an original bangkok feature film project
A Thousand thoughts
GENRE: Grounded Drama
RUNTIME: 90 mins
LOGLINE: A struggling poet reconnects with a charismatic ex-lover in the neon chaos of Bangkok, reigniting a passionate affair and setting up a clash between her tangled past and agreeable present.
SYNOPSIS
Nina (20s), mixed race, pulls out a cigarette, breaks off the filter, lights it with a match, takes a long drag on the unfiltered cigarette. Voiceover narration shares her inner thoughts, setting out her initial position, that there’s nothing that will get in the way of her achieving a successful career as a poet, and having a successful romantic relationship.
Nina lives in Bangkok with her boyfriend JIRO (20s). She really just wants to write poetry but works as a freelance food journalist for money. She struggles to make a living and depends on Jiro for their lifestyle, it makes her feel trapped. Jiro just wants to please her and make her life easy, he thinks she should take a job with his family’s trading business. He believes working together will bring them closer together, just like his parents.
Vika (20s), Ukrainian, is a vivacious international photographer. She arrives back in Bangkok on assignment for National Geographic to photograph stories about “Vanishing Bangkok”, street vendors, locations etc. Her local FIXER (40s) is a low-key drunk and frequently hits on her. She finally has enough and fires him. Vika then asks Nina to help her out. Nina initially declines, seeing as their torrid affair ended in heartbreak, but Vika is relentless and finally persuades Nina to stand-in. Vika is truly an urbane and free spirit.
Events conspire so that Nina and Vika begin to draw closer to each other. Their attraction to each other is always in the subtext, but Nina is now with Jiro. Vika decides to extend her stay to do a personal portraiture project. She persuades Nina to be her first subject. Nina is reluctant but is eventually persuaded. Nina feels that Vika gets her, while Jiro, well meaning as he is, does not. Further events bring Nina and Vika’s attraction to a feverish tipping point. They spend a night together rekindling their passion.
Jiro grows resentful with the amount of time Nina spends with Vika. He suggests the three of them spend time altogether. They decide to have dinner together. Jiro is immediately struck by Vika’s charisma, intelligence and looks. It’s like they share the same level of interest in current affairs, whereas Nina doesn’t, and it becomes clear that Jiro is very attracted to Vika. When Nina heads to the ladies room, Vika tests Jiro, she strokes his inner thigh under the table to see his response. He does not reject her. Nina returns before things go any further.
The next day, Vika tells Nina about her test. Nina is initially furious with Vika. Then she becomes furious with Jiro.
Complicating events happen that drive Nina to eventually reject both Jiro and Vika. Instead she decides to be alone for a while. She learns that she doesn’t need to draw meaning from her work nor her relationship, that she alone is enough, and that the journey is her meaning.
REFERENCES:
“The Worst Person in the World” (Trier, 2021) for story structure.
“In the Mood for Love” (Wong, 2000) for visual style and tone.
"Tree of Life" (Malick, 2011) for voice and sound design.
Thank you!