News

Organised by the Busan, Hong Kong and Tokyo International Film Festivals, and supported by Create HongKong and the Film Development Fund, the Asian Film Awards Academy (Academy or Afaa) has spearheaded efforts to promote Asian cinema around the world year-round. As part of the Asian Film Awards (Afa), its flagship event and the largest celebration of Asian cinema in the world, the Academy appoints an emerging Asian star every year as Youth Ambassador to act as the face of the awards and to take part in outreach activities. For the first time in its history, the Academy has appointed not one, but four celebrated Asian stars as the Youth Ambassadors of the 17th Afa: (in alphabetical order) Liu Kuan-Ting, Mario Maurer, Miyazawa Hio and Will Or.

Embodying numerous countries and cultures, Asia is a region that is rich in diversity, and that diversity has always been reflected in its films,...

Warner Bros Discovery has announced three Thai HBO Asia Originals, including a third and final season of action fantasy Khun Pan and unscripted shows MarkKim + Chef and Deane’s Dynasty.

All three Thai-language shows will launch exclusively on HBO and HBO Go in Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Set in 1950 after the Second World War, Khun Pan 3 is directed and written by Kongkiat Komesiri and produced by Sahamongkolfilm International. The story follows sorcerer cop Khun Pan in a mission to hunt down two bandits and uncover a conspiracy.

The cast is headed by Ananda Everingham, Mario Maurer, Phakin Khamwilaisak, Sarika Sathsilpsupa and Bhumibhat Thavornsiri. The first two seasons of Khun Pan will be streamed on regional on-demand service HBO Go ahead of the premiere of the third season.

Cooking show MarkKim + Chef follows soon-to-be married Thai television stars Kimberley Anne Woltemas and Mark Prin Suparat, neither of whom...

Warner Bros. Discovery has announced three new Thai HBO Asia Originals: action-fantasy blockbuster “Khun Pan 3”; fun-filled cooking series “MarkKim + Chef” and reality series “Deane’s Dynasty.” The shows will be available exclusively to HBO and HBO Go in Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Thai TV content is currently growing in popularity among Asian TV audiences and has recently been seen pioneering soft homo-erotic series known as the ‘Boys Love’ genre, that has appeal to mature female audiences. Bl is conspicuously absent from the new additions to the HBO Go slate.

“Khun Pan 3” is the final instalment of the “Khun Pan” franchise and represents a journey from 1950 after World War ll, as sorcerer cop Khun Pan is persuaded to take on another dangerous mission. This time he is hunting down two bandits and uncovering a conspiracy that challenges everything, he believes in.

“Khun Pan 3” is directed and...

In a big boost to its content slate in Thailand, Warner Bros. Discovery unveiled three new Thai HBO Asia Originals on Monday. The lineup includes the action-fantasy feature Khun Pan 3, the fun-filled cooking series MarkKim + Chef and the high-society reality series Deane’s Dynasty.

All three titles will be released exclusively on HBO and Wbd’s regional streaming service HBO Go, which covers Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan (Max has yet to launch in Asia). Launch dates for the two series and one film haven’t been released yet.

Reality series Deane’s Dynasty follows local Thai celebrity power couple Lydia and Matthew Deane as they attempt to navigate the dramas of fame and family. Lydia Deane, also known as Lydia Sarunrat, began her career as a pop singer, before transitioning to acting and becoming a fitness influencer. Matthew Deane is a well-known Thai-Australian singer, model, actor and television presenter.

Click here to read the full article.

The 27th Busan International Film Festival opened Wednesday night on a long overdue note of optimism with the premiere of Scent of Wind by Iranian director Hadi Mohaghegh. Festival organizers have indicated that they view the 2022 festival as a full-scale comeback edition, following two hard years of pandemic restrictions and a sequence of prior political challenges.

“We believe that the seat occupancy rates have recovered to about 80 to 90 percent compared to 2019,” said Huh Moon-young, the festival’s director, on opening night.

The opening ceremony, which took place at the festival’s main venue, the Busan Cinema Center, was attended by Asian cinema luminaries and celebrities, including Hong Kong screen icon Tony Leung, Korean star Song Kang-ho, Korean-American actor Daniel Dae Kim, Thai actor-model Mario Maurer and Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda.

Leung, who starred last year in Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of...

“Avatar” producer Jon Landau, Charles Rivkin, chairman of the Motion Picture Association, and the MPA’s Asia regional chief Belinda Lui, were on hand Wednesday in South Korea to tread the red carpet at the Busan International Film Festival.

It has been a struggle for Asian film festivals and rights markets to return to normal as conservative governments and reticent populations warily and belatedly embraced reduced quarantine periods, the end of mandatory mask-wearing and social distancing. But Wednesday night’s hosts were at pains to stress that this year’s 27th Biff is operating at full capacity.

“I can’t tell you how emotional I am tonight,” said Lee Yong-kwan co-founder of the festival and now its chairman.

The Busan festival is Asia’s biggest and most significant talent and film discovery event. But in 2020 it was downsized and held virtually. Last year’s event operated largely behind a cordon...

Amazon Prime Video has announced its first slate of Southeast Asian local-language originals, including a trio of situational comedy improv shows, Comedy Island, across Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines, and projects from local talents including Joko Anwar, Kamila Andini and Banjong Pisanthanakun.

The trio of comedy shows – Comedy Island: Indonesia, Comedy Island: Thailand and Comedy Island: Philippines – all involve famous comedians and other celebrities being stranded on a paradise island and are expected to start streaming in 2023.

In Thailand, the comedians must escape from a mysterious scientist who is trying to reprogram them; in Indonesia, they’re forced to take part in bizarre, role-playing games to amuse the local inhabitants; and in the Philippines, they’re trapped on a lost island that has reappeared and are competing for a life-changing prize. Indonesia’s Base Entertainment is producing the Indonesian and Filipino versions, while Liminal Productions is producing the Thai version.

The Walt Disney Co.’s flagship direct-to-consumer service Disney+ Hotstar continues to expand its footprint in Asia, this month launching in Thailand.

The company held a press event in Bangkok Tuesday, featuring a collection of Thai celebrities, to introduce the service to the local market. The event was hosted by Thai media personality June Sawitri and featured appearances by models and actors including Aff Taksaorn Paksukcharern, Boy Pakorn Chatborirak, Tik Jesdaporn Pholdee and Mario Maurer.

As it has in other markets, Disney has closely aligned with a local telecom company, Ais 5G, to turbo charge the Thai launch. Disney+ ...

The Walt Disney Co.’s flagship direct-to-consumer service Disney+ Hotstar continues to expand its footprint in Asia, this month launching in Thailand.

The company held a press event in Bangkok Tuesday, featuring a collection of Thai celebrities, to introduce the service to the local market. The event was hosted by Thai media personality June Sawitri and featured appearances by models and actors including Aff Taksaorn Paksukcharern, Boy Pakorn Chatborirak, Tik Jesdaporn Pholdee and Mario Maurer.

As it has in other markets, Disney has closely aligned with a local telecom company, Ais 5G, to turbo charge the Thai launch. Disney+ ...

Zhang Yimou’s period espionage thriller “Cliff Walkers” ran out a comfortable winner at the mainland Chinese box office, ahead of other holdovers and new release titles including Jason Statham-starring “Wrath of Man.”

“Cliff Walkers” dropped only 32% between its second and third weekends, taking $16.6 million between Friday and Sunday, according to data from consultancy Artisan Gateway. Since release on April 30, it has now amassed a cumulative of $147 million.

In second spot was iQIYI’s corruption thriller “Break Through The Darkness.” It earned $10.2 million, down only 27% from its opening weekend. Since its opening over the May Day holiday (on May 1), the film has accumulated $52.7 million.

“Wrath” took $8.6 million between Friday and Sunday and $17.5 million since its unusual Monday opening on May 10.

Fourth place belonged to Hong Kong-made romance “77 Heartwarmings,” which earned $3.8 million in its opening three days. The film is directed by veteran Herman Yau and features a multinational...

Big-budget action blockbusters “Raging Fire” and “The Rescue” headlined Emperor Motion Pictures’ (Emp) star-studded announcement at FilMart on Tuesday, which also saw many familiar Hong Kong faces returning for locally focused projects.

Emp also highlighted its mainland Chinese projects at the event, including “Two Tigers,” a black comedy produced by and starring Vicky Zhao Wei and directed by Li Fei, and “Caught in Time,” a crime thriller produced by Han Sanping, the producer-director who previously headed state-controlled China Film Group. “Caught in Time” is directed by Lau Ho-leung and stars Daniel Wu, who has not appeared in a Chinese film since 2015.

New Emperor title “Raging Fire” reunites director Benny Chan and singer-actor-turned-celebrity chef Nicholas Tse for the first time since their last collaboration, 2011’s “Shaolin.” The film, which recounts the rivalry of a former cop and his mentor, also stars Donnie Yen; Yen also is a producer.

Emp’s “The Rescue...

Thailand’s M Pictures has closed a string of sales on horror film Take Me Home, directed by Kongkiat Khomsiri, which it launched at Hong Kong’s Filmart earlier this month.

Following a pre-market sale to Cambodia’s Westec Media, the film has also gone to Suraya for Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines and Brunei; Inter Solusindo Film for Indonesia; and Dd Content Company for Vietnam and Myanmar.

Starring Thai superstar Mario Maurer (Pee Mak), the film follows a man who returns home after losing his memory and has a frightening encounter with his twin sister’s new family. Wannarot Sonthichai (Jan Dara) plays the sister, while the cast also includes Peter Noppachai (Headshot).

Kongkiat Khomsiri previously directed hit horrors Art Of The Devil 2, Art Of The Devil 3, Chaiya and Slice.

Take Me Home is scheduled to open in Thailand and Laos on April 13, while Cambodia’s Westec has pencilled in a July release.

Thai horror films have never quite found the same kind of international audience as their creepy cousins from Korean or Japan, in part due to the fact that the country’s genre outings tend to be more grounded in local beliefs and traditions. “Pee Mak” is a perfect case in point, a ghost comedy based around the ever-popular folk tale “Mae Nak Phra Khanong” and shot through with uniquely Thai humour and character. The film was directed by one of the country’s very top horror helmers in Bangjong Pisanthanakun, responsible for an impressive run of acclaimed spooky hits including “Shutter”, “Alone”, “4bia” and “Phobia 2”, and was a massive box office smash itself, emerging as the highest grossing domestic release of all time, as well as enjoying success in Hong Kong and Taiwan. As per the time-honoured story, the film is set during the war at the beginning of the Rattanakosin Dynasty,...

Horror comedies such as Pee Mak Phrakanong could be hot exports for Thailand's rapidly improving film industry

The flood of Chinese domestic blockbusters since the turn of the year is the strongest hint yet that the country is capable of being a Hollywood for Asia, and setting the cinema agenda for the region. But it's not the sole player around. At the end of March Thai audiences flocked to see horror comedy Pee Mak Phrakanong – based on the Mae Nak folktale about a man who returns from war and unwittingly settles back in with the ghost of his wife, who has died in childbirth. It had the second biggest opening (21.2m baht/£478,000) ever for a Thai film, and with over 300m baht to date, it is closing on the all-time box-office record (550m baht) held by 2001's war epic The Legend of Suriyothai.

Thai audiences seem to love their history:...

While the horror genre is definitely kicking ass here in the States, it's great to know that it's flourishing globally as well. Case in point: the Thai horror comedy Pee Mak Phra Khanong, aka Pee Mak, from Shutter and Phobia director Banjong Pisanthanakun.

According to 24 Frames Per Second, the flick has apparently just blown a big hole in Thai box office records since its release on March 28, 2013. Thus far the film has raked in over 300 million baht, which equates to around 10.3 million dollars Us. So what do you say we take a look at the trailer that comes complete with English subtitles? Mario Maurer and Davika Hoorne star.

Synopsis

In the Rattanakosin Kingdom, Mak (Mario Maurer) leaves his pregnant wife, Nak (Davika Hoorne), to join the war and meets four soldiers who become his best friends. During this time, his wife Nak struggles to give birth to their baby.

When the war ends,...

Director Banjong Pisanthanakun is responsible for putting together a number of quality motion pictures over the past few years. In addition to the “Phobia” films, the filmmaker crafted the genuinely creepy 2004 horror outing “Shutter.” Considering the latter is one of my favorite horror films, I’m always excited to see what Banjong does next. Enter “Pee Mak,” a horror/comedy that really doesn’t sound all that funny on paper. In fact, the international trailer embedded below isn’t altogether hilarious. However, I’ve been told the movie is supposed to have comedic elements, so I’m going to take these folks at their word. Here’s a ridiculously long synopsis: During the beginning of the Rattanakosin Dynasty, many Thai men were drafted to serve in the war. “Pee Mak” or “Mak” (Mario Maurer) was no exception and had to leave his pregnant wife to join the fight. While at war,...

Intrigued by the Thai trailers for the latest from Banjong Pisanthanakun (Shutter, Alone, Phobia, Phobia 2)but wish you could understand what the hell the were saying? Wish granted. The international teaser for the film has been released, English subtitles included. This one plays things largely straight, the only indication of the comedy element coming right at the end. You want an extended synopsis to chew on as well? You got it:During the beginning of the Rattanakosin Dynasty, many Thai men were drafted to serve in the war. "Pee Mak" or "Mak" (Mario Maurer) was no exception and had to leave his pregnant wife to join the fight. While at war, he met, saved, and formed a close bond with four fellow soldiers: "Ter" (Freud-Nattapong Chartpong),...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Thai director Banjong Pisanthanakun - co-director of Shutter and Alone, solo contributor to both Phobia horror anthology projects and helmer of the hysterical N Is For Nuptials segment in The ABCs of Death - is hard at work on his latest effort, the feature horror comedy Pee Mak Phrakanong. While plot details are generally being kept under wraps - all we've been told is that it's a sort of gender inversion of the classic Nang Nak legend - and there is not yet an English title for the film, Pisanthanakun let us know that the quartet of young men who starred in his Phobia shorts would be in the cast here as well along with star Mario Maurer. And whaddaya know? There they all are...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Nominations for the 6th annual Asian Film Awards were announced in Hong Kong today:

Best Film

A Separation (Iran) Postcard (Japan) The Flowers of War (Mainland China) Flying Swords of Dragon Gate (Hong Kong/Mainland China) Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale (Taiwan) You Don’t Get Life a Second Time (India)

Best Director

Asghar Farhadi, A Separation Teddy Soeriaatmadja, Lovely Man Sono Sion, Guilty of Romance Tsui Hark, Flying Swords of Dragon Gate Wei Te-sheng, Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale Zhang Yimou, The Flowers of War

Best Actor

Chen Kun, Flying Swords of Dragon Gate Donny Damara, Lovely Man Andy Lau, A Simple Life Park Hae Il, War of the Arrows Yakusho Koji, Chronicle of My Mother

Best Actress

Vidya Balan, The Dirty Picture Michelle Chen, You Are the Apple of My Eye Eugene Domingo, The Woman in the Septic Tank Leila Hatami, A Separation Deanie Ip,...

The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate and the other nominations for the 2012 Asian Film Awards have been announced. The 6th Annual Asian Film Awards was presented by the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society (Hkiffs) “to recognize excellence of film professionals in the film industries of Asian cinema.” This year’s award ceremony will be held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on March 19, 2012.

The full listing of the 2012 Asian Film Awards nominations have been announced.

Best Film

A Separation (Iran)

Postcard (Japan)

The Flowers of War (Mainland China)

Flying Swords of Dragon Gate (Hong Kong/Mainland China)

Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale (Taiwan)

You Don’t Get Life a Second Time (India)

Best Director

Asghar Farhadi, A Separation

Teddy Soeriaatmadja, Lovely Man

Sono Sion, Guilty of Romance

Tsui Hark, Flying Swords of Dragon Gate

Wei Te-sheng, Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale

Zhang Yimou, The...