Social unrest and the COVID-19 pandemic have not been able to stop the sixth edition of the Bangkok ASEAN Film Festival from taking place as an in-person event. It runs this week Sept. 3-6, 2020.
The four-day festival features a line-up of films from ASEAN member nations including “Rom” by Tran Thanh Huy from Vietnam, “The Science of Fictions” by Yosep Anggi Noen from Indonesia and “The Long Walk” by Mattie Do from Laos. China’s “Balloon” by Pema Tseden and Koji Fukada’s “A Girl Missing” from Japan will also be screened. The festival will also present a lifetime achievement award to veteran actress Petchara Chaowarat, who appeared in 300 films during the golden age of Thai cinema from the 1960s to the end of 1970s.
Fifteen short films competing for the best short, jury prize and special mention will be presented as part of the ASEAN Short Film Competition. Award winners will be announced at a ceremony at SF World Cinema at Central World.
“The Honeymoon” (“Nam Peung Pra Jan”) from 1972 will be screened as part of a classics series presented by the Thai Film Archive. The film is directed by Charin Nuntanakorn and starring Sombat Metanee and Petchara Chaowarat.
Eight projects by ASEAN filmmakers have been selected to take part in the first Southeast Asian Project Pitch (SEA PITCH), where filmmakers will be pitching their projects to an international committee. Three awards with cash prizes up to $5,000 will be presented. A seminar examining the future of filmmaking in the post-COVID age will be staged at the Ministry of Culture.