Te-GRS

Develop from Project That May or May Not Be Made (Y1)

WHAT?

A short film called ‘To My Motherland‘ (working title) explores Thailand’s deep-rooted superstitions and rituals. Blending documentary and fiction, the narrative reveals ritual performances that shed light on issues of social inequality, capitalism, and sexism.

HOW?

I will take full charge of all pre-production and post-production processes; meaning I will do research, write the fictional script, edit, and color-grading by myself. However, in the production process, I plan to collaborate with my fellow performers. Even though I plan to be the director of photography for the project, I will need some assistance in shooting in a site-specific location.

WORKFLOW

Firstly, gathering and researching Thailand’s deep-rooted superstitions and rituals. Then, I will select beliefs that reflect on social inequality, capitalism, and sexism issues. I plan to write a fictional script based on the selected beliefs. In the editing process, I will find the archive footage related to those beliefs and edit it with the footage I shot.

TIMETABLE

September - October 2023 — Research and Finalise the beliefs that reflect on social inequality, capitalism, and sexism issues. October 2023 — Writing the fictional script, finding performers to collaborate with, and shooting. November 2023 — December 2023 Shooting and Editing. January - March 2024 — Editing and sound mixing. (Shooting more if needed) March - April 2024 —Color-grading. And fixing according to the feedback. May - July 2024 — Feedback and Fixing.

PREVIOUS PRACTICE

‘To My Motherland‘ will be presented as a hybrid of documentary and fiction which is similar to my previous mockumentary film titled ‘The Holy Sponge’. Both films speak about the deep-rooted beliefs/cliché stories in Thailand. I will mainly focus on using a sarcastic voice narration as well as explore the spiritual connection to my motherland.

CHOICE MADE

In this MA, I have chosen to create work based on political issues and focus on ironic and fictional narration. Simultaneously, I continue to find different ways/structures to create work.

RAPID PROTOTYPES

Pick a (Thai) superstitious belief/ritual and make up a short fictional story based on that ritual. (could be free writing)

1. RUBBING TREE BARK FOR LUCKY NUMBER.

There is a vast flower tattoo on my right leg. It started as a fun idea in a strange place with buzzing machines. The person doing it was mysterious, and they asked what I wanted. I saw it: a unique flower, not like any other. It covers my leg with pink petals like two of 3 facing one another.

2. RUBBING TREE BARK FOR LUCKY NUMBER.

A woman in a white dress lay down on the grass next to a massive tree with colorful mesh wrapping around it. She is not conscious but seems comfortable in that position.

3. RUBBING TREE BARK FOR LUCKY NUMBER.

FAKE INTERVIEW SCRIPT.

I would like to speak from the Thai people’s perspective.

We are ambitious. Even if our country is a developing country, we never stop seeking ways to get rich.

We realize that our unique ability is to communicate with the spirits. So we take it seriously.

Moreover, we believe that the holy tree can give us lucky numbers for winning the lottery.

Different people have different rubbing techniques. The most common technique is applying powder on the bark before rubbing with your fingers until the lucky numbers appear.

Personally, the best technique for me is worshipping the colorful mesh and thumb amulets.

Every time I worshipped them, I always got lucky numbers. Do not get frustrated if you can’t decode the lucky numbers immediately. It is not uncommon for people to dream of these numbers after participating in this ritualistic worship act.

I once dreamt of two ducks, I interpreted them to be 27 (7 sounds like ‘duck’ in Thai).

Oh, I got lots of money.

Yes, Thai people have such a big imagination. We’re always craving for some excitement.

We do believe in the next life. Most of us know that no matter how hardworking we are,

we will never be rich in this life. Maybe we will be born rich in the next life.

Taking a risk in the lottery is the answer. If we win the lottery, we will be rich now.

4. PLANTING LEMONGRASS UPSIDE DOWN TO STOP THE RAIN.

I woke up in the middle of the night. It was still dark and cloudy outside, and through my big window, I saw a flock of birds, their shadows dancing in the moonlight. I lay in bed, shivering from a haunting nightmare.

In my dream, a female ghost appeared. Her sad eyes pierced my soul as her spooky voice whispered, "Can you show me the society I could take these lemongrasses to?" I nodded, and the ghost's face softened, gratitude in her eyes.