Thailand is never run out with idea to make another horror movie, here is a preview of new horror movie that will come out from this one of Asian country that most productive in their movie producing. “The Screen” is a supernatural horror that based on a bizarre and frightening actual news report which article was appears in Thai Rath newspaper dated Oct 4, 1991. The news was about a team of outdoor film projectionist who was hired by some mysterious caller to screen their movies in a remote village of Wang Tong in Northeastern Thailand. They were instructed to begin the screening at 9 pm and finish it at 4 pm. When the projectionists arrived at Wang Tong, they saw not a single man in there, but when they were set up to screening their first movie at 9 pm, a large crowd turned up. This viewers all sat very quietly, without any stirring, not making any sound, without anyone getting up and moving about, and without any sign of excitement of the show from the beginning till the end. When the screening ended at 4 am, all this viewers mysteriously disappeared as if they’d vanished into the dark. After the show, the projectionists packed their equipment and left, in their way they met with some of the villagers who insisted that they never heard of any announcement of an outdoor screening. They even told the crew that they must have gone into Kamchanod, an enclosed forest in the middle of the rice fields believe to be the entrance to the underground lair of the mythical Naga. Its strange account of what happened there convinced that they’d been hired to screen movies not to human viewers but to the ghosts of the village.

Based on this bizarre article, one of the countries largest studios, Five Star Productions take the advantage to retelling it on the big screen. With this movie the studio giving an opportunity to new and talented filmmakers Songsak Mongkothong with the belief that he can represent a new creative works which can successfully crafts popular movies for both domestic and international markets. To give more details on the movie, Songsak went to Kamchanod and did some extensive research with talk to the locals to following the real story. “The location at Kamchanod is essential to the film,” the producer Pran Tadaveerawat (Bangkok Dangerous) says. “We talked to the villagers and ensured them that we respected their sacred forest and would never do anything to enrage the forest spirits. The shooting went smoothly, and after the filming was done we tidied up the whole forest and cleaned the local shrine – for our own good luck!” Director Songsak who has been working as assistant director for many productions, including some Thai horror hits like “The Eye” and “Bangkok Haunted” said “I remember that when I was 15, I watched a TV documentary about Kamchanod forest and the strange incident involving the outdoor film projectionists. What struck me was that it was not a mumbo-jumbo story. But it involves a scientific concept such as a film projector and the mechanism of light, and to use this modern equipment we may be able to cross the line that separates the human world to something that lies beyond. The Kamchanod forest is surrounded by water, so it’s like an island in the middle of the field. The villagers told me that they tried to build a bridge to connect Kamchanod with the field, but every year during the rainy season the bridge would crack, or collapse. This serves as a metaphor that maybe it’s impossible to connect the two worlds, or for us to try to cross over.”

The movie story set on this present day and revolves around a young doctor named Yuth (Achita Pramoj Na Ayudhya) who obsessed with finding the truth behind the newspaper article. His girlfriend Orn (Pakkramai Potranan) wants to leave him cause of suffering with his creepy obsession but instead becomes part of the experiment. With accompany of two senior journalists who believe if they uncover the whole truth in the location, it will make a shot in their journalistic fame, they set out to Kamchanod. In the hope to finding out it is really ghost who actually hired the projectionists, they start to venture into the horrifying terrain of Kamchanod forest, with a theory that if those film reels were to be found and projected in the same location, it would be a way to bring back the apparition that had appeared on that fateful night. But when the supernatural world really comes to merge with the reality, those who’re looking for clarification will only stumble upon more haunted mysteries which cost is their sanity, if not their souls.On the main cast, it appears the name of Achita Pramoj Na Ayudhya who played the role of Dr. Yuth, this movie is marked as his debut in acting world. The guy who began his career in modeling when he was 18 and later became Thailand star pop-singer decided to be in this movie because of the script, cause of he really want to play the character that’s not too close to his own character, and Dr. Yuth fits it. “He’s an ordinary human who has both the bright side and the dark side. He’s not a bad man, but his obsession makes him forget people around him, and he becomes selfish. I’m a total opposite to Dr Yuth in my real life!”

Pakkramai Potranan as Orn also began her career as pop singer and fashion model. “This is my first role in a horror film. Orn is a mysterious woman, like most women are! She’s smart, she keeps her feeling to herself, and she likes to plan things ahead. In the story she has to put up with Dr. Yuth, whose obsessesion with Kamchanod has damaging their relationship. Personally, I’m afraid of ghosts, and when I first came to the set I had to carry an amulet. But after a while, I got used to the atmosphere and it wasn’t so scary after all!”Another cast is Namo Tonggumnerd who played as Roj, a homeless guy who has a crush on Orn, and made a decision to join the group in their horrifying trip to Kamchanod. Namo landed on his acting experience when he join the production of “Art of The Devil 2” and a horror movie that was a big hit in Thailand early this year “Alone”. “I play Roj, a street junkie who comes into the lives of Dr. Yuth and Orn. It was quite a tasty role for me because there were quite many emotional scenes that required me to stretch my limit. It was very challenging. Personally, I’m a fan of mysterious stories, the stuff of the Bermuda Triangle or the idea of the Fourth Dimension. I believe that there’s something in Kamchanod; I felt creepy when I was shooting in there. But of course we didn’t do anything blasphemous so we should be okay.”

This movie will be shown at the American film Market next week, where Thai production company Five Star try to get the attention of U.S distributors for some overseas sales. For other info of the movie and the trailer with English subtitle just go to the Screen official site.