Top grad in censorship protest
Mr Loo Zihan called upon fellow schoolmates to stay true to their convictions in his speech yesterDAY. — ST PHOTO: BRYAN VAN DER BEEK
IT WAS to have been a speech celebrating graduation, from the valedictorian of the Nanyang Technological University’s (NTU) School of Art, Design and Media.
But between the time Mr Loo Zihan crafted the first draft and his delivery, the speech was turned into a protest of sorts. Yesterday, when he stepped up to give his speech during NTU’s convocation ceremonies, Mr Loo, 26, said:
‘The original draft of my speech was composed of words like ‘integrity’ and ‘breaking new boundaries’, but a recent incident put a reality check on what I have to say.’
He then spoke out against ‘censorship’ which he ‘did not understand’.
Mr Loo, who graduated from the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree programme yesterday with second class upper honours, had been asked to change a poster for a film he made for his final-year project.
It features a half-naked man, body half-turned and looking into the camera. A pair of masculine hands rest on his shoulder and waist, and a mirror in the picture catches the reflection of another man.
His film, Threshold, had homosexual characters, Mr Loo said, but was not solely about homosexuality.
He had sought approval to display his poster at the Nanyang Auditorium, where the convocation was to be held.
But last Friday, NTU asked him to change the image, saying it was inappropriate as young children would be attending the convocation ceremonies.
He refused, and the poster was eventually not displayed.
Yesterday, he spoke out.
As the audience listened, Mr Loo first expressed his pride at being part of the first cohort to graduate from his school.
The digital film-making student then related what happened after NTU first asked him to change the poster image:
‘My first thought was to make the changes to the poster as required.
‘But subsequently, as I was practising for this speech, I realised that I could not say the words I drafted originally with conviction and authority by subjecting my work to censorship I did not understand.
‘I felt a sense of responsibility to my fellow graduates, who have voted me in as valedictorian to speak up on their behalf’.
He added that the poster had been on display earlier, where it drew no criticism during the opening ceremony of the school’s building, with the public and other guests in attendance.
Calling upon his schoolmates to stay true to their convictions, ‘seek compromise when necessary or appropriate, but be brave enough to stand firm when it is not’, he added that artists must strive not only to produce great art, but to bear responsibility for their productions, failing which ‘we betray ourselves, and our audiences’.
His speech then turned to more conventional themes. He expressed appreciation for the support of family members, and assured them that his batch of graduates would make a difference to society.
In conclusion, he urged his classmates to ‘carry on and fulfil the role of the artist in society, to think, to question, and to challenge’.
Contacted yesterday, NTU said it was a misunderstanding, and the school had decided to allow Mr Loo to display the poster in question after some discussion.
However, repeated calls to his mobile phone went unanswered the day before, and he could not be reached in time.
LEOW SI WAN
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