The 15th Macau Literary Festival – The Script Road kicked off last night in Casa Garden, with a robust programme of literature, films, art and music until March 15.
The festival programme features local and visiting writers, poets, filmmakers, musicians, actors and visual artists, with most events taking place at the headquarters of the Macau delegation of the Lisbon-based Orient Foundation (Fundação Oriente).
The festival debuted in 2012 and was created by Ricardo Pinto and other journalists from Ponto Final. Aside from writers, it has evolved to include actors, directors, journalists, cartoonists, musicians and photographers from around the world. The extensive programme includes everything from book presentations to film screenings, as well as upcoming concerts.
Delivering a speech, Pinto, one of the festival directors, further highlighted the festival’s growth. “It has been a long journey, beginning as a dream of dialogue between cultures, and today standing as an important meeting point between languages, sensibilities, and artistic expressions from the East and West”. He also pointed out the festival’s multidisciplinary nature as well as the organisers’ appreciation for the continuous support received.
The festival’s two other directors, Yao Feng and Carlos Morais José, also gave speeches at the opening.
Yao noted that since the festival’s launch, it has grown into “a distinctive and internationally acclaimed literary gathering, as well as a vital bridge linking local Macau writers with literary talents across the globe”. In his speech, Yao also touched on the unprecedented challenges on literary creation brought on by the rise of AI but noted that “literature endures because it is the art of being human – its very core is the beating human heart”.
Morais José highlighted in his speech that commemorating literature is “celebrating our imperfection, inconsistency and emptiness, that is, what makes us dare to create new worlds in the interstices of millions of existences and endows us with some traces of tragic beauty”.
The first day of the festival saw a book presentation on “Encounter of the Extremes: Tracing the History of Literary Exchanges between China and Portugal”, an orchestral performance, and the launch of the exhibition “José Maneiras: From Architecture to Urban Management in Macau”, with more on the latter on Page 4.
The detailed festival programme can be found by visiting https://www.facebook.com/macaulitfest/.
The ribbon-cutting hosts and guests including Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Deland Leong Wai Man (9th from left) and Consul General of Portugal in Macao and Hong Kong Alexandre Leitão (7th from right) pose for a group photo after launching the 15th Macau Literary Festival – The Script Road at Casa Garden last night. – Photo: Rui Pastorin
