Apichatpong Weerasethakul

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Apichatpong WeerasethakulTemplate:Efn (Template:Langx; Template:RTGS; Template:IPA,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> born 16 July 1970) is a Thai independent film director, screenwriter, film producer and Professor at Tama Art University in Tokyo. Working outside the strict confines of the Thai film studio system, Apichatpong has directed several features and dozens of short films. Friends and fans sometimes refer to him as "Joe" (a nickname that he, like many with similarly long Thai names, has adopted out of convenience).<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

His feature films include Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, winner of the 2010 Cannes Film Festival Palme d'Or; Tropical Malady, which won the Jury Prize at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival; Blissfully Yours, which won the top prize in the Un Certain Regard program at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival;<ref name="cannes-2002.com">Template:Cite web</ref> Syndromes and a Century, which premiered at the 63rd Venice International Film Festival and was the first Thai film to be entered in competition there; and Cemetery of Splendour, which premiered in the Un Certain Regard section of the 2015 Cannes Film Festival to critical acclaim.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Apichatpong has received numerous additional accolades, including the 2016 Principal Prince Claus Award and the eighth edition of the Artes Mundi Prize.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His first English-language film was Memoria, a 2021 international collaboration set in Colombia.

Themes reflected in his films include dreams, nature, sexuality (including his own homosexuality),<ref>"Creating His Own Language: An Interview With Apichatpong Weerasethakul", Romers, H. Cineaste, page 34, vol. 30, no. 4, Fall 2005, New York</ref> and Western perceptions of Thailand and Asia, and his films display a preference for unconventional narrative structures and for working with non-actors.

Apichatpong has also widely exhibited in galleries, including FACT in Liverpool, and the BFI Gallery in London, the contemporary art space within BFI Southbank.<ref>Fabrizi, Elisabetta, 'The BFI Gallery Book', BFI, London, 2011</ref>

Early life and education

Apichatpong was born in Bangkok, Thailand, to a Thai Chinese family.<ref name="New">Template:Cite news</ref> Both his parents had been physicians who worked at a hospital in Khon Kaen, while his grandparents came from Canton. Apichatpong never learned to speak Chinese as his father, who was also a member of the House of Representatives,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> died when he was young.<ref name="ocula.com">Template:Cite web</ref>

Apichatpong grew up in a traditional Buddhist family, exposed to rituals that incorporate animism and Hinduism, spiritual practices retained in the surrealist tones of his works today. Among the filmmaker's early influences are the Dada movement and Joseph Cornell's "boxes".<ref name="ocula.com"/>

Apichatpong attended Khon Kaen University and received a bachelor's degree in architecture in 1994. He made his first short film, Bullet, in 1993. He attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and received a Master of Fine Arts in filmmaking in 1997.<ref name="New" />

Career

File:Viennale 2010.10.21 Apichatpong Weerasethakul 3 (cropped).jpg
Apichatpong in Vienna in 2010

Apichatpong's feature-length debut, Dokfa nai meuman (Mysterious Object at Noon) is a documentary<ref name="Hunt">Template:Cite web</ref> and was conceptually based upon the "exquisite corpse" game invented by surrealists.Template:Citation needed He co-founded the production company, Kick the Machine, in 1999, and uses the company as a vehicle for his own works, alongside Thai experimental films and video. The list of other founders includes Gridthiya Gaweewong and Suaraya Weerasethakul and the company co-organised the Bangkok Experimental Film Festival in 1999, 2001, 2005 and 2008.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Blissfully Yours, Tropical Malady

Apichatpong's 2002 film Sud Sanaeha (Blissfully Yours) was his debut narrative feature film<ref name="Hunt" /> and was awarded the Un Certain Regard prize at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival,<ref name="cannes-2002.com" /> though it was censored in his native Thailand.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> His 2004 Sud Pralad (Tropical Malady) won a Jury Prize from the same festival.

Between Blissfully Yours and Tropical Malady, Apichatpong co-directed The Adventure of Iron Pussy with artist Michael Shaowanasai, who starred as the main character, a transvestite secret agent, while pop singer Krissada Terrence, better known as Noi from the Thai band Pru, portrayed the male lead.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The low-budget, digital movie was a spoof of Thai films of the 1960s and 1970s, particularly the musicals and action films of Mitr Chaibancha and Petchara Chaowarat.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Adventure of Iron Pussy was screened at the Berlin Film Festival in 2004.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> When asked about the film in May 2013, Apichatpong said: "I have had enough of Iron Pussy for now. I was having a good time making it but I was not inspired."<ref name="Hunt" />

Along with his features, Apichatpong is also known for his short films, videoworks and installations. For the 2005 Jeonju International Film Festival, he was commissioned to contribute to the Three Digital Short Films project, alongside two other Asian directors. His film was called Worldly Desires, while Japanese filmmaker Shinya Tsukamoto made Vital, Bullet Ballet and Song Il-gon from South Korea created Magician(s).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2005 Apichatpong served as the consultant on the Tsunami Digital Short Films, a series of 13 films commissioned by the Thailand Culture Ministry's Office of Contemporary Art and Culture as a memorial tribute to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and the resulting tsunami that struck Thailand.<ref name="Top" /> His contribution was the film Ghost of Asia.<ref name="Tom">Template:Cite web</ref>

The Thai Office of Contemporary Art and Culture also honoured Apichatpong with its 2005 Silpathorn Award for filmmaking. The annual award is given to living contemporary artists in various disciplines.<ref name="Top">Template:Cite news</ref>

Syndromes and censorship

In 2006, Apichatpong released a feature film, Syndromes and a Century, that was commissioned by Peter Sellars for the New Crowned Hope Festival in Vienna to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It premiered at the 63rd Venice Film Festival and screened at numerous film events, such as the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The film's Thai release, originally slated for 19 April 2007, was indefinitely delayed after the Thai Censorship Board demanded the removal of four scenes.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Apichatpong refused to recut the film and said he would withdraw the film from domestic circulation. He explained his reasons for doing so in an article in the Bangkok Post:

Template:Cquote

Two of the "sensitive" scenes involve doctors engaging in "inappropriate" conduct (kissing and drinking liquor) in a hospital; the others depict a Buddhist monk playing a guitar and two monks playing with a remote-control flying saucer.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The censors refused to return the print unless the requested cuts were made.<ref name="Saucer">Weerasethakul, Apichatpong. 14 September 2007. Who can save my flying saucer?, The Guardian; retrieved 15 September 2007</ref> In 2007 the film was shown twice in privately arranged screenings at the Alliance française in Bangkok.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The censorship of the film came about as a motion picture ratings system was being considered by the junta-appointed National Legislative Assembly. A replacement for the 1930 film act, the ratings law contained a restrictive ratings structure and retained the government's powers to censor and ban films it deemed would "undermine or disrupt social order and moral decency, or that might impact national security or the pride of the nation".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The ratings board would comprise mainly bureaucrats in the Ministry of Culture, as well as members of the Royal Thai Police.<ref name = "passes">Rithdee, Kong. 20 December 2007. Thailand passes controversial film act, Variety (magazine); retrieved 23 January 2008</ref>

To oppose the draft law, Apichatpong and other directors formed the Free Thai Cinema Movement.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Apichatpong was quoted as saying: "We disagree with the right of the state to ban films ... There already are other laws that cover potential wrongdoings by filmmakers."<ref name = "Protest">Rithdee, Kong. 28 November 2007. Directors protest censorship law, Variety (magazine); retrieved 23 January 2008</ref> Ladda Tangsupachai, director of the Ministry of Culture's Cultural Surveillance Department, said the ratings law was needed because moviegoers in Thailand are "uneducated". She further explained, "They're not intellectuals, that's why we need ratings ... Nobody goes to see films by Apichatpong. Thai people want to see comedy. We like a laugh."<ref name = "worse">Montlake, Simon. 11 October 2007. Will Thai reforms make censorship worse?, Time; retrieved 23 January 2008</ref>

The filmmakers sought a self-regulation approach, with the founding of an independent body run by film professionals. Apichatpong had written in a commentary earlier in the year:

Free from state influence, this agency would be responsible for monitoring and assigning ratings, and it would bear direct responsibilities towards the audience, who in turn would monitor the performance of the agency. This way, the film industry will be liberated from the state's shackles and begin to have a dialogue with the public.<ref>Weerasethakul, Apichatpong. 11 August 2007. The folly and future of Thai cinema under military dictatorship Template:Webarchive, Bangkok Post; retrieved via Thai Film Foundation, 23 January 2008</ref>

A protest against the draft ratings law was held outside the Parliament building in Bangkok, at which Apichatpong and fellow Thai directors Wisit Sasanatieng and Pen-Ek Ratanaruang held banners that read: "No Freedom. No Democracy. No Peace"<ref name="Protest"/><ref>คนรักหนังขอเปลี่ยนม้วน ‘พ.ร.บ.ภาพยนตร์’ ฉบับ โลกแคบ-ใจแคบ Template:Webarchive, Prachatai; retrieved 23 January 2008 Template:In lang</ref> The ratings law, with the "cut-and-ban" categories left intact, was passed on 20 December 2007.<ref name = "passes"/>

"Tomyam Pladib"

Apichatpong presented the "Apichatpong On Video Works" session as part of the "Tomyam Pladib" art exhibition that featured both Thai and Japanese artists who produced works regarding the coexistence of traditional and modern cultures. The filmmaker's presentation consisted of three short films: Ghost Of Asia, 0116643225059 and The Anthem. Apichatpong also answered questions from the audience to conclude the presentation.<ref name="Tom" />

The first English-language book on Apichatpong was published in March 2009. James Quandt is the editor and author of the analytical career overview that introduces the book. Other contributors include the cultural and political theorist Benedict Anderson, filmmaker Mark Cousins, art curator Karen Newman, critics Tony Rayns and Kong Rithdee, and actress Tilda Swinton.

"Primitive", Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives and Memoria

"Primitive", Apichatpong's first solo exhibition—composed of a two-channel video installation, seven single-channel videos, and two giclée prints<ref name="Nash" />—was first shown at Haus der Kunst in February 2009. In September 2009, the exhibition was shown in Liverpool, United Kingdom (UK) at FACT (Foundation for Art and Creative Technology).<ref name="Fact">Template:Cite web</ref> The work was commissioned by Haus der Kunst, of Munich, Germany, with FACT and Animate Projects, and was produced by Illuminations Films, London and Kick the Machine. Curator Karen Newman wrote in the introduction for the exhibition: "His works are also vehicles that take us between different worlds, asking questions about the future and revealing a much bigger story than at first appears." Primitive was shot in the border town, Nabua, where the Mekong River divides Thailand and Laos.<ref name="Fact" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2011 the New Museum presented the American debut of Primitive<ref name="Nash">Template:Cite journal</ref>

In 2010, Apichatpong's feature film, Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The film was also selected as the Thai entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 83rd Academy Awards<ref name="thewrap Thailand">Template:Cite web</ref> but it did not make the final shortlist.<ref name="Oscar Shortlist">Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2012, Apichatpong's film Mekong Hotel was screened in the Special Screenings section at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival.<ref name="Official Selection">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="guardian">Template:Cite news</ref>

In March 2013, Apichatpong and fellow Kick The Machine artist Chai Siri received the "Sharjah Biennial Prize" at the 2013 Sharjah Biennial 11 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), alongside five other artists, including Magdi Mostafa and Fumito Urabe.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Apichatpong was also awarded Japan's "Fukuoka Art and Culture Prize" in June, alongside Indian visual artist Nalini Malani, worth 3,000,000 yen (US$30,530).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In March 2014, it was announced that Apichatpong will feature among 32 directors from four continents, including Vincent Gallo and Gaspar Noé, to direct Short Plays, a soccer-themed omnibus production shot around the world.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Apichatpong's short is set in his home town, features 22 shots of its lake, almost the only recognizable feature from his childhood, which are arranged like players in a soccer game.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Apichatpong's latest film, Memoria, a collaboration with Tilda Swinton, produced by Diana Bustamante and shot in Colombia in 2019, had its premiere in the 2021 Cannes Film Festival. It received the Jury Prize (ex aequo), alongside Nadav Lapid's Ahed's Knee.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Apichatpong also directed a segment of The Year of the Everlasting Storm, an anthology film.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Jengira's Magnificent Dream

It was reported in October 2024 that Weerasethakul is preparing a new feature film set in Sri Lanka.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The film is likely to be inspired by Arthur C. Clarke's The Fountains of Paradise (1979) as well as an article written by a Thai woman who went to Sri Lanka on a religious pilgrimage.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In September 2025, the film's title, Jengira's Magnificent Dream, was revealed. Jenjira Pongpas, Connor Jessup, Sakda Kaewbuadee, Tilda Swinton are set to star and filming is scheduled to begin in Sri Lanka in February 2026.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Personal views

In a May 2013 interview for the Encounter Thailand journal, Apichatpong stated that all of his films are personal in nature and he does not consider himself a cultural ambassador for Thailand. In relation to the concept of "queer", he explained: "For me, the word queer means anything’s possible."<ref name="Hunt" />

In December 2023, alongside 50 other filmmakers, Apichatpong signed an open letter published in Libération demanding a ceasefire and an end to the killing of civilians amid the 2023 Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, and for a humanitarian corridor into Gaza to be established for humanitarian aid, and the release of hostages.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Works

Feature films

Year English Title Thai Title Notes
2000 Mysterious Object at Noon ดอกฟ้าในมือมาร
2002 Blissfully Yours สุดเสน่หา Won the Un Certain Regard prize at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival
2003 The Adventure of Iron Pussy หัวใจทรนง Co-director (with Michael Shaowanasai)
2004 Tropical Malady สัตว์ประหลาด Won the Prix du Jury at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival
2006 Syndromes and a Century แสงศตวรรษ Nominated for the Golden Lion at the 63rd Venice International Film Festival
2010 Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives ลุงบุญมีระลึกชาติ Won the Palme d'Or at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival
2012 Mekong Hotel แม่โขงโฮเต็ล Screened in the Special Screenings section at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival; also for Arte
2015 Cemetery of Splendour รักที่ขอนแก่น Screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival<ref name="2015Cannes">Template:Cite web</ref>Won Best Film at the 2015 Asia Pacific Screen Awards
2021 Memoria - Won the Prix du Jury at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival

Short films and installations

Many of Apichatpong's installations can be considered short films. The following two tables are divided by method of presentation.

Short films

Year English Title Thai Title Notes
1993 Bullet -
1994 0116643225059 -
1994 Kitchen and Bedroom -
1994/6 Like the Relentless Fury of the Pounding Waves Mae ya nang
1997 100 Years of Thai Cinema - for the Thai Film Foundation
1998 Thirdworld Goh gayasit
1998 The Lungara Eating Jell-O - for World Artists for Tibet
1999 Windows -
1999 Malee and the Boy มาลีและเด็กชาย
2000 Boys at Noon -
2000 Boys at Noon / Girls at Night -
2001 Secret Love Affair (for Tirana) -
2001 Narratives: Masumi Is a PC Operator / Fumiyo Is a Designer / I Was Sketching / Swan's Blood - for the Intercross Creative Center
2002 Second Love in Hong Kong - Co-directed with Christelle Lheureux
2004 GRAF: Tong / Love Song / Tone -
2004 Worldly Desires - for the Jeonju International Film Festival
2005 Ghost of Asia - Co-director

for the Tsunami Digital Short Films project

2006 Waterfall - for Solar Cinematic Art Gallery/Curtas Vila do Conde International Film Festival
2006 The Anthem - for LUX
2007 Luminous People - segment in The State of the World (O Estado do Mundo)
2007 Because -
2007 Meteorites Nimit for Short Films for the King Bhumibol Adulyadej's 80th Birthday
2007 Emerald มรกต
2008 Prosperity for 2008 -
2008 Vampire สัตว์วิกาล for Louis Vuitton
2008 Mobile Men - segment in Stories on Human Rights
2009 A Letter to Uncle Boonmee - companion piece to Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
2009 Haiku -
2009 Phantoms of Nabua ผีนาบัว for Toronto International Film Festival
2010 Empire -
2011 M Hotel -
2011 Monsoon - segment in 3.11 A Sense of Home Films
2011 For Tomorrow For Tonight -
2012 Ashes - collaboration with Lomo and Mubi
2012 Sakda (Rousseau) -
2013 One Water -
2013 La Punta - segment in Venezia 70 - Future Reloaded
2014 Fireworks (Archives) -
2014 Footprints - broadcast during the 2014 FIFA World Cup
2015 Rolling -
2015 Vapour หมอกแม่ริม for Busan International Film Festival
2016 Ablaze - for Singapore International Film Festival
2018 Blue ตะวันดับ
2019 2019 - for kickthemachine.com<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref>
2020 2020 - for kickthemachine.com<ref name=":0" />
2020 October Rumbles เสียงฟ้าเดือนตุลา
2021 Night Colonies - Screened in the Special Screenings section at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival
2022 On Blue - collaboration with Rafiq Bhatia and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
2022 Durmiente -

Installations

Year English Title(s) Thai Title Location(s) Notes
2001 Haunted Houses Project: Thailand - Istanbul Biennial, Turkey
2002 Golden Ship - Memling Museum, Belgium
2003 This and Million More Lights - 46664
2004 It Is Possible That Only Your Heart Is Not Enough to Find You a True Love: True Love in Green / True Love in White - Busan Biennale, South Korea
2006 Faith - FACT, United Kingdom

Liverpool Biennial, United Kingdom

2006 The Anthem - Frieze Art Fair, United Kingdom
2007 Unknown Forces - REDCAT, USA
2007 My Mother's Garden - Musée de l’Orangerie, France commissioned by Dior
2007/8 The Palace Pipittan Tee Taipei National Palace Museum, Taiwan
2012 The Importance of Telepathy - Documenta, Germany
2012 Cactus River โขงแล้งนำ Walker Art Center, USA
2013 Dilbar - Sharjah Biennial, UAE
2016 Invisibility - Saitama Triennale, Japan
2016 Fever Room - Steirischer Herbst, AustriaKunstenfestivaldesarts, Belgium
2017 async - first light - Watari Museum of Contemporary Art, Japan collaboration with Ryuichi Sakamoto
2018 Constellations - Gwangju Biennale, South Korea
2018 Fiction - ShanghART Gallery, Singapore also at Art Basel in 2019<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
2021 A Minor History, Part 1 - 100 Ton Son Foundation, Thailand
2022 A Minor History, Part 2 - 100 Ton Son Foundation, Thailand
2022 For Bruce - Azkuna Zentroa, Spain
2022 A Conversation with the Sun - BANGKOK CITYCITY GALLERY, Thailand
2022 A Conversation with the Sun (VR) - Aichi Triennale, Japan
2024 Solarium<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> - SCAI The Bathhouse, Japan
2024–2027 Ring of Fire<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> - Benesse House Museum, Japan collaboration with Haegue Yang
2025 A Conversation with the Sun (Afterimage)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> - Museum of Contemporary Art, Australia

Contributions

  • 2008 Life on Mars, the 2008 Carnegie International<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
  • 2011 "For Tomorrow For Tonight", Irish Museum of Modern Art
  • 2013 "Mirage City Cinema", Sharjah Biennal 11
  • 2013 "Photophobia", Oslo, Norway
  • 2025 Designing of the trophy of the 'Busan Awards' for the competition section for the 30th Busan International Film Festival.<ref name="30thed:dl">Template:Cite web</ref>

Notes

Template:Notelist

References

Template:Reflist

Further reading

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