A man for all seasons

Last week, Banjong’s horror comedy “Pee Mak Phra Khanong” broke Thailand’s box-office record, recording a massive Bt556 million in takings and beating out the Bt550 million amassed by the 2001 classic war epic.

“Actually, what really makes me proud is that a Thai movie can score higher than a Hollywood flick like ‘Transformers 3 Dark of the Moon’, which earned around Bt300 million,” says Banjong or Tong as he’s known to family and friends.

But the director, who made a name for himself back in 2004 with the shiver-inducing hit “Shutter”, which he co-wrote and co-directed with Parkpoom Wongpoom, doesn’t expect his future works to deluge the box office.

“I don’t think I’ll ever make another movie that has such broad appeal,” says the 33-year-old film graduate from Chulalongkorn University.

While Banjong and his team at GTH were expecting the new adaptation of the tragic love legend to touch audiences and had even forecast box office revenues of Bt150-Bt200 million, no one had even an inkling that “Pee Mak” would become a cinematic phenomenon. 

“We shouted out in delight as the earnings went crazy,” he laughs. We couldn’t understand that the income wasn’t falling after so many weeks in the cinema.”

On its way to the top, “Pee Mak” set several new records in the Thai film industry, breaking the all-time box office record in its third, fourth and fifth week.

Banjong credits three factors for the success of the film. 

The first is that Mae Nak, an iconic urban legend, is still incredibly popular despite the countless adaptations over the years. Secondly, the feedback and response of filmgoers, who laughed from beginning to end. Third, he says, was the twist in the tail, which made “Pee Mak” stand out from other “Nang Nak” versions.

Banjong is no stranger to success, with his four movies in between “Shutter” and “Pee Mak” all raking in the cash. “Alone” (2007), also written and directed with Parkpoom, starred Marsha Wattanapanich as a woman haunted by the ghost of her conjoined twin, who apparently died during the surgery to separate them. Horror comedy omnibuses “4bia” and “Phobia 2” followed in 2008 and 2009 then Banjong decided to embrace romantic comedy with “Hello Stranger” in 2010, a move that which won him several awards.

Before he turned his attention to directing, Banjong worked as an assistant advertising director with Phenomena Production House. His boss quickly discovered his addiction to movies and encouraged him to write a screenplay. “Shutter” was the outcome.

While he leans towards horror and comedy, he says he has no stereotyped formula for directing a film.

Filmmakers never know which film will become a big hit or generate big money, he says, adding that from his experience, it’s the movies about which filmmakers are optimistic that tend to flop.

“The most important thing is to make a film you want to narrate and watch, because then you put your entire self into its production. I’m probably lucky that my tastes are not very different from the mass audience,” he says.

Inspiration for the subject often comes from current situations – a newspaper article, a picture, maybe even a sentence.

“The idea for ‘The Man in the Middle’ (‘Khon Klang’ in Thai), the third segment of “4bia”, was triggered by the words ‘If I am dead, I will come back to haunt those who preferred to sleep in the middle’,” he says

“Khon Klang”, he acknowledges, is the work in which he takes most pride: “I finally discovered that my signature is comedy with horror overtones and a sharp dialogue”. He’s also proud of “Hello Stranger”, which poked fun at the Thai fascination for all things Korean.

“Shutter and “Alone” both did extremely well on overseas markets, scoring high with audiences in Asia and South America. “Shutter” also became the first Thai film to be acquired by Hollywood for an American remake.

“Pee Mak” has now set off on its journey around the globe. Released in Indonesia last month and Hong Kong last week, the film will also be entertaining filmgoers in Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar, Vietnam and Taiwan in the coming weeks and is slated for screening at the Rome Film Festival in August.

He says his next project will probably involve a romantic drama, a genre he has yet to tackle, but he still reflecting as to the what and the when.

Banjong puts his achievements down to working hard and having fun. His professional and personal lives, he adds with a smile, have become one and the same thing.

But while he has been approached by film companies in China and the Western, he has yet to accept an invitation to direct.

For now, he seems content to help the Thai film industry make a larger splash in the international market.

“Indonesian people are crazy about Thai movies,” he says. “They’ve even set up a fan club for Thai films,” he says,

He was also impressed by the Indonesian audience during a recent screening of “Pee Mak”. “They didn’t understand all the gags but they still laughed throughout the film. They loved Mario [Maurer] too,” he says.