Four winning pitches were announced Tuesday from the Mekong Region Netflix x Purin Pictures Short Film Camp.
Winning projects have been revealed as: “Ponay” from Thailand, “The Witness” from Laos, “Termite Life” from Thailand, and “Sad Diva Lands on the Moon” from Myanmar.
The 10-day workshop was held this year for the second time and involved 12 teams of directors and producers – six teams from Thailand, four from Myanmar, two from Cambodia and one from Laos.
The workshop was funded by the Netflix Creative Equity Fund, which also championed a similar ‘Take 10’ exercise in India. Camp Southeast Asia is run by Purin Pictures, a non-profit organization supported by the Purin Foundation, which also provides grants to filmmakers in Southeast Asia.
Proposed films covered topics ranging from family drama and LGBTQ issues, to political oppression and the dismantling of identity.
Participants were mentored by professional filmmakers from the Mekong region and asked to present a live presentation of their short film projects. The four winning short films receive grants and post-production support to produce their short films.
“The four winning films are diverse in genre and style but in each of them, you can see a director discovering his voice. We identify and invest in young talents with the hope that in the future they will become pioneers in the film and content industry of the nation,” said Aditya Asarat, co-founder of Purin Pictures. “.
“Ponay or You are Not F*** King Welcome”, directed by Hesome Chemamah and produced by Kardpol Nitipisanon. You see a non-binary person stray from his religious hometown deep in southern Thailand, but have to return to enlist in the military.
The Witness, directed by Mitpasa Sitthihukpanya and produced by Konghan Phiennachit, sees a fortune teller arrested after a woman commits murder, following his prophecy.
Directed by Chonchanok Thanatteepwong and produced by Wannawat Suwannarath, Termite Life tells of an extraordinary family reunion.
Directed by Moe Myat May Zarchi and produced by Vicky Nway, Sad Diva Lands on the Moon gives free rein to the bright imagination of a girl living under an oppressive government.
“In my country we have art and we have films. But we don’t give enough importance to these things,” said Chunchanok Thanatipong, from Bangkok, Thailand. “Through this programme, my teacher helped me refine my script and I also learned a lot about production.”
“Ponay” premiered at the Netflix x Purin Pictures Production Workshop.
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