Thursday, October 12, 2006, 6pm
Called “one of the most creative and unpredictable film artists now working anywhere” by Jonathan Rosenbaum of the Chicago Reader, tonight’s program is a slate of new films and videos by multiple Cannes-winner and SAIC alum Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Tropical Malady, Blissfully Yours), including the dazzling 2005 featurette, Worldly Desires. A musical companion piece to Tropical Malady, the film begins as a behind-the-scenes look at the jungle productions of a Thai soap opera and a music video but soon falls under the verdant spell of the rainforest. The two shoots bleed into one another and into the reality of the backstage production, punctuated by shimmering pop song-and-dance numbers and overgrown with images of the verdant backdrop. Also screening: Ghost of Asia (w/Christelle Lheureux, 2005) and The Anthem (2006), among others. 2006, Achipatpong Weerasetakul, Thailand, ca. 70 min, various formats.