Projecting Thailand: Thai Cinema and the Public Sphere

Thai royal anthem before artistic performances and sporting events. In the air conditioned and upholstered theaters and movie houses throughout the kingdom, the royal anthem is accompanied by a montage of images in celebration of the king's many achievements over the course of an illustrative reign. While these montages change from year to year, they are nonetheless spectacular (in the performative sense of the term) testaments to the power and the endurance of the royal image and the advanced filmmaking techniques employed to project it. As is customary for the duration of the anthem, the audience is expected to stand in order to formally and ritually pay respects to the king. The pacing of the sequence of images, paired with the reverential tempo of the anthem itself, allow for a moment of introspection before the presentation.