A Letter to Uncle Boonmee

Apichatpong Weerasethakul born July 16, 1970 in Bangkok, Thailand, is a Thai independent film director, screenwriter, and film producer. His feature films include Tropical Malady, which won a jury prize at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival, Blissfully Yours, which won the top prize in the Un Certain Regard program at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival, and Syndromes and a Century, which premiered at the 63rd Venice Film Festival and was the first Thai film to be entered in competition there. Working outside the strict confines of the Thai film studio system, Apichatpong Weerasethakul has directed several features and dozens of short films. Themes reflected in his films (frequently discussed in interviews) include dreams, nature, sexuality (including his own homosexuality), and Western perceptions of Thailand and Asia, and his films display a preference for unconventional narrative structures (like placing titles/credits at the middle of a film) and for working with non-actors. Cinephiles affectionately refer to him as “Joe” (a nickname that he, like many Thai names with similarly long names, has adopted out of convenience).

Apichatpong Weerasethkul’s parents were both physicians, and worked in a hospital in Khon Kaen, Thailand. He 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 Art Institute of Chicago and received a master’s degree in fine arts in filmmaking in 1997. His feature-length debut, Dokfa nai meuman (Mysterious Object at Noon) blends documentary footage and improvised narrative, and was conceptually based upon the exquisite corpse game invented by surrealists. He formed his own production company, Kick the Machine, in 1999, through which he produces and promotes his own works, and provides support to other independent filmmakers and experimental film works. Apichatpong’s 2002 feature Sud Sanaeha (Blissfully Yours) won the Un Certain Regard prize at the Cannes Film Festival. 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. The low-budget, digital movie was a spoof of Thai films of the 1960s and ’70s, particularly the musicals and action films of Mitr Chaibancha and Petchara Chaowarat. It was screened at the Berlin Film Festival. Pop singer Krissada Terrence, better known as Noi from Pru, portrayed the male lead. Along with his features, Apichatpong is known for his short films, videoworks and installations. For the Jeonju International Film Festival he was commissioned in the Three Digital Short Films project, which he shared with two other Asian directors. His film was called Worldly Desires. Shinya Tsukamoto from Japan made Haze and Song Il-gon from South Korea created Magician(s).

In 2005, Apichatpong served as the consultant on the Tsunami Digital Short Films, 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. His film was called Ghost of Asia. The Office of Contemporary Art and Culture also honoured Apichatpong with its 2005 Silpathorn Award for Filmmaking. The award, which goes each year to several artists in various disciplines, is given to living contemporary artists. In 2006, Apichatpong released a feature film, Syndromes and a Century, which was commissioned by Peter Sellars for the New Crowned Hope Festival in Vienna to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Mozart’s birth. It premiered at the 63rd Venice Film Festival and screened at the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival and many other festivals. The film’s Thai release, originally slated for April 19, 2007, was indefinitely delayed after Thai Censorship Board demanded the removal of four scenes. Apichatpong refused to recut the film and said he would withdraw it from domestic circulation. Later in 2007, the film was shown twice in privately arranged screenings at the Alliance française in Bangkok.

(From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apichatpong_Weerasethakul)