BEFF5: Pramote and Kuck make Observation of the Monk

One of the hundreds of short films at the Bangkok Experimental Film Festival is Observation of the Monk, a brand new work by director Pramote Saengsorn in collaboration with performance artist Wannasak "Kuck" Sirilar, who portrays a Buddhist monk.

While Kuck is well known in the theatre community for "her" stage works, Thai action cinema fans might recognize Kuck as the lead villain in Dangerous Flowers (Chai Lai). Though, it's a bit hard to tell with the saffron-robed Kuck's shaved head.

Pramote acted in some mainstream films back in the late '90s, Romantic Blue among them. He directed Sneak and Zero to Hero for RS Film. As an independent filmmaker, he directed Tsu, one of the best-regarded works in 2005's Tsunami Digital Short Films.

Observation of the Monk is part of the Learned Behavior core program, which "explor[es] the poetics of reproduction, and the unconscious forces that shape the patterns of social and political life." It premieres at 8.30 tonight at Esplanade Cineplex, with an encore screening at 2pm on Sunday at Esplanade.

Other films in the program are the provocative Middle Earth by Thunska Pansittivorakul; Uruphong Raksasad's new film, Roy Tai Phrae; Sports News by Manatsak Dorkmai; The Love Culprit by Sanchai Chotirosserranee; 3 – 0 by Anocha Suwichakornpong; Drive by Olan Netrangsri; The Duck Empire Strikes Back by Nutthorn Kangwanklai; Escape from Popraya 2526 by Paisit Punpruksachat; Krasob by Nitipong Thinthupthai and Legacy by Inge 'Campbell' Blackman.

Middle Earth, the hilarious Duck Empire, Anocha's 3 - 0 and Escape from Propraya 2526 were featured in the Spoken Silence program at last year's Thai Short Film and Video Festival, which offered some insightful commentary on the 2006 coup.


More information:

• www.project304.org/beff5
• www.myspace.com/beff5

(Cross-published at The Nation Weblog)