At 7pm on Monday October 3rd, the The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand (518/5 Ploenchit Road, Maneeya Center) will be screening Martijn Payens‘ 2013 documentary film Broadcasting the End. It’s the story of a small village in Bugarach, in the South of France, which, except for its beautiful scenery, has little to offer visitors. There are hardly any shops, and no special attractions whatsoever—until the mayor tells the local paper about the mountain alongside the village. He says it will be the sole safe refuge on earth during the 2012 Apocalypse. His pronouncements unleash a barrage of media hype. This documentary not only captures the media hype, but it also contributes to it. FCCT members can attend free, Non-members B150.
In celebration of the 70th anniversary of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s accession to the throne, the Thailand Film Archive has scheduled an ongoing program consisting of seven classic films that the King once saw at the cinema himself way back when. This month the selected film is Psycho (1960), the electrifying horror-thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The screening takes place at noon on October 9th at the Scala Theatre (Siam Square, Soi 2) and tickets are B100 each. It’s a rare chance to see this film on the big screen and shouldn’t be missed.
The most anticipated of this month’s films on the roster at the newly opened Bangkok Screening Room is the Thailand premier of Hot Sugar’s Cold World, directed by Adam Bhala Lough. It’s a fly-on-the-wall look into the life of a modern-day Mozart, as he creates one-of-a-kind music made entirely out of sounds from the world around him. It was also an official selection at the 2015 SXSW Film Festival, and the 2015 Hot Docs Festival in Toronto. Check the Bangkok Screening Room website for exact dates, times. and prices. www.bkksr.com
Meanwhile the Goethe Institute film series continues with a pair of free screenings of the 2013 film I Feel Like Disco (Ich fühl mich Disco), directed by Axel Ranisch. The film centers around high diving instructor Hanno, who shows no understanding for his son Florian—a fat daydreamer who listens to cheesy German pop music and is awkward with girls. The son gets along better with the mother, who indulges his love of disco, but when she falls seriously ill one morning father and son suddenly have to get along with one another on their own. The first of the two screenings will be at 1pm at the Thai Film Archive (Salaya) on October 9th, and the second at 6pm at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC, 939 Rama 1 Rd) on October 11th.
On a different note, fans of the FCCT’s long running ‘Contemporary World Film Series’ are happy that the series now has a new home at Thailand Knowledge (TK) Park, located on the 8th floor of CentralWorld. On October 22nd the second film shown in this year’s series will be White God, Hungary’s entry for the 2014 Oscars. The film, directed by Kornél Mundruczó, tells the story of 13-year-old Lili who fights to protect her dog. She is devastated when her father gets rid of the animal, and so she sets out to find her dog and save him. The screening takes place on Saturday, October 22nd at 4pm, and will be followed by snacks and refreshments provided by the Embassy of Hungary. Tickets are only B20 each. www.tkpark.or.th
Finally, the 4th in the series of ongoing Doc+Talk events will be held on October 23rd in the 5th floor auditorium of the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC). The Documentary Club of Bangkok will be showing Poverty, Inc., the 2014 feature-length documentary by Michael Matheson Miller. This hard-hitting doc challenges current perceptions of global charity, and promotes entrepreneurship as an effective alternative to alleviating world poverty. The screening gets underway at 4pm, with a post-screening talk at 6pm. Admission is B100. www.facebook.com/DocumentaryClubTH
