Life Disrupted and Regenerated: Coping With the ‘New Normal’ Creative Arts in the Time of Coronavirus
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33736/ijbs.3759.2021Keywords:
COVID-19, Cordon Sanitaire, Creative Arts, Disruption, RegenerationAbstract
A global pandemic caused by COVID-19 virus since December 2019 has developed into a fearsome situation more than any common global contagion. In combating COVID-19 worldwide, governments instigated a precautionary cordon sanitaire in various degrees. Live music, cinema and film festivals were inevitably cancelled, causing artists to become alienated from their audience. This paper aims to illuminate how practitioners of the creative industry cope with the drastic disruption due to the COVID-19 outbreak as well as the means of regenerating ‘life’, which refers to that of a creative artist in a narrower sense, and to that of the industry in a broader sense. Adopting a combined methodology of autoethnography and virtual ethnography, the authors explore their encounters with the informants and the development of the creative arts scene. The subject of disruption and regeneration in the creative arts industry is approached through feasible methods and tools they could render in this unique lived experience. They hope to construct a view containing some perspectives on the transcendence of creative practitioners from the disruption to the survival of the pandemic’s impact, as well as the regeneration of how creative arts would persevere in the ‘new normal’ of the post-COVID-19 era.
References
Abdullah, S. (2020, August 3). Malaysia film industry to get moving in six months. The Star. https://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/entertainment/2020/08/03/malaysia-film-industry-to-get-moving-in-six-months
AFP (2020, April 23). Netflix sees subscription surge during COVID-19 lockdown. New Strait Times. https://www.nst.com.my/world/world/2020/04/586786/netflix-sees-subscription-surge-during-COVID-19-lockdown
Astro Ceria. (2020, June 5). Telemovie PKPB pertama di Malaysia | SMK Raya Dekat Jauh | 7 malam ini | teaser [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/49i7EFsqEUU
British Broadcasting Corporation. (2020, April 22). Netflix gets 16 million new sign-ups thanks to lockdown. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-52376022
Bectu (2020, March 18). Freelancers' top fear is how to pay the bills, finds Bectu coronavirus survey. Bectu. https://bectu.org.uk/news/freelancers-top-fear-is-how-to-pay-the-bills-finds-bectu-coronavirus-survey/
Buckley, L., & Ward, H. (2015). Getting good at disruption in an uncertain world: Insights from southern NGO leaders. IIED working paper. International Institute Environment and Development.
Bunde-Birouste, A., Byrne, F., & Kemp, L. (2019). Autoethnography. In P. Liamputtong (ed.), Handbook of research methods in health social sciences. Singapore: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5251-4_86
Business Research Company. (2020, June 12). Surge in demand for over-the-top content (OTT) streaming channels due to COVID-19 - TBRC report insights. Cision PR Newswire. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/surge-in-demand-for-over-the-top-content-ott-streaming-channels-due-to-COVID-19---tbrc-report-insights-301075023.html
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus. (2020). Regenerate. Cambridge advanced learner's dictionary & thesaurus. Cambridge University Press.
Cambridge English Dictionary. (n.d.). Creative industry. The Cambridge English Dictionary. Retrieved December 31, 2020, from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/creative-industry
Cameron, S., & Coaffee, J. (2005). Art, gentrification and regeneration - from artist as pioneer to public arts. European Journal of Housing Policy, 5(1), 39-58. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616710500055687
Cerreta, M., Daldanise, G., & Sposito, S. (2018). Culture-led regeneration for urban spaces: Monitoring complex values networks in action. Urbani Izziv, 29, 9-28. https://doi.org/10.5379/urbani-izziv-en-2018-29-supplement-001
Christensen, C. M., & Overdorf, M. (2000). Meeting the challenge of disruptive change. Harvard Business Review, 78(2), 66-76. https://hbr.org/2000/03/meeting-the-challenge-of-disruptive-change.
Chooie, Z. (2020, May 20). In Malaysia Freelance Production Crew - TV/Film/Video [Video]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/694630238/videos/10157995512030239
Choong, J. (2020, May 26). Cinema companies in Malaysia tighten belts amid revenue downturn from MCO. The Malay Mail. https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/05/26/cinema-companies-in-malaysia-tighten-belts-amid-revenue-downturn-from-mco/1869746
Chow, V. (2020, June 30). Malaysia's MIFFest Planning Smaller Real-World Edition (Exclusive). Variety. https://variety.com/2020/film/asia/malaysia-miffest-festival-smaller-real-world-edition-1234694139/
Chua, D. (2020, May 15). #Showbiz: Filmmakers seek urgent talks with PM on resuming industry. New Straits Times. https://www.nst.com.my/lifestyle/groove/2020/05/592880/showbiz-filmmakers-seek-urgent-talks-pm-resuming-industry
Culture Economy Development Agency. (CENDANA) (2020a). COVID-19 impact to the arts report (Report No. 2). CENDANA. https://www.cendana.com.my/clients/Cendana_78A7CADC-1C4A-44E8-A815-E2B4C1D11FE0/contentms/img/COVID/COVIDreport-29may2020.pdf
Culture Economy Development Agency. (CENDANA) (2020b). Audience propensity to return to arts activities and venues report (Report No. 4). CENDANA. https://www.cendana.com.my/clients/Cendana_78A7CADC-1C4A-44E8-A815-E2B4C1D11FE0/contentms/img/Propensity%20Report/audience-propen_46939576-june12.pdf
Curtin, M., & Sanson, K. (Eds.). (2016). Precarious creativity: Global media, local labour. University of California Press. https://doi.org/10.1525/luminos.10
Dasgupta, D. (2020, April 26). Casual workers hit as Bollywood comes to a standstill amid COVID-19 pandemic. The Straits Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/south-asia/casual-workers-hit-as-bollywood-comes-to-a-standstill
de Peuter, G. (2011). Creative economy and labour precarity: A contested convergence. Journal of Communication Inquiry, 35(4), 417-425. https://doi.org/10.1177/0196859911416362
Desk, N. (2020, July 17). UNIMAS Film Festival goes online. New Sarawak Tribune. https://www.newsarawaktribune.com.my/unimas-film-festival-goes-online/
El-Erian, Mohamed A. (2010). Navigating the new normal in industrial countries. International Monetary Fund.
Giardina, C. (2020, March 18). Estimated 120,000 entertainment industry crew jobs lost during pandemic. The Hollywood Reporter. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/behind-screen/estimated-120000-iatse-jobs-lost-pandemic-1285229
Guest, P. (2020, April 1). How the coronavirus is reshaping Asia's borders, business and trade: as countries turn inward, pandemic threatens the foundations of globalisation. Nikkei Asian Review. https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Cover-Story/How-the-coronavirus-is-reshaping-Asia-s-borders-business-and-trade
Hassandarvish, M. (2020, June 30). COVID-19: After over 100 days of closure, cinema operators in Malaysia ready to welcome back moviegoers. The Malay Mail. https://www.malaymail.com/news/showbiz/2020/06/30/COVID-19-after-over-100-days-of-closure-cinema-operators-in-malaysia-ready/1880179
Hine, C. (2015). Ethnography for the internet: Embedded, embodied and everyday. Bloomsbury.
HR Asia. (2017, October 27). Understanding the realities of the Malaysian freelancing economy. HR Asia. https://hrasiamedia.com/top-news/understanding-the-realities-of-the-malaysian-freelancing-economy/
IndieWire Staff (2020, August 11). Coronavirus cancellations: Every film, TV show, and event affected by the outbreak. IndieWire. https://www.indiewire.com/feature/coronavirus-cancellations-hollywood-entertainment-COVID19-1202215596/
Ishak, J. (n.d.). The gap in the creative industry ecosystem of Malaysia (Chapter 3 of fuelling the Kreativ Malaysia). My Creative. Retrieved December 22, 2020, from http://www.mycreative.com.my/news_events/the-gap-in-the-creative-industry-ecosystem-of-malaysia-chapter-3-of-fuellin
Johns Hopkins University & Medicine (n.d.). COVID-19 Dashboard by the Centre for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University and Medicine. Coronavirus Resource Centre, Johns Hopkins University & Medicine. Retrieved May 18, 2021, from https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
Karmy, E., & Urqueta, E. (2020, July 6). Musical workers' precarity uncovered and the revival of mutual aid in Chile. Hypotheses. https://wim.hypotheses.org/1393
Katz, B. (2020, May 21). Entertainment industry staring at $160B loss over 5 years due to COVID-19. Observer. https://observer.com/2020/05/coronavirus-film-tv-160-billion-loss-covid-pandemic/
Kay, A. (2000). Art and community development: The role the arts have in regenerating communities. Community Development Journal, 35(4), 414-424. https://doi.org/10.1093/cdj/35.4.414
Khoo, K. L. (2020, May 12). Advertising filmmakers appeal to be allowed to reopen for business. The Star. https://www.thestar.com.my/opinion/letters/2020/05/12/advertising-filmmakers-appeal-to-be-allowed-to-reopen-for-business
Lopez, K. A., & Willis, D. G. (2004). Descriptive versus interpretive phenomenology: Their contributions to nursing knowledge. Qualitative Health Research, 14, 726-735. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732304263638
Maganathan, D. K., & Toh, T. (2020, April 14). Life after COVID-19: Can the show go on for Malaysia's performing arts industry? The Star. https://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/culture/2020/04/14/life-after-covid-19-can-the-show-go-on-for-malaysia039s-performing-arts-industry
Malaysian National News Agency. (2020, April 8). 19th edition of French Film Festival at GSC cancelled due to MCO. BERNAMA. https://themalaysianreserve.com/2020/04/08/19th-edition-of-french-film-festival-at-gsc-cancelled-due-to-mco/.
Mini Film Festival (2020a, June 16). MFF Webinar 1: Production during COVID-19 [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/SK-ASZqep6k
Mini Film Festival (2020b, April 21). In case you missed out our post earlier on, the deadline for film submission have extended until 20th June, so [Image attached] [Status update]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/MFFunimas/photos/a.902664029801116/31211 99804614183
Morgan, G., & Nelligan, P. (2018). The creativity hoax: Precarious work in the gig economy. Anthem Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt1z27hwj
Omar, A. (2020, June 22). #Showbiz: Malaysia Film Festival 2020 postponed to next year. New Straits Times. https://www.nst.com.my/lifestyle/groove/2020/06/602521/showbiz-malaysia-film-festival-2020-postponed-next-year
Osman, D. (2020, March 18). In photo: Malaysia's border lockdown - before and after. Yahoo! News. https://sg.news.yahoo.com/in-photos-malaysias-border-lockdown-before-and-after-104615655.html
Pensoneau-Conway, S.L., & Toyosaki, S. (2011). Automethodology: tracing a home for praxis-oriented ethnography. Journal of Qualitative Methods, 10(4), 378-399. https://doi.org/10.1177/160940691101000406
Pulver, A. (2020, March 19). At least 170,000 lose jobs as film industry grinds to a halt due to coronavirus. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/mar/19/loss-of-jobs-income-film-industry-hollywood-coronavirus-pandemic-covid-19
Ramachandran, N. (2020, November 18). U.K. music industry devastated by COVID-19 impact, but outlook sunny, report says. Variety. https://variety.com/2020/music/global/uk-music-industry-coronavirus-impact-report-ed-sheeran-dua-lipa-1234834529/
Remesar, A. (2005). Urban regeneration: A challenge for public art (Barcelona ed.). Centre de Recerca Polis. (Original work published 1999)
Sallehudin, I. S. M. (2020a, May 14). The arts during this pandemic. The Star. https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2020/05/14/the-arts-during-pandemic
Sallehudin, I. S. M. (2020b, July 21). The road ahead for the arts. The Star. https://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/living/2020/07/21/the-road-ahead-for-the-arts
Savage, M. (2020, November 18). Musicians will lose two-thirds of their income in 2020. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-54966060
Spry, T. (2016). Body, paper, stage: Writing and performing autoethnography. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315432816
Star (2020, August 16). Record numbers for film fest. The Star. https://www.thestar.com.my/news/education/2020/08/16/record-numbers-for-film-fest
Szalai, G. (2020, May 21). Entertainment industry's coronavirus hit estimated at $160 billion over 5 years. The Hollywood Reporter. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/entertainment-industry-coronavirus-hit-160-billion-5-years-1295429
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) (2020, Oct 20). Call for Expression of Interest: Economic impact study of the COVID-19 on cultural and creative industries. UNESCO. https://en.unesco.org/creativity/news/call-expression-interest-economic-impact-study-covid-19
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) (2017). Re-shaping Cultural Policies: Advancing Creativity for Development [2018 global report fact sheet]. UNESCO. https://en.unesco.org/creativity/sites/creativity/files/global_report_fact_sheet _en.pdf
Vryan, K. (2006). Expanding analytic autoethnography and enhancing its potential. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 35(4), 405-409. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891241606286977
Ward, C. (2020). The annihilation of time by space in the COVID-19 pandemic downturn. Dialogues in Human Geography, 10(2), 191-194. https://doi.org/10.1177/2043820620935685
Wayang Works (2020, May 8). Iklan raya Vivo 2020 - Behind the scenes [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/2gMg-jtLpU4
Wheelock, D. C. (2020). Comparing the COVID-19 recession with the Great Depression. Economic Synopses, 39, 1-4. https://doi.org/10.20955/es.2020.39
Wilson, J. (2020, March 20). Coronavirus: The effect on freelancers in entertainment. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/joshwilson/2020/03/20/coronavirus-the-effect-on-freelancers-in-entertainment/?sh=6b724fc93930
Wu, W. (2004). Cultural strategies in Shanghai: regenerating cosmopolitanism in an era of globalization. Progress in Planning, 61, 159-180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.progress.2003.10.002
Zahiid, S. J. (2020, May 14). Excluded from CMCO, advertising film industry says daily wage workers starving. Malay Mail. https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/05/14/excluded-from-cmco-advertising-film-industry-says-daily-wage-workers-starvi/1865910
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright Transfer Statement for Journal
1) In signing this statement, the author(s) grant UNIMAS Publisher an exclusive license to publish their original research papers. The author(s) also grant UNIMAS Publisher permission to reproduce, recreate, translate, extract or summarize, and to distribute and display in any forms, formats, and media. The author(s) can reuse their papers in their future printed work without first requiring permission from UNIMAS Publisher, provided that the author(s) acknowledge and reference publication in the Journal.
2) For open access articles, the author(s) agree that their articles published under UNIMAS Publisher are distributed under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-SA (Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, for non-commercial purposes, provided the original work of the author(s) is properly cited.
3) For subscription articles, the author(s) agree that UNIMAS Publisher holds copyright, or an exclusive license to publish. Readers or users may view, download, print, and copy the content, for academic purposes, subject to the following conditions of use: (a) any reuse of materials is subject to permission from UNIMAS Publisher; (b) archived materials may only be used for academic research; (c) archived materials may not be used for commercial purposes, which include but not limited to monetary compensation by means of sale, resale, license, transfer of copyright, loan, etc.; and (d) archived materials may not be re-published in any part, either in print or online.
4) The author(s) is/are responsible to ensure his or her or their submitted work is original and does not infringe any existing copyright, trademark, patent, statutory right, or propriety right of others. Corresponding author(s) has (have) obtained permission from all co-authors prior to submission to the journal. Upon submission of the manuscript, the author(s) agree that no similar work has been or will be submitted or published elsewhere in any language. If submitted manuscript includes materials from others, the authors have obtained the permission from the copyright owners.
5) In signing this statement, the author(s) declare(s) that the researches in which they have conducted are in compliance with the current laws of the respective country and UNIMAS Journal Publication Ethics Policy. Any experimentation or research involving human or the use of animal samples must obtain approval from Human or Animal Ethics Committee in their respective institutions. The author(s) agree and understand that UNIMAS Publisher is not responsible for any compensational claims or failure caused by the author(s) in fulfilling the above-mentioned requirements. The author(s) must accept the responsibility for releasing their materials upon request by Chief Editor or UNIMAS Publisher.
6) The author(s) should have participated sufficiently in the work and ensured the appropriateness of the content of the article. The author(s) should also agree that he or she has no commercial attachments (e.g. patent or license arrangement, equity interest, consultancies, etc.) that might pose any conflict of interest with the submitted manuscript. The author(s) also agree to make any relevant materials and data available upon request by the editor or UNIMAS Publisher.
