Apichatpong Weerasethakul

With a degree in Architecture and a Master in Film from the University of Chicago, Apichatpong Weerasethakul has established himself in just a few years as one of the leading figures on the Thai experimental scene. After a series of short films, including Bullet, and a detour into experimental documentary (Mysterious objects at noon), he directed his first feature in 2002 with Blissfully Yours. Presented at the Cannes Film Festival, the film is considered by many observers to be one of the Festival's great revelations, and wins the Best Film Award in the Un Certain Regard section.

As one of the few Thai filmmakers to work outside his country's studios, he is also known for his frequent use of non-professional actors and improvised dialogue. This was notably the case in 2004 with Tropical malady, centered on the homosexual relationship between a soldier and his lover, and presented as an official selection at the Cannes Film Festival: acclaimed by the critics, the film was awarded the Grand Prix du Jury. In 2006, he returned to documentary in the form of a self-portrait with Syndromes and a Century, focusing on his childhood memories of his parents as country doctors.

In 2008, the director shared the poster for the collective project O Estado do mundo, which aims to take a critical look at the state and progress of the world through a film divided into six parts. A regular at the Cannes Film Festival, he returned in 2010 with the mystical Oncle Boonme (the man who remembered his past lives). The eponymous character, feeling close to death, questions his karma while having visions of his deceased wife and missing son. The film won the Palme d'Or.

Following this success, which raised his international profile, Weerasethakul took part in the Quattro Hongkong 2 project, in which he directed a short film on the city of the same name, alongside Yuhang Ho, Stanley Kwan and Brillante Mendoza. After an experimental documentary on the Mekong River in 2012, Mekong Hotel, in 2015 he directed a new feature-length fiction film, Cemetery of Splendour, in which he tackles the theme of sleep by telling the story of a village stricken by a strange disease. This meditative film, which reflects his entire filmography, has also been selected for the Un certain regard parallel competition at Cannes.

In 2019, he directs BLUE for the 3rd scene, shot over 12 nights in the heart of the Thai forest.

His film Memoria was released in theaters in 2021.