Mr. Prabda Yoon began his speech by saying, “I am from a generation of Thais who grew up with contemporary Japanese culture,” and went on to talk about the influence of Japanese pop culture on many Thai people. When he learned that many Western artists were inspired by Japanese art and culture, his experience led him to the beauty of modern and traditional Japan. He discovered his own Asian roots through his devotion to Japanese culture.

Mr. Prabda then referred to the propaganda elements of art and culture. While the global spread of art and culture often has a political or economic agenda, he explained that propaganda cannot completely shape people’s minds. He spoke of his own experience of an art teacher once telling him, “If it looks beautiful, leave the mistakes as they are,” and referred to mistakes as “happy accidents.” He suggested that art can sometimes cause “happy accidents” and that cross-cultural influences pass beyond the purpose and propaganda of art to open a “window of possibility.”

In addition, Mr. Prabda said that the unprecedented experience of COVID-19 has caused many revelations and realizations. Realizing that art cannot survive only as a profession and that it cannot function as an activity only for a certain group of people, he says art is a social act connected to the general public. He saw the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity to think about life and his lecture concluded with him saying that hopefully people will bring a little more art into their lives, be proud of their own culture and be open to other cultures too.

Following the lecture, Mr. Prabda, Professor Udo and Professor Kubota (onsite) held an online discussion. Focusing on the film screened at the pre-event, they exchanged questions about the social background of Thailand at that time and the image of Japan and Japanese people. When asked about the setting of the main characters in the film, especially the language barrier, he replied, “I wanted to show that if you have the will, you can overcome the language barrier.” In 1st part of the event, we were introduced to Mr. Prabda’s thoughts on Japan and the Japanese people, the significance of art and contact with different cultures. The audience was strongly captivated by his thoughtfulness, sensitivity, and profound expressions.

First, Mr.Fukutomi introduced the characteristics and themes of Mr. Prabda’ s works. Then, Mr. Prabda and the panel answered questions received from the participants in advance. As they explored the content of the works, the panel exchanged lively opinions about the uniqueness of Japanese culture as perceived by Mr. Prabda.

During the lively conversation, Prof. Udo suggested to Mr. Prabda that he should “continue to impact Thai culture as a genuine traveler,” to which Mr. Prabda replied, “I really am a traveler. I am not satisfied with my current work, and I want to continue to explore new possibilities to improve my creative activities.”

Prof. Kubota said Mr. Prabda’ s works do not only exist as a novel format but also employ cross-cutting expression in a film or movie and this might be the way world literature should be.