"The Silk Road of Pop" sketches a unique portrait of the vibrant pop music scene among the Uyghur Muslims in North-West China. Featuring traditional musicians, hip-hop crews, rock stars and dynamic music fans, this documentary taps into the rhythmical zeitgeist of what it means to be young and Uyghur in China, showing how music becomes a liberating element for a minority trying to assert its identity within a repressive environment. (Directed by Sameer Farooq. Co-directed by Ursula Engel. Produced by Stijn Deklerck. 2013. China. 53 minutes.)
Post-screening discussion with Liwei Zhang Department of Political Science, Jilin University, China and VASP Scholar, UofI.
AsiaLENS is a series of free public film screenings and discussion programs—organized by the Asian Educational Media Service (AEMS)/Center for East Asian and Pacific Studies (CEAPS) in collaboration with the Spurlock Museum—presenting recent documentary and independent films on issues reflecting contemporary life in Asia. Local and visiting experts introduce the films and lead audiences in post-screening discussions.
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