Ep 44: Joe Sidek - Festival Director, George Town Festival

Best Known as director of the George Town Festival, Joe Sidek has
established himself as one of Malaysia’s strong advocates for the
arts.





Prior to becoming a festival director, Joe Sidek played major
roles in various forms of art expression – from event management,
art curator-ship, restaurant ownership and even costume design.
He also still runs his family–owned textile chemical factory,
Chemdyes Sdn Bhd.





Since 2010 when he began GTF, in 2018, Joe also directed the
3-year-old Rainforest Fringe Festival in Kuching, having founded
the festival in 2017. He also helmed the Butterworth Fringe
Festival for 3 years (2015–2017) and earlier in 2014, he brought
Tropfest, the world’s largest short film festival to Southeast
Asia and showcased the inaugural Tropfest South East Asia in
Penang.





He is 2020-2022 chairman of Federation of Asian Cultural
Promotion, an industry expert on the industry panel of Malaysian
federal agency for the arts and culture, Cultural Economy
Development Agency (CENDANA), and chairman of Penang Arts
Council.





In this STIMY episode, Joe shares his fascinating life story:
from wanting to do art in Central Saint Martins to returning to
Malaysia, recovering from his first “failed’ festival to
eventually be one of Malaysia’s biggest, and most well-known
advocate for the arts & culture!





Highlights:


1:52: Joe has noble blood!

3:18: Moving to Penang

3:42: Why Joe thinks Penangites are “arrogant, confident, and
proud of who they are”

4:36: Wanting to do art in London & John Galliano

5:45: Not wanting to return home

6:50: His relationship with his dad

10:37: Taking over the family business

11:35: Why Joe’s first festival in 2001 failed

14:33: Becoming the festival director of the George Town
Festival 

17:02: Getting help from the Penang Chief Minister

19:15: Why Joe brings in not just local, but also
international artists

21:48: How Ernest Zacharevic got involved in the George Town
Festival (resulting in the subsequent street art boom!)

24:01: Gentrification & over-commercialisation

24:54: GTF’s student and community tickets project

31:49: Finding historical, old & meaningful places to
stage GTF

32:41: The biggest challenges of a festival director

35:50: Artists that have adapted well to COVID/virtual world

37:50: How artists can build their personal brand & stand
out 

42:21: How to become a festival director

49:45: Where artists can find their community






Show notes: www.sothisismywhy.com/44  





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