apichatpong weerasethakul: metaphors

Apichatpong Weerasethakul is recognized as one of the most original voices in contemporary cinema today. His seven feature films, short films, and installations have won him widespread international recognition and numerous awards, including the Cannes Palme d'Or in 2010 with Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives. The compilation album Metaphors contains 14 sound works carefully selected from his past cinema and other visual works since 2003, which includes Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, Syndromes and a Century (2006), Fever Room (2016), and more. Weerasethakul has regularly worked with the same sound designers since 2003 and has always given importance to the personality of on-location sounds that give his films a sense of continuity. In post-production, he's fascinated by the manipulation of these "live" sounds in order to express "reality". This reality doesn't necessary represent the actual sound of the places, it's more of a representation of the world in layered memories. Similar to the way he treats images, Apichatpong sometimes calls attention to the physicality and the fragility of the audio (and its apparatus) and to the process of audio manipulation itself. In his cinema, Apichatpong prefers natural sound sources over music. Nevertheless, he often boldly incorporates popular songs that were persistent during the shooting. He doesn't shy away from using tunes that relate to his own personal memories. In this sense, Apichatpong values the spirit of authenticity much more than rigid manipulation of audio and weaves a complex and dreamlike soundscape in his cinematic repertoire. Born in Bangkok, Apichatpong grew up in Khon Kaen in north-eastern Thailand. He began making films and video shorts in 1994 and completed his first feature in 2000. He has also mounted exhibitions and installations in many countries since 1998 and is now recognized as a major international visual artist. His art prizes include the Sharjah Biennial Prize (2013) and the prestigious Prince Claus Award (2016). Lyrical and often fascinatingly mysterious, his film works are non-linear, dealing with memory and in subtle ways invoking personal politics and social issues. Metaphors is compiled by sound designers Akritchalerm Kalayanamitr and Koichi Shimizu. includes color insert.