[Seoul Economic Daily] “New performances that will resonate globally by fusing ICT and culture will emerge”

“New performances that will resonate globally by fusing ICT and culture will emerge”

NIPA Director Kim Chang-yong, at the 'ICT-Culture Convergence Lab' launch event on the 5th in Pangyo
9 places selected including startups and universities... Connecting our culture with 5G, VR, AR, etc.
Showcasing musicals incorporating ICT based on independence activists' diaries in December

“If we connect and fuse the world's best ICT (Information and Communications Technology) with our culture, a new cultural genre that can resonate globally will emerge.”
Kim Chang-yong (Photo·60), Director of the National IT Industry Promotion Agency (NIPA), stated at the 'ICT-Culture Convergence Lab' launch event held at the Pangyo 2nd Techno Valley Corporate Support Hub on the 5th, “We must connect our culture to global platforms such as 5G (generation) communication, VR (virtual reality), and AR (augmented reality) content.” At this launch event, NIPA provided support for startups and universities, etc., who were selected through a prior competition, to operate various creative and collaborative project labs that fuse ICT and culture. The Tide Institute, which operates FabLab Seoul, was in charge of the event.
The 9 teams selected for the ICT-Culture Convergence Lab announced their plans today, stating that they will receive support ranging from 10 million to 30 million won and aim to show results by the end of the year.
At the event, a creative musical incorporating advanced ICT convergence image technology based on the 'Diary of Je-si' written by the late couple independence activists Yang Woo-jo and Choi Seon-hwa while raising their daughter drew attention. Lee Seul-gil, CEO of Performance Creation Research Institute, expressed his commitment, saying, “We will overcome the expressive limitations inherent in existing theater by applying ICT technologies such as body movement, projection mapping, interactive art, and kinetics.” They also showcased a fairy tale visualization service utilizing automatic comic cut separation technology. Jeon Ho-yeon, CEO of Future Science Tech, introduced that, “The comics are being turned into video content and attracting interest overseas.” There was also a startup planning to develop STEAM (Science·Technology·Engineering·Art·Mathematics) education programs with ICT. Jang Kyung-ho, Vice President of Meris Lab, said, “We will enable students to engage in convergence and integrated education by linking it with the curriculum through ICT experts and practicing teachers.”
A performance featuring a dancer wearing a wearable robot also drew interest. Im Hyun-tae, CEO of Will U Entertainment, stated his ambition, saying, “We will create multimedia performance content that matches the movements of dancers wearing robots that can be transformed in various forms.” There was also a project to showcase collaborations between autonomous performance robots and human musicians. Jang Soon-chul, CEO of Emotionwave, guaranteed, “Seeing a performance by an autonomous performance robot based on robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) technology will naturally make you smile.” Another booth presented smart dance shoes tailored to the increasing population of dance sports. Park Soon, from Seoul Station Shoe Society Social Cooperative, said, “We plan to develop shoes optimized for dance by fusing traditional handmade shoe-making techniques with wearable sensing.”
At the university level, Culture Design Lab at Kookmin University Techno Design Graduate School, Education Program at Korea National University of Arts Convergence Art Center, and ICT Digital Library Project from Kookmin University Startup Support Center each presented their work. Lee Min, a professor at Techno Design Graduate School, emphasized, “We will develop new museum content, such as the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea Memorial Hall, by fusing story, design, and ICT technology.”

Meanwhile, before the launch ceremony, during the congratulatory performance of 'Country on the Road,' a documentary musical play commemorating the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea this year, about 100 participants were immersed in a wave of emotion with bated breath. /Senior Reporter Go Kwang-bon kbgo@sedaily.com
Source: https://www.sedaily.com/NewsView/1VO4O5MCW4