This year, under the title “Connecting to ASIA, Pepole, Now,” the Performing Arts Market in Seoul (PAMS) pursued a collaboration-oriented interactive communication among participants, rather than one-way provision of information. Thereby, it intended to provide a venue for international exchange. Conceived as one of the tools for that purpose, the Looking for International Partner (LIP) program is to facilitate the search for international production partners. The program first introduces ideas and production plans for each of creation, development and distribution phases, and help find out domestic and overseas collaboration partners (e.g. actors/actresses, choreographers, co-producers and presenters etc). In addition to the partner-search, it helps confirm the phase-based changes to a work, and provide the information on creative international collaboration. Further, it also allows dynamic access to commencement of international exchange of pure ideas for individual artists and groups.

Applications for the LIP presentation were submitted prior to it. The applications were screened based on qualification of an applicant project seeking supports, clear delineation of partners, freshness of the project, and creativity of the content of the collaboration partnership of an existing project. In the end, ten teams were selected for presentation, and one as showcase. Starting this year for the first time, the LIP showcase marks the revamped version of the previous presentation-oriented LIP. It hinted at the rising interest in international collaboration. Opportunities were given to performers to make presentation and actual performance. Then, it was determined whether to provide space for creation (i.e. Seoul Art Space Mullae & Hongeun), which information to provide and how to consult for partnership matching, and whether to be eligible for showcase supports.

The following are the projects that are seeking partners for each phase, or creation, development and distribution:

Double Exposure

This project is in the creation phase, being pursued via Korea-Finland Connection as part of the Korea Arts Management Service’s KAMS Connection. In essence, it is a visual theater work centered around dance and contemporary circus. Artistic director of Sungsoo Ahn Pick-up Group, Sungsoo AHN got inspired through his interest in WHS''s music processing. In addition, another interest operated in the efficiency and value of Finnish designs. This project helps understand how the partners reached a creative agreement in the phase of creation, not the details of their proposals. Once creation of the work is completed, it is planned to be performed at both countries and in other countries on a tour.

Compagnie Dernire Minute: Korean Dancers Project

Created mutually by Korea and France, the project is searching for dancers, producers, and presenters. This project is a new one created in cooperation with French choreographer Pierre Rigal. The project organizer recruits dancers by May of 2012. Only Korean dancers are eligible for application. Qualified are the dancers who can perform not only contemporary dance, but also other genres. This project bears two features. One is its foundation based on good feelings and trust arising out of the fact that collaboration was sought after mutual trust had been built. Another lies in the financial fundamentals of the organizer, which are sounder than other companies. The latter is vital to realization of a project, and to forming partnership, since a prospective collaborator is relieved to take small risks. The first performance is planned for September of 2012.

Story of Seung Mu

Created by Chuljin LEE, Story of SeungMu is a project incorporating therein cutting-edge technology and traditional arts. SeungMu is one of the most traditional Korean dance genres lauded for its outstanding artfulness. In fact, this project was first born out of collaboration between the contemporary music ensemble Linea and Korean-France composer Hyunhwa CHO. The project is seeking partners for its development and distribution.

Traveling Hometown

Participating in this project as co-producers are Seoul Fringe Network, Macao City Fringe Festival Society of Macao and Guling Street Avant-garde Theatre of Taiwan. This project is intended to develop a story about identities of other countries, and, thereby, to shed light on Asia not as an image, but as a contemporary entity. This project takes as its background setting a story about a city and individuals living in the city observed by an artist who has emigrated to a foreign city.

Collaborative Project Between Erika Chong Such and Changmu Dance Company

This project is a joint effort of San Francisco International Arts Festival and Changmu Dance Company directed by artistic director Maeja KIM. Accommodating elements of theatrical moves and traditional dance, it depicts the current situations in North Korea, and is to be put on stage in 2013.

India Blog

This show is produced by the Yeonwoo Theater Company to discover and promote new artists. It is a road theatrical piece based on actual 34-day journey to India. Seon-Hui PARK participates, who directed Hamlet and India Blog. The project organizer is searching for producers and presenters for creation and distribution.

New Approaches, New Audiences International Residency

It is an international residency program to develop interactive works in which active participation by the audience plays an important role. It was conceived to develop new creative ideas of artists to copy with changing performance formats in the 21st century digital technology. The project organizer is waiting for career Asian artists interested in creation. This project is also searching for producers and presenters for festival and art center distribution.

The Recording

It is a new project of the Australian Sandra Parker Dance, and has been completed in early 2011. The Recording is a performance of Full version dealing with the entire process of film-making. Like in the film-making site, it puts on stage all acting and stagehand crews, and features moves of the former. This project is in need of technicians, performers, producers and presenters.

The Villa G-A

The international exchange first started with the collaboration with the contemporary dance troupe Dance Theatre 4P and German choreographer Philippe BERGMAN. Being prepared are international workshops for choreographers and co-production of creative pieces. The organizer is looking for presenters, choreographers and producers.

Co-production of Cryptic & Be Being

This project first started at a meeting of Korean and British artists held during the overseas tour of Be Being. British choreographer and director Theo Clinkard and Be Being have co-produced a new music theater work, and plan to perform it in 2013 for the first time.

[Showcase] Playing Landscape

Integrated with Multimedia ink art of Cindy Ng, the showcase of this performance aims at the overlapped area between traditional theatre and dance. It conveys messages on Asian humanism related to contemporary society and the relations between nature and urban towns. This project was chosen in consideration of the potential for collaboration with artists of other genres and those of four Asian countries, and of the consistency expected during the development phase later. This project is seeking dancers, new media artists and presenters. It will be toured in Asia and Europe in 2012.

When the partnership-seeking session was over, a brief Q & A session followed. Participants asked different questions, with different activeness, on each phase of a project development (e.g. initial preparation, how to fund, etc.). Basically, participants in co-production wish to minimize budgets and to reduce the risk inherent in each phase. so, it seemed that they care about who to organize. Detailed explanation lacked on why partners are necessary, although the search is being conducted prior to specification of the plan for each phase. When the PAMS first launched the LIP program, few artists and groups felt familiar with the concept. With accumulating years, this year’s LIP more actively introduced projects, and showed more openness to collaboration partners.