Bangkok--28 Jun--Extra Virgin
Extra Virgin in cooperation with SF Cinema City and the independent film community continue this year with the Director’s Screen project, a specialty theatrical distribution initiative for independent arthouse cinema. Striving to introduce more distinctive, thought-provoking films from Thailand as well as around the world to the local audience, the project reflects the widespread recognition in contemporary Thai cinema in the international arena as seen in the Palme d’Or success of Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, also to be released in Thailand this week.
The Director’s Screen project first took off in May 2008 with the releases of 2 Thai films: Aditya Assarat’s 5 Thai national film awards (the Subannahongsa) winner Wonderful Town, and Pimpaka Towira’s The Truth Be Told: The Cases Against Supinya Klangnarong. Following the positive feedback, the second phrase of the project is set to go ahead this year with the release of 3 internationally-acclaimed titles from Thailand.
The 2010 project will launch with Anocha Suwichakornpong’s debut feature Mundane History, winner of 2 best feature film awards at the 2010 International Film Festival Rotterdam (VPRO Tiger Award) and the Transilvania International Film Festival (Transilvania Trophy), as well as a heavy international film festivals presence. The film will be released in Bangkok on 5 August 2010 at SFX Cinema, The Emporium.
Next will be Agrarian Utopia by Uruphong Raksasad, a semi-documentary fiction feature exploring the year-long rice farming cycle in northern Thailand amidst the backdrop of the country’s economic, social and political changes. A fixture on the international film festivals circuit, the film is the recipient of UNESCO Special Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Promotion and Preservation of Cultural Diversity, among many others. The release date is set for 2 September 2010.
Wrapping up the 2010 line-up is the short film Phuket by Aditya Assarat, recent laureate of the Ministry of Culture’s Silpathorn Award. Shot entirely in the namesake resort town, the film stars young Korean heartthrob actress Lim Soo-Jung (I’m a Cyborg, But That’s OK and Sorry, I Love You) and legendary Thai actor Sorapong Chatree, and will be screened alongside 2 other shorts by the same director: Boy Genius and The Sigh. The release date will be at 30 September 2010.
All the films in the Director’s Screen project will be theatrically released in an exclusive 4-week run at SF Cinema, with screening everyday at 7PM and additional slots on weekends at 2PM. Tickets are available to purchase at the cinema’s box office. Throughout the release period, there will be special activities hosted every Saturday after the evening screening where the films’ directors will attend to meet and do a Q&A session with the audience.
This year’s Director’s Screen project is supported by the Office of Contemporary Art and Culture, Ministry of Culture, and with a new technical partner in ACD Network, Singapore. The strengthened commitment and shared vision of all the project’s partners will confirm the longevity of the initiative and more titles are set to be released in the next phrases of the project in the coming year.
For more information, please contact:
Extra Virgin Co., Ltd.
Tel: +662 939 4343, Fax: +662 939 5573
E-mail:
[email protected], Web Site: www.extravirginco.com
Mundane History
A film by
Anocha Suwichakornpong
An Electric Eel Films production
Drama, 82 minutes, 35 mm
Colour, Stereo, Rating: 20
Release date: 5 August 2010
Synopsis:
Mundane History records the life of Ake, a young man confined to his bed after an accident leaves him paralyzed from the waist down. Ake is being cared for by Pun, a male nurse who is hired by Thanin, the stoic patriarch of the family.
The main house in the family compound is a grand old edifice that has seen betterdays. The general house duties are attended to by a handful of servants who sharea smaller separate house built into the same compound.
Utilizing the non-linear structure, the film focuses on the mundane, almost insignificant details of everyday life. But little by little, we begin to understand what secrets lie beneath the peaceful facade of the house….
Starring : Phakpoom Surapongsanuruk,
Arkanae Cherkam, Paramej Noiam
Producers : Soros Sukhum, Anocha Suwichakornpong,
Lee Chatametikool
Director/Writer : Anocha Suwichakornpong
Awards:
- Tiger Award, 2010 International Film Festival Rotterdam
- Transilvania Trophy, 2010 Transilvania International Film Festival
Other festivals participation:
Pusan, World Film Festival of Bangkok (Opening Film), Black Movie, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Hong Kong, San Francisco, Singapore International, Open Doek (Belgium), Barcelona Seattle, Edinburgh, Maryland (USA), Munich(Germany), Distrital, Semana de cine mexicano y otros mundos, Moscow, La Rochelle, Paris Cinema,Durban, Era New Horizons, Vancouver
Agrarian Utopia
Producer:
Pimpaka Towira
Director/Editor/
Cinematographer:
Uruphong Raksasad
With support from the Hubert Bals Fund (International Film Festival Rotterdam) and Office of Contemporary Art and Culture, Ministry of Culture, Thailand
A film by Uruphong Raksasad, An Extra Virgin production
Drama, 122 minutes, HDV, Colour, Stereo
Screening format: Digital 2K, Rating: 15
Release date: 2 September 2010
Synopsis:
Facing seizure of their own lands, two families found themselves farming together on the same field, hoping to get through just another rice-farming season like every year. But no matter how much the world is evolving, how much the country is going through economic, political and social changes, they still cannot grasp that ideology of happiness.
How can we dream of utopia while our stomach is still grumbling?
Participated at over 44 film festivals worldwide and winner of 9 international awards to date including:
- UNESCO Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Promotion and Preservation of Cultural Diversity through Film
- Nominated for Achievement in Cinematography at 2009 Asia Pacific Screen Awards
- Best Narrative Feature, 2009 Toronto Reel Asian Film Festival
- Best Film, 2010 !f Istanbul Film Festival
Other festivals participation:
Rotterdam, Hong Kong, Singapore, Jeonju, Barcelona,
Libertas, Munich, Brisbane, Jogja, Bangkok,
Vancouver, Yamagata, Ghent, Lisboa, Viennale,
Mumbai, Asiaticafilmmediale, CPH:DOX, Mar del Plata,
Toronto Reel Asian, Bratislava, Kerala, Pune, Fajr, !f Istanbul, MoMA, San Francisco Asian American, Wisconsin, Berlin Documentary Forum
Phuket
A film by Aditya Assarat
A Pop Pictures production
Short Film, 32 minutes, HD
Colour, Dolby SRD
Screening format: Digital
Release date:
30 September 2010
Synopsis:
Jin is a famous actress in Korea. She comes for a holiday in Phuket but finds that even here, she cannot escape the constant disruption of phone calls and fans. She finds an unexpected friend in Pong, the hotel limo driver in charge of taking her around the island. They share a common bond - a memory of old Phuket that no longer exists anymore.
Starring : Lim Soo Jung, Sorapong Chatree,
Supannada Plupthong
Producers : Soros Sukhum, Saksiri Chantarangsi,
Wicha Kokapun
Director/Writer : Aditya Assarat
Commissioned jointly by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Association of Tourism and Hotel Operators of Phuket.
Phuket will be screened along with two other short films by the same director:
Boy Genius
A film by Aditya Assarat, A Pop Pictures production
Short Film, 12 minutes, HD, Colour, Stereo
A young filmmaker is trying to make a film but his girlfriend keeps getting in the way. She doesn’t know anything about art. She is not a boy genius…
The Sigh
A film by Aditya Assarat, A Pop Pictures production
Short Film, 25 minutes, HD, Colour, Stereo
A soundman goes to record sounds in an abandoned building. When he gets home he discovers a mysterious woman’s sigh on the tape. The next day he goes back to find the owner of the sigh.