Wednesday,
March 19 – Saturday, March 22
Mysterious
Objects: The Films of Apichatpong Weerasethakul
 It’s
no secret to devotees of world cinema that Apichatpong Weerasethakul
is one of the most radically original and consistently masterful
filmmakers. From his debut with Mysterious Object at Noon,
through Blissfully Yours, Tropical Malady
and the recent Syndromes and a Century – Weerasethakul’s
work has bucked expectations, gaining both distribution and
a growing band of ardent enthusiasts.
But
Weerasethakul’s output extend beyond the feature-length masterpieces
American audiences are so fortunate to see. From the beginning,
he’s produced a steady stream of shorter works – films, videos
and installations – an output he’s maintained even as he keeps
creating features. This varied and unpredictable body of work,
very little of which has been accessible until now, sheds a
new light on Weerasethakul’s artistic identity.
Special
thanks to Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Jed Rapfogel at Anthology
Film Archives, Lee Chatametikool, David Bowlds (Strand Releasing)
and Isabelle Park (Jeonju International Film Festival).
Wednesday,
March 19 at 7pm
Syndromes
and a Century (Sang Sattawat)
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand, 2006, 35mm, 105 mins, color,
Thai w/ English subtitles
 "The
unpredictable and provocative Weerasethakul offers a mysterious
and beautiful experimental feature based on memories of his
parents, who were both doctors. It’s divided into two parts,
both set in the present, with many rhyme effects between them.
The first, set in and around a rural clinic, centers on his
mother; the second, set in the vicinity of a Bangkok hospital,
focuses on his father, though it’s a kind of quizzical remake
of the first and both characters appear in each section. There’s
nothing here that resembles narrative urgency, but this is a
quiet masterpiece, delicate and full of wonder.” – Jonathan
Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
Thursday,
March 20 at 7pm
Tropical
Malady
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand/France, 2006, 35mm, 118
mins, color, Thai w/ English subtitles
 Winner
of the Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and an
official selection of the New York Film Festival, Tropical
Malady chronicles the mystical love affair between a young
soldier and the country boy he seduces. Soon disrupted by the
boy’s sudden disappearance, local legends claim the boy was
transformed into a mythic wild beast, and the soldier journeys
alone into the heart of the Thai jungle in search of him.
Friday,
March 21 at 7pm
Short
Work: Program I
Total
running time 100 minutes
The
Anthem
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand, 2006, 35mm, 5 mins, color,
Thai
w/
English subtitles
 In
Thailand, before every film screening, there is a Royal Anthem
before the feature presentation. It is one of the rituals imbedded
in Thai society to give a blessing to something or someone before
certain ceremonies. The Anthem presents
a ‘Cinema Anthem’ that praises and blesses the approaching feature
for each screening.
Windows
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand, 1999, BetaSP, 17 mins,
color, Thai
w/
English subtitles
 "It
was the first time I shot with a video camera. When testing
the camera, I noticed a reflection of the windows on the television
screen. The movement of my body while holding the camera effected
the movement on the screen. Windows is an improvisation
using a little physical movement to capture natural phenomena
through the camera eye’s mechanism.” – Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Malee
and the Boy
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand, 1999, BetaSP, 27 mins,
color, Thai
w/
English subtitles
Taken
from a Thai comic book. Malee and the Boy is a collaborative
project with a 10-year-old boy in charge of the microphone who
roams around Bangkok to gather sounds. The filmmaker is in charge
of the image, filmed roughly along the boy’s route.
Like
the Relentless Fury of the Pounding Waves
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand, 1995, BetaSP, 30 mins,
color, Thai
w/
English subtitles
Juxtaposing
the worlds of time and memory, this documentary leisurely examines
the shifting focus of image and sound. On a hot day in a small
town a mystical radio fills the air. Lives are trapped in the
time of the radio play, of the photograph, and of the film.
Thirdworld
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand, 1997, BetaSP, 17 mins,
color, Thai
w/
English subtitles
This
film depicts the landscapes, metaphorical and actual, of the
southern island Panyi. Sound is taken from different sources,
but taped while the subjects were not aware of the recording
apparatus. Thus, this piece may be called a re-constructed documentary.
The title is intended as a parody of the word that is used by
the West to describe Thailand or other “exotic” landscapes.
Saturday,
March 22 at 7pm
Short
Work: Program II
Total
running time 85 minutes
The
Anthem
See
Short Work: Program I
0116643225059
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand, BetaSP, 1994, 5 mins, color,
Thai
w/
English subtitles
The
film alternates between two images – a mother’s photo and an
apartment interior. The telephone conversation links two different
spaces: a timely picture of mother (memories?) and a recent,
everyday space.
Ghost
of Asia
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul and Christelle Lheureux, Thailand,
2005, BetaSP, 8.5 mins,
color,Thai
w/ English subtitles
In
Ghost of Asia, the filmmakers imagine a ghost who
wanders around the seashore. On a Thai island, they invited
kids – two boys and a girl – to make a movie. The kids are provided
with an actor whose function is to be a puppet, to perform the
tasks dictated by them. The film is structured according to
the kids’ real-time direction.
Luminous
People
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand, 2006, 35mm, 15 mins,
color,
Thai
w/
English subtitles
Weerasethakul
and his crew traveled to Nong Khai, a small town near the Mekong
River, and recruited local villagers to participate in the film. For
two days on the boat, the cast and crew reconstructed a fake
ceremony and assembled a narrative.
My
Mother’s Garden
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand, 2007, BetaSP, 7 mins,
color, Thai
w/
English subtitles
The
film is an impression of a jewelry collection by Victoire de
Castellane, who’s pieces are inspired by various types of dangerous
flowers and carnivorous plants. Each object has a hidden mechanical
movement. The film is also a tribute to Weerasethakul’s mother’s
garden, with wild orchid roots, bugs and various organisms.
Worldly
Desires
dir.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand, 2005, BetaSP, 40 mins,
color, Thai
w/
English subtitles
 "Worldly
Desires is an experimental project wherein I invited a
filmmaker friend, Pimpaka Towira, to shoot the love story by
day and the song by night. The story was written by my assistant
who wanted to reprise a forbidden love story in a more romantic
time in the past. I picked a pop song, Will I Be Lucky?
to convey the sense of guiltless freedom one feels when
being struck by love.” – Apichatpong Weerasethakul
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