In dedication to beloved film critic – Pannawich Taechakriangkrai

On the same day this year, in a sad coincidence, the industry lost well-known critic Pannawich “Tum” Taechakriangkrai to complications after surgery.

Pannawich was popular among film students as an Ajarn (professor) and a “big brother” who was well-versed in both local and foreign films.

As the former editor of Starpics magazine, he helped expand the landscape of film-related discussion and criticism in Thailand in the mid-2000s, when readers were shifting from print media to online messaging boards and personal blogs.

He was behind the success of famous film blogger “Nanoguy”, otherwise known as Chayanin Tiangpittayakorn. Pannawich invited the blogger to write features for Starpics.

Bodin Tepparat, a former Starpics columnist, recently posted on Facebook that Pannawich had published his eight-page film review in its entirety, without cutting a single word. He had submitted the review while he was a college student.

Pannawich later wrote an email to Bodin inviting him to write for Starpics full-time, which the writer said “changed his entire life”.

Pannawich also played a crucial role in organising activities for the Bangkok Critics Assembly, which was established in 1991 by film critic Nakorn Veeraprawat.

Every year, the assembly hosts a ceremony awarding persons who have contributed to the Thai film industry across different fields. The votes are cast by film critics from magazines, newspapers, radio and television stations. Every year, Pannawich invited me personally to judge the nominations in my field.

He was also the one who suggested adding new categories to the Bangkok Critics Assembly Awards, namely documentaries and short films made by students and the general public. This gave the makers of short films a new platform to showcase their work.

Before this, they only had two events to show their work: The Thai Short Film and Video Festival by the Thai Film Archive and Thai Film Foundation, and the Young Thai Artist Award by SCG Foundation.

Both these events limited the theme of the competition to topics related to the organisers’ visions.

Realising that short films have limited publicity, Pannawich not only added the short-film category to the Bangkok Critics Assembly Awards but also held a screening event after the award ceremony, followed by a Q&A session with directors via video conferencing. During the Covid-19 outbreak, however, the award ceremony had to cancel the screening and Q&A sessions.

After the film magazine lost its popularity, Pannawich quit his editorship and became a special lecturer in film history and film review. He had a keen interest in short films made by college students and began visiting film thesis exhibitions at universities across the country. Pannawich often told his Facebook followers which exhibitions were worth visiting and offered constructive suggestions to filmmakers without discouraging them.

As an outgoing person who rarely adhered to formality, Pannawich soon became known as a “big brother” to film students from institutions nationwide. Since news of his passing was announced, his current and former students have been posting condolence messages on Facebook. Some even mentioned how Pannawich had encouraged them to continue making films and how his advice helped them improve their work.

In later years, Pannawich served as a judge at the “Student Art & Craft Competition” held by the Office of the Basic Education Commission. The competition includes short films made by students who are still new to the industry. Pannawich initially started off as a regular viewer before being invited to be a lecturer and then a judge of the event.

Earlier this year, I had a chat with him about a student film competition held in Thonburi. He told me how the competition could be improved as nearly all contestants were following the same theme. He also pointed out that film teachers had been pressured by the institute to ensure their students win some awards at the competition.

As someone who shares his interest in short films, the passing of Pannawich has made me realise that we have lost a non-filmmaker with an in-depth knowledge of the industry. His death has left a void that not many people can fill, even if they have the same expertise as him.

Pannawich will probably never be remembered as a hero, but his contribution to the film industry, including encouragement offered to newbie filmmakers, has paved the way for the new generation to further improve the Thai film landscape.