Mon rot fai

Railway Sleepers

Forum 2017

The first railway line in Thailand, a sign of progress and wealth, was inaugurated in 1893. Looking out of the train window today, you can still see rice paddies and palm trees. In first class, foreign tourists mingle with rich Thais, toasting one another before retiring to generously-sized couchettes. The wagons at the back are jam-packed, with four passengers squashed on to benches meant for two. People selling food skillfully make their way through the train. Life gets on and off, while the camera mixes with the passengers as if it itself were one of their number. A woman sells cheap novels, children do their homework, armed soldiers conduct their checks, more and more veiled women board the train. These tiny, casually observed portraits of everyday life reflect the mood of a society that doesn’t seem to know where it’s headed, even if the train has been crossing the country from north to south for over 100 years now. It is a contemplative journey accompanied by the constant rattling of the wheels, giving viewers an insight into an unfamiliar country in surprising fashion.

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by Sompot Chidgasornpongse Thailand 2016 Thai 102’ Colour Documentary form

Crew

Director	Sompot Chidgasornpongse
Cinematography	Sompot Chidgasornpongse
Editing	Sompot Chidgasornpongse
Sound Design	Akritchalerm Kalayanamitr
Sound	Chalermrat Kaweewattana
Producers	Apichatpong Weerasethakul Kick the Machine Films, Sompot Chidgasornpongse At a Time Pictures

World sales

At a Time Pictures

Produced by

Kick the Machine Films

At a Time Pictures

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Sompot Chidgasornpongse

Born in Bangkok, Thailand, in 1980. He studied Architecture in Bangkok, and Film/Video at the California Institute of the Arts. Since then, he has worked several times as an assistant director to Apichatpong Weerasethakul, and has made 14 short films. He took part in the Berlinale Talents in 2014 as a director and editor. Mon rot fai is his first feature-length film.

Filmography

2003 Auad Dee; 10 min. 2004 To Infinity and Beyond; 11 min. 2005 Bangkok in the Evening; 16 min. · Andaman; 17 min. 2006 ABC; 3 min. · Naoko is trying to teach me how to make "Tonkatsu" in 1 minute; 1 min. · 8241.46 miles away from home; 6 min. 2007 Landscape 101 01 1101 01...; 28 min. · Physical Therapy; 1 min. 2008 Yesterday; 13 min. · Diseases and a Hundred Year Period; 20 min. · The Act of Repeating as a Basic Life Lesson; 4 min. 2009 Storytelling; 5 min. 2010 Home Video (Made in Thai Town); 21 min. 2016 Mon rot fai (Railway Sleepers)

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2017