SPOTLIGHT on SELFLESSNESS

SPOTLIGHT on SELFLESSNESS
  HIS MAJESTY THE KING’S DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS AND MUSICAL TALENTS WERE REMEMBERED ON THE BIG SCREEN
  THE NATION

THROUGHOUT HIS 70 years on the throne, His Majesty the King Bhumibol Adulyadej initiated hundreds of development projects designed to improve the living conditions of his people.
That dedication as well as his talents in other fields have been recorded in a variety of ways over the years, mostly in short films grouped as anthologies where each filmmaker has worked on a single idea and inspiration.
However, one full-length feature – 1987’s drama “Duay Klao” (“The Seed”) – proved so successful at encapsulating a bigger picture that it is still being hailed as the best film about the King ever made. 
Five Star Entertainment entrusted the project to a then up-and-coming Bhandit Rittakol, who had recently scored a hit with the comedy “Boonchu.”
Made to mark the King’s 60th birthday, the film was remastered 10 years ago and saw the inclusion of nine of the King’s compositions, giving its message even greater power.
In 2006, after the screening of the remastered copy, Bhandit told XP that while the quality was not as good as he would have liked, the story was not outdated despite its age. 
“Expressing love and esteem to our beloved King doesn’t just mean wearing yellow T-shirts or shouting ‘we love the country’. We should also do good by following the King’s example and his generosity. He has never taken from his people but always given,” added Bhandit, who passed away in 2009.
“We grew up watching documentaries about the King’s activities. But it was very hard to make a feature that told of the King’s devotion to his people,” he recalled. 
With a budget of less than Bt3 million, the film quietly left cinemas after a short run. Takings were lower than Bt2 million and it was his lowest earning and the least commercially successful of his entire career.
But he never had any regrets about the film, which went on to win several awards from the National Film Awards including Best Picture and Best Actor for its star, the late actor and folk singer Jarun Manopetch.
The director carefully researched the King’s wisdom, reading up on the Royal Projects in the libraries at parliament and the Agricultural Ministry. The story was tight and flawless.
“It was an intricate project and posed a challenge to the filmmaker. He had to keep an audience entertained for two hours,” said Ruethaiwan Wongsirasawas, who initiated the remastering project.
“The Seed” tells the story of Sao Kham (Jaran Manopetch) who travels down from the north to Bangkok to pick up a precious seed from the Royal Ploughing Ceremony, which is believed to bring prosperity wherever it is planted. Sao Kham plants his arid fields but it seems his luck hasn’t changed. He continues to fight with a selfish local trader and the drought ruins his crops. Then his eldest son returns home after graduation and finds work on a royal project that brings artificial rain. The land becomes fertile and the plants flourish.

 
Bhandit was also among the nine well-known filmmakers invited to come up with a short film for a Commemoration of the Celebration on the Auspicious Occasion of His Majesty the King’s 80th Birthday Anniversary in 2007. Supported to the tune of just Bt3 million by the Culture Ministry’s Office of Contemporary Arts and Culture, the project also included contributions from cinematic heavyweights Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Pen-ek Ratanaruang and Wisit Sasanatieng. 
Bhandit went back to the “The Seed” for his “Khao Thee Mai Samkhan” (“My First Report”), once again focusing on the Royal rainmaking project to relieve the suffering of drought-stricken Thais. “We had to overcome the same obstacle for both movies, namely shooting the drought scenes in the rainy season. But I’m older and wiser, so I think this film is a more subtle study,” he told XP at the time,
The film depicts a young reporter who grumbles about her assignment to cover a drought in a remote community until she witnesses villagers receiving relief from a water tanker and the royal project working to produce artificial rain.
“While everyone else is wrapped in self-concern, His Majesty is concerned only with His people, even in places that otherwise go unnoticed,” the director told XP.
For his part Wisit went way over his allocated budget of Bt400,000 for his mythological tale “Norasinghawatarn”, which featured full-scale special effects, impressive makeup and Khon dancing. 
Wisit told XP at that time that “the story relates to Thailand, since the King is believed to be an incarnation of Narayana – whose name in this reincarnation is Rama”.
Pen-ek centred his work on blind musician Sila Namthao letting him choose three songs from the King’s songbook. “‘Siang Sawan’ (‘Luminous Sound’) is a simple celebration of the King’s musical genius. We don’t know the King well enough to make a film about him, so this is more like a present that someone would give Him on a Royal visit,” Pen-ek said at the time, Another anthology was made just last year when the King’s compositions became the inspiration for the short-film project “Keeta Raja Niphon”, which transformed the King’s famous songs into pictures.
The project was introduced to mark the 50th anniversary of His Majesty the King being honoured for his compositions with honorary membership of the esteemed Institute of Music and Arts of the City of Vienna, Austria. Singha Corporation invited four filmmakers to select songs written by His Majesty as the basis for their short films.
The 130-minute anthology is made up of “The Singers” by veteran director Nonzee Nimibutr, “Om Yim” by TV commercial director Wallop Prasopphol, “It Rains at Huay Kha Khaeng,” by “Shutter” and “Alone” director Parkpoom Wongphoom, and “Dao” by Yongyooth Thongkongtoon,
Nonzee’s chose the song “Chata Cheewit” (“HM Blues”) for his tale of a friendship that springs up between two elderly women. Pao (Wassana Chalakorn) is fed up with her adult children fighting over their inheritance and decides to leave home. Her path crosses that of Ngern (Neeranuch Patamasut), a poverty-stricken woman who is taking care of her young niece. Ngern is a talented singer though she only sings when she’s alone. When her niece falls sick with kidney disease, Pao convinces Ngern to sing in public again to raise money for the treatment.
Wallop uses “Yim Soo” to tell the story of a high-school student who is tormented by his classmates because of a condition that prevents him from showing emotional expression on his face. Life changes for the lonely teen when he meets a young girl and out of love for her decides to do something seemingly impossible for someone with his problem - act in a stage play.
Parkpoom chose the song “Sai Fon” (“Falling Rain”) to depict the last years in the life of conservationist Seub Nakhasathien. Seub, an official with the Wildlife Conservation Division of the Royal Forest Department, killed himself to bring attention to the constant destruction of nature.
The anthology closed with Yongyooth’s “Dao” for which he turned the renowned patriotic song “Kwam Fun Un Sung Sud” (“The Impossible Dream”) into the story of a young boy who tries to make his dad proud by being chosen to raise the national standard just once before finishing primary school. 
Each of the four songs was featured in a new arrangement and covered by popular bands and singers in an attempt to attract young people to the cinema.