry in the world, according to the information from the Statistic Portal. Its sales revenue amounted to US$9.48 billion in 2013 and is estimated to reach US$10.5 billion by 2018. Also, the Korean government has an umbrella organization solely focused on the governing of eSports known as the Korea e-Sports Association (KeSpa). From pro players to coaches, the eSports industry has a relatively comprehensive system which takes care of the eSports insiders, and provides them with subsidies and post-retirement employments. In August 2017, an E-Sports and Music Festival was held by the Hong Kong Tourism Board, which was the very first eSports-themed event all over the world, according to the Hong Kong Tourist Board. It attracted more than 50,000 site visitors and five million online audience within three days. More and more places are attaching great importance to eSports as a new business of economic development. Being a place which lacks diversity in its industries, the Macao government is advised to start to examine the trend and put more effort on supporting the local eSports insiders, since they may be useful resources for future eSports development.
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By Charlotte Lei
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ach clothing item in our wardrobes comes from a piece of cloth, but we don't seem to get a clothing item starting with a piece of cloth.
The walls of the shop are heavily lined with floor-to-ceiling shelves with fabric swatches hanging. Ranging from chiffon, velvet, cotton, silk, to leather, fabric rolls are tied and some leave the ends loose which swing in the air. At the back, the embroidery on cheongsam (qipao) fabrics reflects the little spotlights, glittering like hidden treasures. Walking in the store, people need to pass through the bushes of fabrics.
Lei, 59 years old, has been in the industry for 30 years. "Selling fabrics is our family business and I followed my dad with no doubt," he says. Lei's 90-year-old father had sold fabrics for 50 years before he retired. The family started their little business as a hawker. From a fabric stall, they expanded their business to two branch shops. Currently, they only maintain the store located in Rua de Fern?o Mendes Pinto, "The fruit street" as the locals call it, which gathers most of the fabric shops and tailor stores in Macao.
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While some people still order tailor-made causal wear, Lei adds that companies and institutions, such as schools, government departments and offices, have been choosing tailor-made outfits for uniforms. The amateurish use of fabrics is very common as well as people use fabrics for school works, handicrafts or home decorations, etc. "Bespoke clothes are durable due to the materials and it is undeniable and important that they fit you the most," he says.
Lei unties a fabric roll on a big cutting table and naturally puts that white rope around his neck; he holds the scissors with his callused fingers. Often smiling, Lei turns to a stern face for a second. A piece of cloth slightly falls on the table as the scissors drive through the cloth in a perfect straight line. Immersed in a culture of fast fashion and ready-to-wear apparel, do we consider buying fabrics for bespoke clothing outdated? Instead, it is likely to become one of the fashion luxuries. Many people still explore in the jungle of patterns and seek out new outfit ideas, enjoying the art of how clothes are created from fabrics.
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