Global Villages

<p>Many people experience different cultures in simulated environments that put people and their ways of life on display for tourist-citizens of the world. Global Villages depicts ethnic theme parks of China and Japan. Theme park formations are imagined communities that reach beyond the borders of the thatched huts and park walls. While having fun together, tourists and performers also collaborate in the production of heritage, nation and world. Global Villages takes viewers from na&iuml;ve enjoyment to reflexive understanding of the corporate and political agendas entailed in the display of people and culture, where things are not what they appear to be.</p> <p>&ldquo;Global Village is a fast-paced colourful view of &lsquo;staged ethnicity&rsquo; in today&rsquo;s Asian tourist villages. The film maker&rsquo;s commentary is straightforward, illuminating contemporary questions about identity, display and authenticity. Equally interesting are the &lsquo;emic&rsquo; insights by the local producers and performers interviewed for the film. Global Village is engaging and instructive for undergraduates and graduate students in anthropology, sociology, geography and visual culture who are studying tourism, media, globalization, and East Asia.&rdquo; <br>Nelson Graburn,<br>Professor of Anthropology, U C Berkeley<br>Founding Member, International Academy for the Study of Tourism</p>