In this four-hour program, Apichatpong Weerasethakul presented and discussed excerpts from all his feature films, up to and including his project, Primitive, 2009, providing audiences with behind-the-scenes access to his entire oeuvre. This exclusive engagement is presented as part of the exhibition “Apichatpong Weerasethakul: Primitive.”

Weerasethakul’s works are often set in the lush forests and quiet villages of the rural Isaan region of northeast Thailand. His films use inventive narrative structures to explore intersections between man and nature, rural and urban life, and personal and political memory. Surreal imagery and a sensuous, languid pace give his work a dreamlike quality. Characters shift identities fluidly, and often reappear in subsequent films. Eschewing Western cinematic references, Weerasethakul’s filmic language draws upon a range of local influences, from Thai folklore to television soap operas.