If asked about the most notable trends in Taiwan in the late 20th century, what would you answer?

Many people would agree on a few things: This is an era of information, information which is moreover widely available. This is an era of change, change which is moreover very rapid. This is an era of marketing, marketing which is moreover over the top.

These three factors are connected, and affect the daily lives of ordinary consumers such as ourselves. While they bring novelty, convenience, and diversity, they also bring fears and doubts.

People wonder: What's happening that I don't know about? What new products am I missing? Will I fall behind the times?

But one may also well ask: Am I just a sheep following the fashions? Am I being led around by the nose by corporations? Am I one of the idiots helping them pay their enormous advertising bills?

What is the logic in sales? It might be considered good technique to sell a product which normally goes for NT$250 (like a new magazine) for NT$50. But it would be even better to successfully sell a product worth NT$50 for NT$250! This is just the case with hot items like movie spin-off toys. Will you be able to resist the bombardment of advertising or the inspiration of having just seen the film or rented the video, or will you too buy a Princess Lia doll, light saber, or. . . .?

This is today's cycle: Products get talked about, talk creates demand, demand leads to more products. This creates color in our lives and drives the economy ever higher.

Hollywood is probably better at grasping consumer psychology than anyone. Star Wars is a perfect example of this, with The Phantom Menace creating a sensation even before its local release and spin-off toys, computer games, books, teacups, toothbrushes, and other space junk popping up all over the place. It has been constantly coursing through the news, entertainment programs, newspapers and magazines, so even those who take little notice of trends can't escape it. The results? Worldwide, an estimated US$1.2-1.5 billion in ticket sales, US$500 million in video, and US$1 billion in rights for spin-off products.

Everyone looks at these numbers with envy, but this is no ordinary marketing strategy. This marketing machine was well under way even before the product had been made. With all the detailed planning and mobilization that goes into major Hollywood productions, no wonder they create such a stir. Hollywood is really operating at the level of the "global village."

In contrast, Taiwanese cinema has faltered even as society has gotten more wealthy, as shown in the article this month on the Taiwan director Li Hsing, whose career peaked at the same as time as the commercial popularity of Taiwan-made films back in the 1970s. In the last three years, Taiwan has produced less than 30 films. It can neither halt nor copy the Hollywood juggernaut. What can film-lovers who are also Taiwan-lovers do?

This month, we also look at Holly-wood's voracious appetite for Asian talent and at its global marketing ability. Hollywood has always welcomed new blood, first from Europe, then Australia, and most recently from Asia (especially from Hong Kong action cinema). Is there a place for Taiwan in this globalization? What can Taiwan learn?

As ordinary people in modern society, fads-whether they be from Hollywood or Japan (as we relate in this month's stories on Taiwan's Japanophiles)-affect our daily lives and thoughts. But a deeper look at them often leads to thoughts of cultural conflict and cultural convergence. In China, these are the very themes that trace back to the May Fourth Movement 80 years ago, on which we offer a retrospective in this issue. These issues are far from settled today.

Late-20th-century Taiwanese crave prosperity, progress, and success. What do we have? What do we lack? Relax with this month's Sinorama and you will find some thought-provoking points related to these questions.