In the northern highlands of Vietnam, a very specific official vision of culture
is at the core of the modernisation projects of Vietnam Television VTV5
(Ðài Truyền hình Việt Nam), a channel dedicated to educating ethnic minorities,
and of the Lào Cai provincial branch of the Ministry of Culture, Sports
and Tourism (MCST, Bộ V ˘an hóa, Thể thao và Du lịch). These two state
institutions jointly organise film screenings – for instance condemning the
production and consumption of opium and heroin – in remote villages where
they intend to modify cultural practices. These state social actors also produce
films that represent what are deemed exemplary minority traditions for
public consumption. Our observations of these media processes lead us to suggest
that the subjects of these exogenous initiatives are adjusting strategically,
activating patterns of quiet resistance to maintain their identities and subvert
marginalisation.