Joe Sidek

Joe Sidek is known for the successful annual George Town Festival, which turned into one of the biggest festivals in Malaysia and best-known arts and culture festivals in the region after its premiere in 2010.

Though artistically gifted, Joe’s career was not always arts-focused. Among other jobs, he’s helped run his father’s company, ventured into event management and the restaurant business. A proud George Town boy, in 2010, Joe jumped at the opportunity to organise a month-long festival to celebrate his hometown’s status as a Unesco Heritage site. Envisioning a festival that reflects the spirit of culture and rich heritage of George Town, he invited talented local and international artists to perform at the festival. Going against the norm at festivals, Joe insisted on setting no theme each year. Instead, he focused on quality acts, giving the festival an eclectic mix of performances each year until he stepped down in 2018.

His success as a festival director led him to organise the Butterworth Fringe Festival, the Rainforest Fringe Festival and a local edition of Tropfest, the world’s largest short-film festival, in Penang. He has also become a sought-after speaker on curating and organising art festivals and art development in general, both regionally and internationally.

Since being appointed as chairman of the revived Penang Arts Council in 2021, he has been actively working to promote the cultural heritage of Penang through various means. He is currently working on Festival of Asia, a festival to champion a platform for the best of Asian arts.