tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24379496356999449932012-01-27T16:20:05.383+07:00The Southeast Asia Movie Theater Project is a photographic archive of derelict or converted movie theaters in Southeast Asia.The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.comBlogger2691100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-67582868709795633732012-01-27T12:16:00.003+07:002012-01-27T15:36:58.993+07:00

In the furthest depths of Mukdahan's bus station, past the spew of exhaust smoke and the baritone rumble of idling diesel engines, lies a narrow passage between two anonymous shop-houses.This passage opens on to a back alley; as nondescript and choked as you might find in any Thai city.The narrow passage between two shop houses.An alley view.The Sapmukda Rama in all its ordinariness. One of the

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-83007534564737113152012-01-19T13:24:00.010+07:002012-01-25T10:21:11.953+07:00

The front page of the leisure section in last Sunday's The Nation newspaper (Thailand) features a SEA Movie Theater Project story about Thailand's lowest priced cinema hall. You can read the on-line version here.The said theater has yet to be posted on this site. Consider this a sneak preview.

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-14903134723049811702012-01-17T15:00:00.004+07:002012-01-18T01:53:56.827+07:00

An afternoon spent stalking the Seno Rama and its environs, I reckon, is about equal to an hour of being whipped by a Sahara sandstorm. That is to say, in the arid plains of Savannakhet during the dry season, beside a heavily trucked stretch of Highway No. 9, the dust is bad - adding a breathable realism to this Mad Maxian landscape.It's hard to imagine that a place like Seno would have ever

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-64094583081288644222012-01-11T10:58:00.008+07:002012-01-11T16:24:28.643+07:00

Who in their right mind would consider the modernist theaters portrayed on this web-site "ugly"? Only the most unimaginative would entertain such thoughts. But whether you do or don't, have a read of Llewellyn Hinkes-Jones' article, recently published in the Atlantic Cities, about the Case for Saving Ugly Buildings. It's a compelling call for architectural preservation, as modernist buildings

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-45763884158683561572012-01-06T17:53:00.011+07:002012-01-07T09:30:45.948+07:00

The epic Lao Chaleun Cinema, in all its dilapidated elegance, is still standing. I didn't re-explore its innards this time round, fearing imminent collapse, but I did re-shoot the facade. Here are a couple of them.Aside from being one of the more iconic theaters ever to be featured on this site, it also features prominently in the city of Savannakhet. One of the city's key landmarks; a 1930's

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-88555268558591344382011-12-31T14:55:00.019+07:002012-01-01T15:55:55.627+07:00

Savannakhet has undergone a number of transformations since my fist visit there three years ago. Chief among them is a construction boom on the north end of town, near where Highway No. 9 crosses the city. Most of the construction is in the shape of industrial facilities, part of the rapidly growing Savannakhet-Xeno Special Economic Zone, a 35 kilometer stretch of converted rice paddy along

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-76139979219557699192011-12-17T12:38:00.004+07:002011-12-17T13:08:11.374+07:00

A post featuring new cinema sightings would be more my speed right now, but I'm still being held hostage to travel and its lack of creature comforts. In place of new photos, I hope that this identity-revealing article on the work of your "Projectionist" will suffice. It's a few weeks old already.That it's published in the Atlantic Magazine's piping new e-zine the Atlantic Cities makes me very

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-89852132573129848412011-12-10T20:26:00.011+07:002011-12-11T20:57:38.104+07:00

This was my second visit to Udomxay, and I still find myself captivated by its withering hulk of socialist architecture. Its lone cinema hall - The Lao-Viet Cultural Hall of Friendship. I wrote about this theater a few years ago after my initial visit. In sum, it was built as a gift to the city of Udomxay by the Vietnamese government. Big comrade to little comrade, back when the honorific had a

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-55749776494421906622011-12-05T10:26:00.004+07:002011-12-05T10:51:44.668+07:00

Movie theater lovers! Don't go away! I'm now at the Luang Prabang Film Festival, loitering around my exhibition and catching some great flicks. Once this is done I'll be taking to the road again, exploring some Laotian towns I've never been to. And don't forget that there are still some gems to come from Isan and Northern Thailand, including a series on Thailand's lowest priced - 20 Baht!!! -

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-71986319018577905712011-11-29T08:22:00.006+07:002011-11-29T09:36:06.303+07:00

The UNESCO World Heritage City and former Lao capital, Luang Prabang, will in December be hosting the 2nd annual Luang Prabang Film Festisval. Over 50 films from across Southeast Asia will be screened at the 5-day long event taking place from December 3rd - 7th.Check out the promo video below:Included in the festivities, a photo exhibition from the Southeast Asia Movie Theater Project will be

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-54817295306963689092011-11-26T13:39:00.003+07:002011-11-27T11:09:49.429+07:00

The civilizational record in Phimai dates back ten centuries to the once-powerful Ankorian Khmers. Masters of hydrology like the current Bangkok authorities could only dream, imperial Angkor built its empire through the careful retention and management of water. They legitimized their rule via monumental architecture, like the temple shown here in the center of modern Phimai town.Phimai

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-75452839384997562472011-11-22T23:55:00.008+07:002011-11-23T00:28:29.412+07:00

One of my favorite sources for news across Asia just published a piece I wrote about Southeast Asia's vanishing stand-alones. See it here in the Asia Sentinel

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-25678555824824047702011-11-13T20:42:00.003+07:002011-11-13T23:02:53.178+07:00

Bua Yai is a train town. A train junction town, to be more specific. Here the Nong Khai - Bangkok line grows a spur which cuts over to the west, towards Chaiyaphum Province - though never actually reaching the provincial capital itself.Remnants of old Thailand, the one that grew up in the decades prior to the highway boom, are easily found in train towns. Streets and sois developed in the absence

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-44398212824016028122011-11-07T10:23:00.005+07:002011-11-10T14:21:51.038+07:00

Roaming Chumphae inevitably brought me to its other, much older, decommissioned cinema in the heart of the town's traditional commercial core. Long departed as a house of entertainment, the former Chumphae Theater nonetheless has been smartly repurposed to serve a current need. The building's walls were removed, leaving only structural support columns, its facade and roof, as the former

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-82367719508070985592011-11-03T11:09:00.009+07:002011-11-03T12:33:23.897+07:00

A second film festival exhibit in as many months is in the works for the SEA Movie Theater Project. Cinemanila International Film Festival, the Philippines premiere film festival - also its longest running - will be displaying a series of my photos at one of their venues. I won't be in attendance this time around like I was at last month's Busan International Film Festival, but that shouldn't

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-59193478564645856612011-10-31T12:23:00.004+07:002011-11-01T09:48:47.513+07:00

Now where was I? Burma, right? Somewhere in Bago Division, if I recall. That was way back in January. Resumption of the project begins again in Thailand's mostly-bucolic northeast: the vast Lao-speaking domains of Isan. Of the all the Thai regions I've covered, only Isan has a significant collection of operating stand-alones. It's been a goal to shoot them all while they're still around,

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-16103695482797598152011-10-21T07:43:00.005+07:002011-10-22T21:54:31.547+07:00

After a long, restrained hiatus, new life and new images are soon to come. Stay tuned.

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-39616910965613075342011-10-19T08:39:00.007+07:002011-10-19T09:28:01.607+07:00

About a week ago, a friend turned me on to the web-site of yet another kindred spirit who's gone out of his way to show us the unparalleled beauty of America's tattered palaces. He calls his site After the Final Curtain. If you like what goes up at the SEA Movie Theater Project, have a look at this one. It'll knock your socks off!Auditorium of Loew's Palace Theater of Bridgeport,

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-31962733609409761092011-10-13T22:45:00.003+07:002011-10-13T22:49:12.997+07:00

For the past three years I've spent a lot of time thinking and writing about stand-alone movie theaters. Describing them, chronicling their existence, their atmosphere and their frequent demise. Between a few Southeast Asian countries, I've visited over two-hundred of them, some palatial and grand, others dingy, faded or on the verge of collapse. Each possesses a unique character worthy of

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-29388655649385566822011-09-29T22:11:00.004+07:002011-09-30T01:21:06.379+07:00

From deep in the vaults, a near-forgotten specimen of leisure-time yore is dragged to the surface. The Yadana Pon Cinema stands dormant near busy Dagon Center, its late-Burmese Art-Deco exoskeleton faded but in tact.Fatigue had overtaken me by the time I found it, having just come from a fruitful but physically taxing shoot of the Shwe Man Cinema around the corner. A dead theater following a

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-22514697532411800092011-09-19T12:49:00.002+07:002011-11-03T12:36:12.496+07:00

After a summer-long hiatus from documenting movie theaters, an eventful future seems to be in store. From October 6th to the 14th, the 16th annual Busan International Film Festival will be taking place in the South Korean city it's named for. And of all the honors to have bestowed, the SEA Movie Theater Project has been invited to hold an exhibition there. For the duration of the show, a

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-65118083737857923212011-09-16T10:01:00.003+07:002011-09-16T12:43:47.298+07:00

Being pushed from Magwe's towns and cities, one after another, was reason enough to depart the dust choked division, with its xenophobes and zealous police force. We caught a bus south to the biggest city of western Bago Division - a bustling town hugging the banks of the Irrawaddy called Pyay.There couldn't have been a better town to conclude January's Myanmar movie theater search than Pyay

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-65826427413481474482011-09-02T02:37:00.013+07:002011-09-06T05:31:00.494+07:00

Some scholars in the field of Southeast Asian Studies have argued that it was the spectacle of theater which provided legitimacy for rulers of classical Theravada Buddhist-Hindu polities. To possess within ones domain, the theory goes, troupes of Ramayana performers was like having the heavenly deities personified on Earth. A ruler's awed subjects would readily adhere to state ideology

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-18222929605651811592011-08-19T10:16:00.012+07:002011-08-22T20:22:06.384+07:00

A little over a year ago, while gathering data on the old movie theaters of Chiang Mai, I learned that the long-closed Suriwong Theater was one of the few in town where American and British films could be watched with their original English language soundtracks - as opposed to being dubbed over in Thai. On account of this premium service, Chiang Mai's resident Anglophones turned out regularly as

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-11151462770416803232011-08-05T09:17:00.006+07:002011-08-07T03:27:03.353+07:00

A cinema intact, but out of commission, that's the Shwe Da Win. Its days of being mobbed by exuberant hordes, seeking reprieve from reality in colors more vivid than life itself, are long over. "Golden Royal," as its name translates to, is a name in vestige only. An internet shop occupies one portion of the former cinema, while the remainder is given over to the housing of wares. In the

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-33238931876690644302011-07-30T08:04:00.009+07:002012-01-01T23:34:30.944+07:00

My eyes on the ground in Laos have reported that Luang Namtha's lone picture hall, the long-decommissioned Tungsavang VDO, has been demolished. Word of this comes as a slight surprise. When I photographed it back in early 2009 the Tungsavang VDO was undergoing a makeover into a "youth activities center" courtesy of the local Ministry of Culture. Either the Ministry found additional funds to build

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-4767419964253176202011-07-25T19:11:00.015+07:002012-01-01T23:38:03.929+07:00

After more than a decade of abandonment, one of Udon Thani's last remaining stand-alone movie palaces, the Amporn, has been demolished.My lone visit to the Amporn back in early 2009 is memorable for being the first instance of awe I experienced at the sight of a Thai movie theater. Despite its already deleterious condition, my jaw dropped at the sight of it, and I recall with crystal clarity

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-25678429237671438422011-07-14T08:17:00.003+07:002011-07-20T20:37:32.364+07:00

There was little reason to doubt Mandalay's distinction as home to Myanmar's most recently constructed stand-alone movie theater - a state-built giant called the Myoma. In the 1980's, Mandalay, the second biggest city in the country, was struck by two massive fires, leaving large tracts of devastated city in their wake. Over the following two decades the government allocated funds to help

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-81951564901916530352011-07-02T08:36:00.000+07:002011-07-02T08:37:27.204+07:00

Following our brief visit to Minbu, made short by a lack of hotels licensed to accept foreign guests, we crossed back over to the Irrawaddy's east bank and the eponymous capital of Magwe Division. Here too the pickings were slim for accommodation. The few hoteliers licensed to host foreigners drove a hard bargain, knowing that it was either their disproportionately high rent or the street,

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-39294785124591396792011-06-19T10:35:00.005+07:002011-06-19T10:50:27.396+07:00

Movie theater concessions get scarce mention here on the SEA Movie Theater Project. It's a topic which I generally don't pay much attention to, especially since I seldom snack when at the movies. For those with a yen to know, movie concessions in Thai theaters are more or less the same as in American theaters: unremarkable from a documentary stand-point. American pop-culture, spawn of

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-61338406879290017082011-06-07T11:16:00.004+07:002011-06-07T20:46:32.952+07:00

There have been a few instances when the search for the stand-alone has led me to places the likes of which are wholly unfamiliar. Where little, if nothing, resonates with my known world. Not sites, not sounds, not much of anything. Notwithstanding the uniqueness of each locale, with its specific geography and myths, artifacts of human invention - at least one of which, should luck prevail,

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-43472355082298080862011-05-15T22:15:00.005+07:002011-05-21T18:49:44.357+07:00

From bustling Taunggyi we traveled westwards, toward the edge of the Shan Plateau. Our destination was Kalaw, the second of the old British Burma hill station towns, where we held out hope for a colonial-era cinema hall or two.More of a glorified village than anything else, Kalaw sits cupped within a high mountain valley flanked by pine tree-covered peaks. Like Pyin Oo Lwin, Kalaw was

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-83937390818170889062011-05-10T05:33:00.007+07:002011-05-10T08:49:54.861+07:00

There's a pile of things I've been meaning to post about, but lack the time to do so. Naturally, this site being what it is, most of the said topics relate to movie theaters. The most relevant, however, does not relate directly to the rapturous stand-alones of Southeast Asia, even though in some places and certain cases parallels do abound. We turn instead to the halls of corporate Hollywood,

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-75733729418413773662011-05-02T04:55:00.009+07:002011-05-02T06:13:00.774+07:00

On this, the first day of May 2011, the SEA Movie Theater Project shines the spotlight not on the glorious stand-alone cinema halls of Southeast Asia, but on the workers who make them run. If not for these silent toilers, whose time and effort is dedicated to the leisure of others, life would be sorely lacking. Here are some of the theatersmiths I ran into during my travels over the past year.The

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-69526260326732797102011-04-28T00:25:00.007+07:002011-04-29T18:31:18.881+07:00

The ever-stagnant world of Myanmar politics recently experienced some rumblings. Earlier this month, General Than Shwe announced the devolution of his exclusive power and the dissolving of his party, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). Excitement over this development, however, should be tempered by the fact that it will likely amount to little more than a reshuffling of

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-51422079139449173482011-04-14T20:38:00.003+07:002011-05-05T11:16:29.295+07:00

In the Myoma Cinema, what we have is a clear case of "facadicide" - that's fake Latin for murdering a building's facade. At some point in the last ten or so years, some genius had the brilliant idea of slapping this repulsive plastic paneling over the Myoma's original Art Deco frontage. Now it looks more like a giant car stereo than the work of a trained architect. The theater actually

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-72513157203867783742011-04-07T11:49:00.005+07:002011-05-05T11:17:21.068+07:00

As mentioned in the previous post, Bangkok's Sala Chalerm Krung Theater was commissioned by King Phrajodhipok - the 7th monarch of Thailand's reigning Chakri Dynasty. Up in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai, four of the old stand-alone theaters were built by Prince Suriwong Na Chiang Mai - a member of the annexed kingdom's royal household. Crossing the border into Laos, at least one of

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-28465722603069086142011-04-01T02:22:00.008+07:002011-04-01T09:44:19.178+07:00

No historical survey of Thailand's movie theaters would be complete without referencing this one: the Sala Chalerm Krung was the original first-class movie theater in the Kingdom, commissioned in 1932 by the King himself, in honor of Bangkok's 150th anniversary. The following newspaper clippings on the theater come courtesy of the good people over at 2Bangkok - the best the web has to offer on

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-86167044930530969722011-03-28T13:04:00.006+07:002011-03-28T22:25:40.492+07:00

Under the crisp, cool season sun, Dawei calls to mind a set from a Spaghetti Western. Broad, dusty streets, as straight as can be, stretching out as far as the eye can see, are corralled by low-rise, low-density buildings of various tones. It's a sleepy town. By mid-day it grows listless, silent, smothered under a heat-inspired languor. A gentle breeze accompanies you wherever you go,

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-72721432612204076092011-03-21T11:08:00.008+07:002011-03-21T15:45:11.202+07:00

Just over a year ago, the Trang Rama made its debut here on the SEA Movie Theater Project. Since then it has been the lone operating stand-alone from Thailand's south to be featured. Scratch the operating status; word has it that the Trang Rama recently shut its doors for good.Details of the Trang Rama's past are unknown. Its architecture, however, is fairly common among Thai movie theaters built

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-36667198464793643092011-03-19T11:52:00.001+07:002011-03-19T12:00:42.125+07:00

As promised, your glimpse inside the Aung Mingala Cinema. Unfortunately, imagery of the auditorium itself is missing from this series. I forgot the tripod in my hotel room, plain and simple. Nonetheless, here's the best of what I could get of this iconic structure in a city on the cusp of change.Ticket booth calculationsAside from a lone woman working the ticket window, the Aung Mingala is

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-40881871305598963762011-03-14T18:39:00.004+07:002011-03-14T21:04:07.995+07:00

Travel by boat to Thanintharyi Division may be off limits to foreigners, but boat travel between the division's ports is not. Aside from flying, it's the only legal way to get from city to city.A four hour ferry ride north of Myeik deposits us at the Dawei passenger port. Here the coastline is pristine, unspoiled by industry of any kind. From the looks of it there is scarcely any human

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-2423841834787585722011-03-09T11:41:00.004+07:002011-03-09T22:24:18.189+07:00

Click here to view the work of two Frenchmen who've scoured the streets of American cities for tattered movie palaces. Their photography is magnifique!(Photo by Yves Marchand & Romain Meffre Photography)

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-69937681431418150612011-03-07T08:47:00.001+07:002011-03-07T08:49:04.274+07:00

Overland travel to Thanintharyi Division - Myanmar's southern-most territory - is not an option for foreigners. The route passes through sizable chunks of eastern Mon State and northern Thanintharyi Division: land held by the Mon National Liberation Front - one of the country's numerous ethnic armies fighting for autonomy. Boat travel, the most alluring prospect off all, is likewise off

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-47525788619800395712011-02-28T00:16:00.004+07:002011-03-07T10:04:59.085+07:00

In a city once teeming with them, Bangkok's collection of double-feature stand-alone movie theaters has been whittled down to a handful over the years. Almost gone are the days when Bangkokians could walk a few minutes to the neighborhood movie house and wile away a miserably hot afternoon with two movies for the price of one. Almost gone, that is, but not completely.By all reasonable

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-13765583386029193312011-02-21T11:53:00.015+07:002011-02-22T16:15:18.060+07:00

For the past 6 months, the cinema halls of Myanmar have hogged the spotlight here on the SEA Movie Theater Project. Rightfully so, considering just how great they are! But Thai movie theaters - lest we forget - are also great, even if most of the stand-alone beauties have been consigned to history. This past weekend I rekindled my love for this work in Thailand, venturing out into the field for

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-46194944332484335102011-02-15T15:07:00.007+07:002011-02-16T16:43:16.758+07:00

In a country where the majority of old movie houses were built with pride and high craftsmanship, the Sandar Myaint Cinema calls to mind a minimum security prison. All it needs is a chain link fence with barbed wire on the top and it fits the bill to a tee. No awards for architectural design are going out to this one, that's for sure.It's worth mentioning, however, that the theater ceased

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-82605029387961993202011-02-09T14:35:00.001+07:002011-02-09T22:16:37.622+07:00

A blast of color towers above as you approach the Thida Cinema. If it's not clear at this point that you're about to temporarily disengage from reality then you must be looking at the ground, or else have no intentions of going to the movies. Only a blind person could miss the Thida; beauty among beasts; the man-made Wonder of Upper Kyeemyin Daing Road.A boxy facade brought to life by

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-33266543139990709192011-02-05T22:06:00.007+07:002011-02-07T01:19:55.325+07:00

Cloudy skies over Yangon hampered efforts at capturing the Nay Pyi Daw and Shae Saung cinemas in all their angular, multi-hued beauty last June. On top of dreary weather, hawk-eyed theater security guards turned me away every time the camera came out. Company policy, they claimed. The result was an unremarkable, hastily-made series for both of these late-1950's cinema gems. But due diligence does

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-51528448627470470052011-01-31T13:35:00.005+07:002011-01-31T13:59:06.903+07:00

Hold tight, folks. There's heaps of good movie theater-related material about to come out of the country formerly known as Burma. I look forward to sharing it with you.

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-7787388572679926922011-01-03T18:40:00.008+07:002011-01-04T00:38:21.735+07:00

It's been a quiet few months over here at the SEA Movie Theater Project. Very little in terms of new photos or research has been undertaken since last June, when I eked my way through a humid, central Myanmar. That seems like eons ago.As of tomorrow, January 4th, I'll be back in the saddle again; returning to Myanmar for a second major expedition. The loose itinerary I've pieced together has me

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-81068593763413458302011-01-02T18:56:00.005+07:002011-01-03T01:58:12.995+07:00

Hands down, Pyin Oo Lwin's Cherry Lwin Cinema is one of the classiest movie theaters I've ever had the pleasure of visiting. Architecturally speaking, it is a jewel box. The exterior is done in stoic 1920's neo-classical style, while the interior boasts an auditorium of hard-wood paneled walls and colorful wall upholstering along the balcony's edge. A relatively low seating capacity in such

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-25090809888778589532010-12-30T11:21:00.001+07:002011-08-16T03:12:33.381+07:00

For the first half of the 20th century, Pyin Oo Lwin was know by its colonial moniker of Maymyo. "Myo" in Burmese translates to "town" and May was the surname of a British colonel who was stationed at this former hill-top military outpost in the 1880's. Assimilating Colonel May's name into the title of a British-colonial town was a sign of things to come. By the early 20th century, as wars

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-21898271828509890532010-12-25T12:11:00.003+07:002011-06-23T10:35:28.128+07:00

On a recent trip to the Laotian capital, I made a stopover at the old Vieng Samay Theater, now the last theater structure in the city with visible evidence of its former life. It takes little more than a glance at the building's facade to understand its place in Vientiane's history. From the rusting marquee, to the faded, trilingual letters of the roof-top sign, there should be little

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-51694724396889744162010-12-17T11:10:00.001+07:002010-12-17T11:11:54.715+07:00

Like many a British administrator of imperial past, when my work was finished in Mandalay I headed for the hills. Destination, Pyin U Lwin. Cooler climes, cleaner air, respite from the dust and bustle of big-city life has attracted vacationers to Pyin U Lwin since the 1890's, when the British designated it a hill station: vacation towns for colonial officials, situated in cooler upland areas.

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-8075671643869782182010-12-06T12:33:00.002+07:002010-12-06T18:46:54.166+07:00

If you merely take a quick scan of 81st Street north of 28th, the building in the photo below appears barely distinguishable from much of Mandalay's more recently built structures.Glazed ceramic tiles grouted to the facade are an architectural hallmark of this late-20th, early-21st century construction boom; a boom spurred in part by a massive wave of Chinese immigration to the city over the

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-22800418441747079352010-11-29T17:14:00.002+07:002010-11-29T17:34:51.827+07:00

This may sound like a strange thing to write about a movie theater, but the Myo Gon Yaung Cinema has genuinely tragic origins. The tragedy dates back to 1981, when large sections of Mandalay were besieged by fire and thousands of buildings across the city went up in smoke. In 1984 fire struck again, taking thousands more structures to a fiery grave. In both cases, tens of thousands of

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-67324968341498466212010-11-25T16:44:00.005+07:002010-11-26T11:00:14.229+07:00

It was mid-day by the time my drifting through Mandalay's sun-beaten streets led me to the front steps of the Nay Pyi Daw Cinema. The relentless heat of Myanmar's second largest city had me sweating like a pig, teetering on brink of collapse. Why hadn't I just payed one the city's thousands of pedicab drivers to chauffeur me there like any normal human would have done?Looking as if I'd just

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-44401093975169835682010-11-15T13:24:00.005+07:002010-12-20T13:15:17.667+07:00

For those of you in an information coma, you should be aware that there's serious cause for celebration over in Myanmar. No, the government has not allocated a quarter of its operating budget to restoring the country's tattered movie theaters. Even I have to admit that that would be insanely stupid. The good news is that Myanmar's most popular political figure and symbol of hope, Aung San Suu

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-85064926493185760672010-11-10T14:15:00.005+07:002010-11-10T23:53:46.975+07:00

Mingalar Group, Myanmar's biggest film exhibition company, runs the nicest theaters in the country. They also employ some iron-fisted policies when it comes to photographing them. Each and every time I moved in on one of their Yangon movie palaces I was, without exception, given the boot. Only by stealth was I able to take the few photos that I did, leaving me feeling criminalized and

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-39583293893414859502010-11-05T20:44:00.004+07:002010-11-06T13:44:30.638+07:00

The GrandFacadeA plaster relief symbol adorns the facade above the door. Its significance, if any, was unknown. View from the side. Notice it's corrugated tin roof - a common feature of Myanmar's older movie theaters.Waiting near the concessions.ConcessionsThe four maidens on the left were all extremely camera shy. Their pivoted position was an attempt at avoiding being photographed. In all the

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-48048469467767273622010-11-02T08:03:00.007+07:002010-11-02T19:46:53.714+07:00

Two theaters grace the cityscape of Meiktila, the less glamorous of the two having taken up the mantle of football den. The World Cup was still raging when I rode into town and the Shwe Bo Ho Cinema was all suited up for the festivities. Here's what it looks like.The front gate of the Shwe Bo Ho Cinema. An exterior sign is conspicuously absent.A small court yard in front of the Shwe Bo Ho. The

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-58820060186179470782010-10-28T12:35:00.003+07:002010-10-30T20:53:28.536+07:00

A stop over in Thazi wasn't part of the original itinerary. The town's very existence defied my knowledge until the night before the train dropped me there. I hadn't taken notice of it on any map, in any guide book or through any other medium, despite my scramble to learn everything I could about Myanmar before arrival. Had it not been for an American father and daughter I met at my guest

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-27784462103346824812010-10-19T04:51:00.015+07:002011-07-06T12:01:55.069+07:00

If, as it states in the Bauhaus school of architecture's manifesto, "the ultimate aim of all creative activity is the building," then it is only natural that the movie theater represents the height of creative function. What else can be expected when combining the "ultimate aim [in] creative activity" with the most dynamic of all the visual arts, film? By this definition the movie theater ought

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-31255098846821932442010-10-13T05:13:00.014+07:002011-11-03T12:37:52.479+07:00

A few days back I was contacted by reader and past contributor to the SEA Movie Theater Project, Randy Roberts. The 7th Street Theater in Randy's home town of Hoquiam, Washington has been undergoing a full-scale restoration, bringing it back to its original palatial form. A portion of the restoration funds have been raised through the sale of inscribed bricks to be laid in the sidewalk in front

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-9102324861909865012010-10-10T22:55:00.010+07:002010-10-30T01:03:23.855+07:00

My adulation for the city of Bago reached new heights after finding the Nyunt Cinema in its midst. This 1950's-stock movie hall, with its pastel coloring and mosaic on the facade, is yet another piece of note-worthy architecture in a town with a sizable inventory of it.Length-wise views of the Nyunt Cinema The Nyunt ranks first in size out of Bago's trio of picture palaces and number

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-1602519416353298612010-10-01T11:21:00.004+07:002010-10-12T23:42:17.937+07:00

As a rule of thumb, my objects of affection - movie theaters - receive nothing less than eulogy on the SEA Movie Theater Project. Heaping praise on them is what the site is all about. On occasion, however, a mitigating circumstances will arise warranting exception to the rule. This is one such case. Behold what appears to be the most cryptic, down-right haunted looking (active) theater I've

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-70355566755222801512010-09-23T10:30:00.005+07:002010-10-03T22:43:01.769+07:00

Eleven days of negotiating Yagon's cracked and crowded sidewalks had taken its toll. I was in dire need of some elbow room and a change of pace. With the lion's share of the city's cinemas already consigned to immortality, including all the most important ones, it was time to push on. The monsoons, you see, saturate coastal Myanmar before anywhere else, coming in from the south and west,

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-34840388296221417882010-09-17T06:17:00.005+07:002010-10-12T05:28:40.402+07:00

A few days ago I posted a link to a Bangkok Post article which seemed to indicate that the charred remnants of the Siam Theater would be getting some renovation money from landlord Chulalongkorn University. Unfortunately that's not going to be happening. Apparently the entire section of Siam Square between sois 3 and 4 was known as Siam Theater. 270 million out of 1 billion baht will be used to

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-14710699510288543652010-09-15T04:52:00.004+07:002010-10-12T12:45:27.510+07:00

The Gilded Cesspool - Yangon - is dubbed so for simple reasons: gilded because of the numerous shimmering gold pagodas which dot the landscape. In fact, the city's architectural repertoire in general warrants the twinkly connotation of things gilt. Diamonds and pearls omitted. Above the business of the street stand many buildings worth looking at if you can take your eyes off where you step.

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-21422854402986743202010-09-12T23:33:00.003+07:002010-09-13T00:41:28.672+07:00

Are my eyes deceiving me, or is Bangkok Post writer Prapasri Vasuhirun just playing a dirty trick? In a September 11th article, Vasuhirun outlines measures that Chulalongkorn University will be taking to rebuild the parts of Siam Square that were set ablaze during violent clashes between protesters and government troops on May 19th. Regular readers of the SEA Movie Theater Project, along with

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-53067248467915499312010-09-08T10:41:00.014+07:002010-09-17T06:02:11.889+07:00

"The Burmese like new things. One can travel the length and breadth of the country and be hard pressed to find a single nonreligious structure more than a hundred years old. To a large extent this is of course the result of war and weather. But there is also no special value in living in a house with some history or aristocratic connections; the pukka house is a brand-new house and not a

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-31991074940021001252010-09-03T21:54:00.005+07:002010-09-05T05:09:00.319+07:00

This along with the two posts to follow marks the end of my material for Yangon (though there's still much to come from other parts of the country). In saving these three for city's grand finale, I hope to close this chapter on a high note, even if the photos themselves are not exactly the most stellar of all time. It was no easy task getting what I got. These theaters, you see, are leased

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-74615098832558607542010-08-25T11:21:00.004+07:002010-09-20T06:31:30.517+07:00

It was instantly apparent that the San Pya had been a victim of degeneration over the years. There was no need to venture inside to figure that out. The dank air gushing from the entrance smelled like a jungle cave minus the guano. Whatever personage or wildlife had taken refuge therein would be better left to the imagination, I figured. Seats filled with movie-watching leopards, maybe?

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-84755908898672344872010-08-16T11:07:00.006+07:002010-08-18T01:45:38.390+07:00

Yangon's northern reaches differ vastly from the southerly tip with its gilded grid city, coarse and gritty. The density thins out considerably up here. In many ways it's a typical "other side of the tracks" division, minus the rigid social dichotomy so often associated with the cliche. The changes are more physical than they are demographic, but by no means exclusively so. In fact,

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-36320395375110169202010-08-08T23:46:00.006+07:002011-06-23T11:08:35.876+07:00

When I photographed the Shwe Mann Cinema back in June, I remember thinking it was of a less stimulating variety than the other theaters I'd come across in Yangon. Aside from a courteous and curious staff, ever accommodating to my photographic requests, the physicality of the place left me unimpressed. Many prior hours spent milling about the muck-studded allure of Cinema Row, with its sextet

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-56402791499774534692010-08-03T06:19:00.002+07:002010-09-20T06:30:47.684+07:00

Yangon is an inexhaustible treasure vault of culture and history. It greets the pedestrian with a neglected sort of decadence on every block; arcane to the untrained eye, yet illustrious all the same. With each turn of every corner, the sight of intrigue pierces through your thoughts like a bolt of cerebral lighting. Other times you turn that corner and meet a creamy, red stream of betel

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-34247609401025860602010-08-01T06:09:00.013+07:002011-02-25T16:51:51.284+07:00

Let it be known to all you cinephiles in Thailand and Laos, or anybody who might be headed in that direction, there are two inaugural film fests taking place very soon. Next week, in fact, from August 6-8, begins Bangkok IndieFest. The motley mix of independent, international programming for this first-time film fest will be screened at Bangkok's HOF Art Gallery. This may be the initial run for

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We've reached the end of the line here, ladies and gentlemen. Cinema Row pulls into its digitized terminus with a dirty double feature of the Myoma and Shwe Gon cinemas. As far as the naked eye can tell, these two are at the nexus of Cinema Row and skid row. Past follies into such nefarious worlds have left a permanent imprint. When in doubt, keep out! Doubt prevailed.Right to left, Myoma and

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-2688613732329567292010-07-19T17:28:00.017+07:002010-09-20T06:25:54.872+07:00

When Burmese writer/political critic Ludu U Hla was locked away in the Rangoon Central Jail back in the 1950's, for the heinous crime of authoring seditious literature, he made the most of his prison sentence by conducting interviews among his fellow inmates. The result was "The Caged Ones" - a collection of narratives detailing the inmates' road to incarceration. It's a simple read, but no less

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-27583637200993982652010-07-14T19:27:00.007+07:002010-07-14T21:05:30.556+07:00

Wee Chiang Mai offers two movie theater options. You can go to the locally-owned Vista Gad Suan Kaew 7, or the nationwide chain, Major Cineplex. Never mind that they're both in chintzy shopping malls, the bane of this web-site's content. That's irrelevant to the issue of the day. Today's complaint is how the latter successfully squeezes movie-goers here in Chiang Mai and throughout Thailand.As a

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-80165336589885972202010-07-12T11:20:00.015+07:002010-09-20T06:26:53.059+07:00

Glowing ThwinCinema Row - accented by the well-lit Thwin Cinema - looking fairly melancholy after dark.After dark, the Thwin Cinema's humming florescence casts a reassuring glow down a blackened Cinema Row. Its neighbors to the east, notably shabbier, veiled by the night, take on a slightly sinister appearance; places that seem to offer cinema-plus. But thanks to its ample illumination, the Thwin

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-85060143934573816812010-07-08T09:13:00.012+07:002010-07-10T00:38:49.075+07:00

Moving eastwards along Bogyoke Aung San Road, the next gem in the Cinema Row sextet is the verdant Beyin Cinema, also known as the King. Local recollectors seemed to think that the King, despite its more contemporary looks, is actually older than the Waziya Cinema next door. With confirmation pending, I'll resort to conjecture and say this: it is the elder of the two, but at some point it got a

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-70416745926252840912010-07-06T16:26:00.008+07:002010-07-14T21:06:29.015+07:00

Here's a little inspiration for all you movie theater enthusiasts out there: a New York Times article about the revival of main street movie theaters in the American mid-west. The following excerpt pretty much sums up my own views on the matter:"To Tim Kennedy, a professor of landscape architecture who has traveled across the state [of North Dakota] to survey little theaters for a book, the

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Night viewBy most accounts, the Waziya Cinema dates to the late 1920's. It began its life as a live theater, but was transformed into a cinema hall as the film medium grew in popularity. Myanmar, then the British colony of Burma, had one of the most prolific and well developed movie industries in Southeast Asia during the first half of the 20th century. Led by production companies like A1, New

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-64624488078386253672010-07-01T23:52:00.009+07:002010-10-23T06:11:11.360+07:00

The prospects were too good to wait til morning. I threw my bags in my hotel room and ventured out into the darkened streets. Having hovered over maps during the weeks prior, I knew that my hotel was barely a betel nuts throw from Cinema Row - the mythical strip of cinemas across from Yangon's main train station. Walking east on Bogyoke, past the Traders Hotel, across Sule Pagoda Road, past

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Just shy of a month in steamy Myanmar, from the former capital to the foothills of the north and back again, proved fruitful. The yield includes an estimated half of the operating theaters in the country, plus a few shuttered relics to round out the tally. As theater hunts go, this was the colossus. Voluminous to a whole new level. To be sure, there are numerous gaps in my knowledge of Burmese

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-69335900692013602822010-06-02T12:35:00.010+07:002010-06-03T09:21:01.986+07:00

The Southeast Asia Movie Theater Project will be inactive through the remainder of June. For the latest material, please check back in July.

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-22587447339221918462010-05-26T13:29:00.014+07:002010-05-30T12:02:25.221+07:00

While still in mourning over the loss of the Siam Theater, it's about time to move on. Heart-wrenching images of its charred lobby will only weigh on morale if left to hang in the open indefinitely. Anyway, a future blight is in need of addressing. In the wake of the Siam Theater tragedy talk is once again stirring of a "Master Plan" to raze all of Siam Square and replace it with a shopping mall

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-59501136713197076532010-05-22T18:50:00.016+07:002010-05-24T00:25:16.793+07:00

WARNING:The following contains graphic images of the Siam Theater, postmortem. Viewer discretion is advised.All photos courtesy of Liam Morgan

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-52809052490227360642010-05-20T15:50:00.016+07:002010-05-24T11:49:56.796+07:00

Here are a few photos of the Siam Theater I took in October of last year. "Kafoo: Waiting for Happiness" was playing there at the time: a Japanese romance, the name of which said enough for me to steer clear. Little did I know that I'd just opted out of my last chance to watch a movie in the Siam, only to dip below my standards and catch one at SF World Cinema, atop Central World Plaza instead.

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-41021248010680579292010-05-19T17:07:00.009+07:002010-05-20T15:10:07.526+07:00

There are too many horrors going on across Bangkok to mention them all right now. Riots are ensuing, blood is spilling and buildings have been set ablaze. Among those buildings lost to fire is the Siam Theater. It was located basically at the heart of the Red Shirt protest site. This is a huge loss for movie theater enthusiasts and Bangkok film fans. A classic venue that should not have gone out

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-78302682080443572722010-05-13T18:17:00.003+07:002010-05-24T11:51:28.351+07:00

Dear Readers,It is with deepest regrets that I announce that the SEA Movie Theater Project will be in a state of dormancy for a while; probably for upwards of a month. Not being able to post for such a prolonged period will be difficult for me, I assure you, especially as the theater tally grows to new, ever more exciting heights in the meantime. That's right folks, the hiatus in posting is not

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-14536943168228611422010-05-08T21:30:00.021+07:002010-05-10T19:57:17.498+07:00

In the center of Loei province, between rolling hills of patchy forest, sits the little market town of Wangsaphung. The town feels sedated under the hot season sky, even after a freak two-day spell of cool air blew in from the east. A typhoon over the South China Sea, say the papers.Loei is an in-between province: neither completely of Isan, or the North, yet straddling the two fairly evenly. A

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-23891330876682397012010-05-06T03:08:00.029+07:002010-05-08T00:57:12.084+07:00

It had been a full year since last I set foot in Loei, ample time for the cold heart of economy to wreak havoc on an aging picture house. Loei City's blue-hued dream factory - ye olde Amarin Theater - became a source of regret for your dedicated narrator, being one of the few functioning stand-alones that I neglected to catch a movie in when I had the chance. It's a stickler of a policy, I admit,

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-34968789302022212592010-05-02T14:37:00.019+07:002010-05-02T19:59:14.824+07:00

Once again, planet Earth has done its orbital duty, spinning us around to that annual celebration of hard working people the world over - May Day. In honor of this May Day, or International Labor Day, or whatever you choose to call it depending on where you're from, the SEA Theater Project is posting and re-posting photos of all the movie theater employees met during the last year. Often

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-66091268367220472682010-04-28T18:15:00.019+07:002010-04-30T15:20:00.824+07:00

Sanctity, for some, is best found in the confines of the cinema. For movie-goers of piety: priests, monks and other holy mouthpieces speak hollow babble compared to the 35 millimeter gospel of the projector. Sermons are conducted regularly throughout the day, 7 days a week, in the temples of film - with mid-night specials for night owls at times, too. Naturally, then, for the more cinematically

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-612456107216936332010-04-26T11:32:00.016+07:002010-04-29T12:46:51.232+07:00

About a year ago, I took my first trip to Bangkok with the sole intent of seeking out old theaters. A few days prior to that, I corralled myself in the library, flipping through the foxing pages of old Thai business directories to make a list of as many pre-multiplex theaters as I could find reference to. For the most part, little more than theater names and phone numbers were listed. No

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-23744459023051215792010-04-22T14:57:00.011+07:002010-04-22T19:56:08.191+07:00

The legend of the Sothon Rama holds that it was Northeast Thailand's largest theater of all time. A plausible legend, given the former theater's three-story verticality and ability, in the wake of film, to house a full-on department store. But short of a nod from the movie theater authorities, we'll keep it at that - an unconfirmed rumor to report on a blog.Hot pink paint on the former Sothon

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2437949635699944993.post-88966390105655624842010-04-19T17:24:00.018+07:002011-05-18T09:20:00.627+07:00

Over the past few weeks I've had the good fortune of corresponding with two American veterans, Gene Ponce and Randy Roberts, who where stationed in Thailand during the Vietnam/American War. Gene Ponce was an Engines and Propeller Systems technician, working on EC 121R Constellation Recon aircraft at the Korat air-base from 1970-71. From 1971-72 he was stationed at Ubon, where he worked on AC 130/

The Projectionisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12290952622576852985noreply@blogger.com1