World films 'Snap' into place

The World Film Festival of Bangkok is coming up soon at SF World Cinema at CentralWorld, with 62 entries from seven countries, including a selection to salute the the Asean Economic Community.

The opening film is “Snap”, the latest feature by festival favourite Kongdej Jaturanrasmee.

Set shortly during a time of martial law, “Snap” tells the story of Pueng (Waruntorn Paonil), the daughter of a colonel who is engaged to a young lieutenant. Before her big day, Pueng accepts a wedding invitation from old friends in her hometown of Chanthaburi. There, she’s reunited not just with her pals from high school but also with her first love, a photographer named Boy (Toni Rakkaen), with whom she has unresolved issues. 

The film, says Kongdej, is simpler and subtler than his earlier movies. But while it’s centred on romance, it is also a reflection of contemporary Thai society and how politics have an increased influence on daily lives.

Festival director Kriengsak “Victor” Silakong says he selected the film because he sees Kongdej as an outstanding independent director whose stories offer interesting observations. The film’s appearance in the World Film Festival follows its premiere at the recent Tokyo International Film Festival, where it was chosen for the main competition.

Another Thai film being screened is “Vanishing Point” by Jakrawal Nilthamrong, which won the Tiger Award at this year’s International Film Festival Rotterdam. 

It will screen alongside another Tiger Award-winner, “Videophilia (And Other Viral Syndromes)” from Peru, which is being brought to Bangkok by young director Juan Daniel F Molero.

“Vanishing Point” depicts two very different men who try to run away from their torment in different ways while “Videophilia” follows the digital life of a teenager who goes online and meets an amateur porn dealer obsessed by Mayan predictions of the end of the world and other conspiracy theories. They meet in the real world and unusual events start to unfold.

The festival’s Short Wave category has two more Thai entries, “Free Falling” by Namfon Udomlertlak and “The Young Man Who Came From Chee River” by Wichanon Somumjarn, who made a name for himself with “In April the Following Year, There Was a Fire”.

And the highlight this year’s World Film Fest is the Cannes crowd-pleaser “Arabian Nights”, a trilogy that has a special bond with Thailand as its director of photography, Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, is a local lad. Director Miguel Gomes, who showed his admiration for Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul by wearing an “Uncle Boonmee” T-shirt at the prestigious event, will attend the Thai premiere of “Arabian Nights”, with support from the Portuguese Embassy, along with his and his producer Luis Urbano.

The films retell some of the “Thousand and One Nights” stories from the Islamic Golden Age. “Arabian Nights” runs more than more than six hours in total and will screen in the World Film Fest in three volumes. A non-stop screening time is also provided for those who want to see it all at once.

Among the movies picked to fit the festival’s “Asean Citizen” theme are “Almost Heaven” by Taiwanese director Li Shih, who will also attend the event, “A Day in the Life of Anil Bagchi” by Morshedul Islam of Bangladesh and “About a Woman” by Indonesia’s Teddy Soeriaatmadja. Others include “The Look” by Atsushi Urabe from Japan and “Underground Fragrance” by Pengfei from China.

The festival will also welcome five Southeast Asian film projects to participate in the Produire au Sud workshop at the Alliance Francaise Bangkok. They are “Art Studio” from Singapore, “Birdshot” from the Philippines, “Cha Cha Cha” from Vietnam, “Love for Life” from Myanmar, and “Sydney” from Thailand.

“Sydney” is the directorial debut project of Wasunan Hutawet,whose documentary “Small World” (2008), was selected for many short film festivals including France’s Clermont-Ferrand fest in 2009. In 2012, Wasunan was chosen to attend the 10th Berlin Talent Campus, hosted by the Berlin International Film Festival.

 The Franco-Thai Animation Rendezvous is also back for a second year, with such cartoon delights as “Mune, the Moon Guardian”, “The Days of the Crows” and “Yellowbird”.

This year’s festival pays tribute to one of Taiwan’s greatest filmmakers, Hou Hsiao-hsien, presenting two of his classic films of the Taiwanese New Cinema movement – “Dust in the Wind” and “A Time to Live and the Time to Die”.

And this year’s Lotus Award will honour film historian and author Dome Sukvong, founder of the Thai Film Archive. 

The fest wraps with a screening of “Suffragette”, a much-acclaimed British historical drama film directed by Sarah Gavron and starring Carey Mulligan, Helena Bonham Carter and Meryl Streep.

The 13th World Film Festival of Bangkok is co-organised by the Culture Ministry, Nation Broadcasting Corporation and SF Corporation.

 

WORLD OF CINEMA