Film Stardom in South East Asia

Analyses the cinematic and social significance of the star phenomenon in Southeast Asia

• The first book to address the important role played by film stars in Southeast Asian cinema
• Provides detailed case studies of many of the region’s biggest stars, including Bea Alonso, Nora Aunor, Kiều Chinh, John Lloyd Cruz, Sharon Cuneta, Ananda Everingham, Rhoma Irama, P. Ramlee, and Jeeja Yanin
• Re-examines the region’s cinema from the perspective of stardom, offering fresh insight into its rich popular filmmaking traditions
• Offers new perspectives on key historical and political contexts through case studies focusing on stars from across the region and from the 1950s to the present day
• Brings together experts in the cinemas of Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia/ Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam to provide a comprehensive regional perspective on the star phenomenon

Throughout Southeast Asia, film stars hold an important place in popular culture. They feature prominently in magazines and newspapers, on billboards and cinema marquees, at public events and premieres, and on the internet and social media. Southeast Asian cinemas have built their own distinctive star systems, which have produced a host of successful icons. These stars often possess the features of stardom commonly noted in film scholarship, such as glamour and charisma, while simultaneously offering nationally and regionally specific inflections of the phenomenon, embodying local tastes, values and ideologies.

Stars such as Ananda Everingham in Thailand, P. Ramlee in Malaysia, and Nora Aunor in the Philippines, have all reached significant levels of fame in their respective countries. And yet, there is little academic work focusing on Southeast Asia’s stars. This book addresses this neglect by examining how stars shape the marketing, business and economics of their industries, contribute to the meanings and popularity of their films, and give insight into the social and political contexts of life in Southeast Asia.