Interviews / Jun. 12, 2020
Anusorn Soisa-ngim, director of our favorite Thai love story Present Perfect, and of our favroite Thai love story sequel, Present Still Perfect, answered some questions for GagaTai regarding the process of shooting the film and what to expect from him in the near future.
Present Still Perfect (Image from GagaOOLala)
Watch Present Perfect and Present Still Perfect on GagaOOLala!
Q- How would people see it, if the events in the film such as two men having an affair, happened in real life Thailand? And what do you (the director) hope to tell the audience with this setting?
A- At first a lot of people were against it, I saw the comments on YouTube when I first uploaded the trailer. People were upset that I was talking about cheating and stuff like that, and it’s a sin. I, however, didn’t force them to watch the film and I know in my heart that my film is not about cheating at all. Later on, people gave the movie another chance and (they realized that) it was different from what they expected.
I wanted to tell the audience that love is such a beautiful thing in this world, we all deserve it no matter if you are black, white, gay, or lesbian. When it comes to love, there is no sexual orientation, religion, or skin color. Love is something that everyone deserves. But sometimes, love is also about letting go. Another message that I wanted to send the audience is that trust is aln_y_=*LcVu!b6LRJemVnoc0ZT4#puI&I2WFcO4=H3OWCncM3Ewso vital to a relationship. If you trust your partner, your love would surpass hardships and you would grow stronger together.
Q- The story of Present Still Perfect is set back in Thailand, and yet it features Kenta from Japan. Is there a reason you decided to do that?
A- At first, Kenta’s role wasn’t supposed to be a Japanese guy but an American. However, I liked the actor (Ohmi Ryota) very much when for his acting in The Face Show, and I later learned that he also went to the premier of Bangkok Dark Tales (Anusorn's previous work). I was so excited, I sent him a message. I didn’t expect him to read or reply, but he did, and texted back saying that he wants to be in my film and that he loved the first movie. So I had to make changes to the whole script so that a Japanese guy would fit the story instead of an American.
Present Still Perfect (Image from GagaOOLala)
Q- In terms of your state of mind, what kind of changes did you and the actors experience through filming Present Perfect and its sequel?
A- We learned a lot. Having worked together before, this time the cast had their own opinions, ideas, and their own stories to tell. The hardest part was to make them follow my idea. We shot this film in a very short period of time so we had to be very professional and both of the lead actors had improved a lot. It was mind-blowing how much they’ve improved on their acting skills.
Q- Is it possible that the story of Present Still Perfect would continue, in like another sequel, or even prequel?
A- The funny thing is that just yesterday I came up with the idea of Present Still Perfect part three so I should name it Present Still Stay Perfect. It was a crazy idea that came up on my mind but I’m not sure about that yet. I would love to make a third part of the story, because I feel so connected with the two characters I created, I really want to continue their life story. So to answer the question: it's possible, but for now, no.
Present Still Perfect (Image from GagaOOLala)
Q- You (the director) once said that Present Perfect was based on your own true life story, what about Present Still Perfect, are there any scenes that were extended from your personal experiences?
A- Present Still Perfect is not about my life but I put parts of me and who I am into every character, so if you watch the movie you will see a bit of me in Oat, Toey, Jane and the other characters. I put in what I believe, my thoughts about politics, and my thoughts about religion. Present Still Perfect is like a dream to me. It’s my vision of society, and what I want the people and the world to see. For example, I want to get married in the future but I feel like it’s impossible. So I put something that is unattainable to me into the film. The movie is like a therapy for me, I put things that is impossible in real life into it. For example, Bangkok Dark Tales happened because I wanted to kill someone. But if I did, I would be sent to prison; so I made it into a film and killed the character in it instead.
Q- The gap between the two films was of almost 4 years. During that time, have you observed any changes in the Thai BL and gay film industry?
A- Yes I did, it became worse than it used to be regarding the equality of human rights. People are still not okay with same sex marriage, and they like to see BL couples in TV but when it comes to real life they care nothing of same sex marriage, at all. They think that it’s none of their business and they don’t want to be affected.
Present Still Perfect (Image from GagaOOLala)
Q- In addition to Present Perfect, you have directed the popular BL drama 2Moons2, can you tell us what you plan to do next? Would it be Boys’ Love as well?
A- 2Moons2 was very challenging for me because it was my first TV series and all the cast had never acted before, so it was quite hard. I then realized that making TV series and movies are completely different because in TV series they don’t care about cinematography as much as films, but it’s a fun experience that I would love to do again.
I have another series coming up called Call It What You Want which I’m very excited about. This project is also about things that I want to talk about in the BL industry, which may be a little bit toxic for the actors and for a lot of people who work in this industry. People don’t often realize that and I want to make sure that they do. That’s the reason why I wanted to make the series Call It What You Want.
Q- Because of the pandemic, Present Still Perfect was taken down in Thailand after screening for just three days. COVID-19 has caused a tremendous effect on the film industry. Has your life been affected? Would the pandemic become an inspiration, or a part of your future work?
A- The pandemic hurt me a lot. My film was in the cinemas for just three days and then the pandemic came and everything!3Dngh7sV9yZeSRxrdcRiY4R(y6krlUhnhvNK#+nb1-)@j8hO! got cancelled. I was supposed to go to Taiwan in the beginning of April. I was supposed to go to Brazil, and it got cancelled as well. I was so shocked at that time when the pandemic came, I didn’t know what to do. It was quite sad. But then I came up with the idea that I wanted to make a documentary. So I talked to GagaOOLala and they gave me a green light. It was a fun experience to have in a time of pandemic, and I also spent my time writing my series as well.
Watch Present Perfect and Present Still Perfect on GagaOOLala!
Present Still Perfect trailer:
