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feature in focus
IN TOUCH WITH THE SPIRITS
Director/cinematographer Mark Duffield reports
from Thailand on Ghost Of Mae Nak, his first film at the helm
I n 2003, I was awarded Best Cinematographer at the
SlamDunk Film Festival in Park City USA for the British feature film, Butterfly Man, which was
filmed entirely in Thailand.
I had spent several months there
and had time to see many Thai films. I particularly liked the ‘Ghost’ films that are very popular amongst the Thais and I became fascinated by the variety of ghosts and demons, which are part of Thai folklore.
When I got back to London I was inspired to write a Thai Ghost story based on a very famous Thai ghost called Mae Nak (Mother Nak). I returned to Thailand last year with my new script translated from English to Thai by Chalosri Missdee and teamed up with the producer of Butterfly Man, Tom Waller, who was keen to make my story in to a feature film.
Within a few months of being in Bangkok, my script generated plenty of interest and in a very short time was fully financed with a distribution deal in place with the Thai company Box Office Entertainment. And this time I would be director as well as cinematographer.
The story of Ghost Of Mae Nak is about a young newly wed couple Mak (Siwat Chotchicharin) and Nak (Pataratida Pacharawirapong) who are haunted by a ghost from an old Thai legend. Together, the couple renovate and then move into a very old wooden house in the Prakanong district of Bangkok, unaware that the house was built on the foundations of Mae Nak’s home over a hundred years ago.
Soon the ghost of Mae Nak tries to contact Mak but before he can discover what she wants of him, he’s involved in a hit-and-run accident and knocked into
a coma. The ghost possesses Mak’s body and when Nak is alone with him, he momentarily awakes from his coma and instructs his young bride to “Find Mae Nak”. Nak quickly learns about the legend of Mae Nak and discovers a con- nection between their house, the ghost and her Mak. She has to solve the mys- tery and in doing so she believes will save the life of her husband.
Ghost Of Mae Nak is a Thai film in Thai dialogue so it was a challenge for me to direct a film in a language that I do not speak. However, some role model directors who had directed films in the same way reassured me. The most famous of these is Ang Lee, who directed the quintessentially English period film Sense & Sensibility without speaking fluent English.
This is my first feature film as direc- tor, and usually first films tend to be four- people-in-a-room scenarios. Ghost Of Mae Nak has a main cast of 20, many extras in various scenes, over 25 locations around Bangkok and would also involve stunts and computer generated imagery.
Like the cast, the crew were Thai with the exception of my camera opera- tor Ryan Goddard, a Canadian camera-
man living in Bangkok. Most Thais working in the film industry display a good understanding of English, and it was not too difficult to explain and get what I needed.
Making a film in Thailand proved no different to making a film in the UK, so there were no surprises. But I felt the calm and pleasant nature of the Thai cast and crew made my job as first time direc- tor enjoyable. The role of director is highly respected in Thailand which also means it becomes a responsible role.
The art director was a key member of my team and I worked with a new Thai talent, Somwang Rattanasirivanich. He had worked his way up starting with assistant props on Anna And The King and went on to be an assistant art director on Matt Dillon’s City Of Ghosts and Oliver Stone’s Alexander.
An old hospital became our main studio in which Somwang built several sets or dressed entire rooms from scratch. A disused court house was also used as location for its distinctive wooden panelling. Our key set was the Prakanong house that the couple move into. I wanted an old wooden house
that stood alone with a garden. After several attempts to find the right house, we finally found the ideal build- ing that was exactly how I had imag- ined it in the script.
Several sets had to be built from scratch including a hospital operating theatre, a police morgue as well as inte- riors of the Prakonong house and a dusty old office that was based in Bangkok’s Chinatown district.
Ghost Of Mae Nak also involved some major stunt work and the Thai company BanRig were called to design a full body-on-fire stunt, a hit-and-run as well as several wirework stunts. The effects would need to be enhanced with computer generated imagery and the company Digital Lab removed all the wires and replaced the faces of stunt- men with character actors. They were also responsible in creating several Ghost looks using CGI as well as design- ing a CGI train. Overall, we have 70 CGI effects shot. The film was shot entirely on Fuji using 500T and 250D as our main stocks. All processing including the final print was handled by Technicolor Bangkok.
I spent a year in Thailand making my first feature film in a language that I don’t speak, surrounded with ghosts and special effects as well as a large cast and crew overlooked by hundreds of locals whilst we filmed on location.
On September 15 the film had a 70 print cinema release in Thailand and was publicised throughout the country culminating in a successful box office return. Ghost Of Mae Nak will now be entered into international festivals. ■
Ghost Of Mae Nak was originated on 35mm Fujicolor Super F-500T 8572 and Super F-250D 8562
Photo top: Mark Duffield with friends; above l-r: Duffield directing, and with a ghost in the background; poster image for Thailand and scenes from Ghost Of Mae Nak
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