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Hello! You are here by yourself?

Alright. Let it down.

Bring it down slowly.

Slowly.

Give it to me.

Slow down. It's too fast for them to shoot.

No. It's like a construction site. You take it down, and that's all.

How many floors today?

Every floor.

I'm going to wash my hands. Wash my hands so that…

Yes, everything, including the frame.

Hey, hey.

Let's film this guy more.

Shoot him more

-Still won't shut up. -At first,

I didn't remember you were Sakchai's daughter.

What? Really?

This is Sakchai's daughter.

I don't remember at all.

It's been so many years. How's miss Leka?

-She's getting old now. -Really?

-Can she walk? -She manages.

You live with her, right?

Do you still live with miss Leka?

She changed a lot.

Completely different.

I remember her as a little girl with glasses.

Her face changed after she's grown.

I think every cinema bans cats.

But the multiplex cinemas in the shopping malls might not have such problems.

In the Siam cinema projection box,

there's a sign on the door to the rooftop that says, "keep cats out."

One day, I found a cat staring at me at my bedroom door,

which means it would have had to walk through the entire projection box.

We stared into each other's eyes for a while

before I kicked it out so no one would notice.

Even with a label saying, "do not feed the cats,"

Auntie Cha-Um, the office janitor,

would just keep feeding them on the rooftops anyways.

It's stuck. I can't take it off.

Do we still have to drive the cats out?

No, not anymore

Does your dad know that they're tearing down Scala?

Have you talked to him?

No calls?

I meant to call him too, but I got too busy.

I think it was in late 1973.

It was 40, 45 years ago.

Around 1974.

In the beginning, the Scala had 1,200 seats.

It was the biggest one.

Siam Cinema had 900 seats.

The Lido Theater had 1,000 seats.

This cinema had the most.

I think it's the end of that October protest.

So I started working here at the end of 1973.

It was December, I remember.

But I actually was working at Samyan cinema first.

-Samyan? -Samyan.

It's the place where…

There were Samyan cinemas next to Hua Lamphong temple.

You didn't know?

It's a cinema screening Chinese movies.

There are the Samyan and Rama cinemas.

I worked there for over a year before moving to Lido in 1975.

I remember seeing you and your father always arguing

when I was working at the Siam Cinema.

At first, you guys were able to talk normally, and soon started arguing.

That's why Ms. Leka always said,

"If you can't take care of her, give her to me. I will do it myself!"

That's what she said.

He was an ill-tempered man.

He did not want your mother to see or meet you.

It's like he doesn't want you to contact each other.

So he had to…

That's why you never saw her.

I don't have a picture of her either.

Back then, what should I say?

Taking pictures wasn't easy.

Uncle Nao was a projectionist at Siam cinema.

It was at the Siam cinema projection box where I first met him.

I don't remember when I started living in the Siam cinema.

Before I knew it, I was already running around the place.

But the Lido and the Scala, I didn't really visit so much back then

unless there was a film I wanted to see that was not shown at our cinema.

Although the Scala may look prettier than her sisters,

I didn't feel that they were so different on the inside.

Go, go.

Stop.

They've been here since 8:30 a.m.

They didn't have the scaffoldings. They just started taking them off.

Yes, but…

Yes, someone's assisting him.

Yes, it seems all right now.

At this corner of the Siam cinema projection room,

there was a door to our bedroom.

Our bed lied underneath the huge air tubes.

My sheets were the same fabric as the curtains at the cinema's entrance.

I remember because I liked to run and brush these curtains with my hands

while waiting for The Royal Anthem to end so I could enjoy the film right away.

They can't start pulling the curtains down because it might rip something.

-They're expensive curtains. -There's a procedure!

-They're fireproof. -No, it's…

-No, just remove the hoops! -Right.

-Ready? -Okay!

-I will do it in slow-motion, okay? -Okay!

One, two, three.

Maybe it can be recycled into a prosthetic leg.

-No, it's metal. -It can't be.

-It's metal? -Metal!

It will rust.

-I thought it was aluminum. -You sure?

Damn, it's metal.

-You want to get tetanus? -Right.

-Where's Yod? -Come here.

-Why don't you turn the light on? -Pull it.

Can we rest a bit?

Let's take a break.

Let's take a break.

How about pulling this way?

No, you have to go in an angle that way.

The rope broke.

Even the rope broke.

That's the last of it.

Just move the rest of the curtains.

Are you making a review video?

No, more like a documentary film.

It's sad, isn't it?

Some say they used to come here when they were a child.

People in their 30s saying they used to come to the Scala.

Some older folks came here, just realizing that it's being demolished,

and would say they came here since they were in their teens.

Well, times changed. Things have to change too.

What was new became something newer.

Your side down, that side lifts.

-That side first. -Lift.

Don't lift yet! Don't lift yet!

If you're not ready, just don't do it.

Wait, wait.

No one below to catch?

-No. -No.

Did you see that court order?

The opposition party won the vote but did not get a seat.

Just because he makes small merits with the monks.

Now the election committee just revoked his seat in the parliament.

How much did Yod win in the lotto?

Three hundred?

-This? -This one first.

Take it here.

Where to go?

-Where? -Right here.

It's just a frame.

So, I went to work with uncle Saiyud at the Siam theater.

Back then, all the Siam staff had quit.

I think it was Sompoj, right?

Sompoj.

I was sent to help Sompoj,

and then I came back here.

I remember seeing you walk to school back then.

THIS SITE, THEREFORE, HOLDS A HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE IN THAI FILM HISTORY.

THIS PLAQUE WAS INSTALLED HERE ON WORLD AUDIOVISUAL HERITAGE DAY.

OCTOBER 27TH, 2019

It was only after the cinema closed that I know how to change the lights.

-Let me see. -And now I'm an electrician.

You still got it.

Yes, but getting soft now.

Just learning to be an electrician now.

How disappointed my parents would be.

They said that to Gen.

That's all you get from working in Bangkok?

Hold this, then. Yes, climb up.

-Pull? -No, you hold it from the right. Yes.

Hang on, give me a second. Big hammer go up.

Hold it like this

-Hey. -Hey.

-Blackout again? -Blackout again.

-Just let it go. I can't see. -Okay.

I can't see. Can you see, Gap?

Who hit the light switch?

The cinema employees were both Bangkokians and people from other provinces.

Most of them are probably from the Northeastern region.

When I first came, I couldn't understand their dialect much.

I started to understand after a while.

Back when there were still a lot of employees,

at the end of the day, we would turn off the air conditioners, close the doors,

and spread out the sheet to sleep in front of the screen.

The air remained cool until the next morning.

We can talk about this…

I love him because he said…

it's not about gender…

Don't know who won the lottery.

PEKING DUCK

Gen and Nao.

And…

Lee and Apaiwong.

How about Arun?

Nao and Yo.

-Arun? -Arun is reporting for unemployment.

I attended primary school at Wat Pathum Wanaram.

Most of my friends are descendants of the people who work around the Siam area.

Some of them have homes in the slums next to the school.

One day, when I was in fourth grade,

a friend shouted that my house was on fire.

We saw a huge smoke rising from Siam Square.

But I think the smoke was most likely coming from the Lido.

After school, I hurried back to the Siam cinema,

and turns out it was safe.

After the fire, the Lido was renovated into a three-screen multiplex cinema.

Oh, your camera is set up already.

-Have you eaten yet? -No.

No? Not hungry?

I'll eat later.

DO NOT ENTER WITHOUT PERMISSION

I just bought bread but gave it all to the others.

You can use the toilet too.

Come, have some hot Ovaltine. It's still warm.

Oh, thank you.

Someone brought me this cookie.

It's quite good. Crispy and yummy.

It's their snack. Aunt Sarai brought it for them.

They won a lotto, so they brought some.

They actually won the lotto.

They are so cute. And clever too.

They will give whatever you ask for.

They're cute, aren't they?

Back then, the aunties in the office would bring food just like this.

Auntie Ree, the head of the ticket office, liked making stewed eggs,

while auntie Leka, the accountant, always brought steamed buns.

I spent most of the time with those office aunties while Dad was at work.

At first, it was them who brought me to the cinema.

Now that I've grown up, I prefer to go alone.

OUTSIDERS ARE PROHIBITED FROM ENTERING.

BIRDS OF PREY

BIRDS OF PREY

I'm almost 60 years old. Who would hire someone this old?

So there is a saying that over the age of 50,

one can only be a security guard.

But I can't stay awake that long.

Too exhausting.

So I have to stay as long as possible before everyone departs back home.

Your father started working here before me.

Did my father use to work at Scala first?

Your dad worked at the APEX company right over there.

He was…

a programmer. He booked films.

His duties were different.

Your dad's office was over there. APEX was there.

He took the film to the censorship department,

then to the film labs, and then to the cinemas.

But I started as an usher.

I used to wear the yellow jackets.

I'm that old.

From usher to the chief.

It took me 51 years.

Back then, we were just like any teenager.

We ate, drank, and hung out, just like any normal teenager.

And your mom worked at the snack bar in her yellow uniform.

The rope can't take the weight.

It'll cut your hand if you pull it.

-This is dangerous work, you know. -Be careful.

We all came after it opened. How could we know?

Even Gap's dad didn't know. He came after the cinema opened.

-After the cinema opened? -Yes.

Who knows who built this screen.

But the guy who brought the chandelier might know.

-Right, the owner of this thing. -Girl.

-Yes, the chandelier's owner. -I saw…

I saw him on the last day of the screening. He could barely walk.

Yes, he is that generation.

Pull it away, Nao, Yod.

Pull away. It's stuck here.

Go sideways.

Hey, do you mind if I ask you something? Have you met your mother?

-No. -No?

-Not since you were very young, right? -Have you ever met my mother?

Yes, I used to visit her at her house.

The house near the mosque.

I remember your mother had very fair skin.

-She is from Phetchaburi, right? -I don't know.

Don't you know?

I've seen her live there.

Disassemble this first.

-Come here first. -Shall I disassemble it?

Can it disassemble? Or should we move it like that?

It can't.

Move it.

Where's that cat that likes taking photos?

Probably got startled and ran away.

There were two large windows in the Siam cinema office.

From there, you can see almost everyone downstairs.

Next to the window was a table.

There were six phones on the table.

When it rang and no one was around,

I would answer and give some general information,

such as the showtimes.

One day, auntie Ree brought me to that window.

She pointed down to the popcorn cabinet and asked if I could see my mom.

"She's standing right there."

I think I was becoming short-sighted then.

All I saw was a blurry shape of a person.

Auntie Ree also told me not to tell my father about what had just happened.

I was very curious what would happen if he found out.

So I told him after he came back from work.

He just left the room immediately.

I never heard about my mother ever again.

It's burning.

I can't fix this.

You full already?

Thirty-nine years. If this was a big company…

by now, I would have been compensated enough to be rich.

Why did you choose to work here?

I didn't have an education.

I didn't pursue an education back then. I only finished the 4th grade.

At that time, 30 or 40 years ago.

Without any educational background, I have to do whatever I can.

I thought about leaving, but there weren't any other jobs.

I had no education or credentials. Nothing to build upon.

I had no choice. Nowhere to go.

So I have to stay as long as I can.

Long enough until I became the chief.

From usher to the chief.

Oh, didn't see you there.

It's so dark today.

-Isn't that a 50-Satang coin? -Wow, a coin.

Move the light, move the light.

There's my one Baht.

Got only a Baht today.

Yesterday, I found a ten Baht coin.

Like picking coins from a Krathong at the festival.

Is that a cigarette butt?

Since when?

-Around 30 years? -It was legal 30, 40 years ago.

People in the past were able to smoke cigarettes in movie theaters.

The ban on smoking in cinemas was only passed in 1979.

Before that, they hadn't banned smoking in cinemas yet.

Please tell those three-fingered protesters

to go to Ratchadamnoen Road.

No, they already changed their plans.

They are coming here.

See? They turn the police into clowns.

After 10:00 p.m., the protesters go home. What can the police do?

Spend 200 million Baht to chase protestors like this?

-They took the soldiers from everywhere. -And who knows how many soldiers came.

-What a waste of money. -Yes, a waste of money. They said…

Be careful not to talk about politics.

Cut it out of the film, okay, Gap?

I guess I've already sworn a lot anyways.

-I can't even catch my breath. -Again? Watch your head.

Watch yourselves. Watch yourselves.

Don't pass through yet.

How reckless.

Put it down, now.

Let it go.

We'll see it later.

Why don't you just let it go?

It might hit someone.

Well, that's their fault.

This person looks like uncle Vinai.

Since COVID-19, I can hardly recognize people's faces.

I often ran into him when my father took me for breakfast

at the Chula University's Dentistry faculty Canteen.

Besides the canteen,

there was an alley behind Bangkok Bank just next to Siam Cinema

and the allies by the Scala,

where people who work around here ate regularly

since the price is not so expensive.

The rest are more restaurants for tourists and shoppers.

Come on, breakfast.

Rice noodles.

Grab a plate and join me.

Not eating? Are you sure?

You'll regret it.

I had a banana.

All right.

If I remember correctly, my first time visiting the Scala

was when my aunt brought me here for the owner's birthday party.

It was a Western-Chinese-style restaurant.

The recommended menu was Peking Duck.

Sometimes, the head of the cinema would bring the Scala's Peking duck ribs

to fry with garlic and pepper and ate it along with liquor

on the Siam cinema rooftop.

Later, a Siam Skytrain station was built.

The platform is as high as the rooftop,

and the passengers who waited for the train could see us all.

Since then, I rarely went out to the roof again.

Put it up.

He worked too much.

He has pain in his legs.

Where were you yesterday?

I was sick.

Stomach ache?

At least, I have land at home upcountry. My house is there.

I'm here just for work.

I have a house here, too,

but my land is back there.

What province?

Kalasin.

It's far. Have you ever been? I guess not.

You might get lost.

In the cinema, there was a row of chairs called spare chairs.

It was a row of chairs reserved in case of any ticket problems,

such as duplicate seat numbers.

They are among the most expensive seat in the back rows.

Any employee who wanted to watch a movie could sit there.

I sat there as well.

In the past, some movies were so popular that they had to add extra chairs.

I had to wait until fewer people came before I could get back to my row.

Sometimes they forbade me to see certain films.

But I would see it anyways just by sitting quietly behind the projector.

Gap, who is the protagonist of your film?

Or is it all of us?

And that's the last person.

The last chair.

The last chair is done.

Lately, people don't come to see movies like before

Now they rent to watch at home.

Or see a movie at the mall.

Sometimes there was only one person watching.

When this started to happen more often, they would have to cancel whole showtimes.

The head of the cinema would then have to apologize and refund the audience.

There's a huge air tube above your bed in the Siam theater.

The big air conditioner engine is down there.

It's an air vent.

So cool air gets in here

and goes over there. That's what we used.

But at Siam, that room is actually a cold room.

That's why there's a big tube over your bed.

Yes, I know it's Yai's car, but he'll drop by and shop first.

OUTSIDERS ARE PROHIBITED FROM ENTERING.

No, I mean it's Yai's car, not a big car.

-He's not come yet. -No, he's coming later.

It's a homonym.

-So it's Yai's car, not a big car, huh? -Okay, I get it.

I know, I know.

But they don't.

They don't understand.

Big car and Yai's car.

It's different.

They'll get confused.

The bread is moldy. Don't eat it.

MONEY IS NOT VALUABLE.

IT'S ALL USED UP ON BILLS, ON KIDS, AND ON FOOD.

It's 9:00 a.m. already.

Take the air conditioner out now.

That's good soil.

-That plant helps with Gastritis. -Oh, right.

Would be good with curry.

Do you want some turmeric?

No, my land is all covered in concrete.

And mine has no sun. Nothing grows.

You can grow it again. I think…

That's Nodding Clerodendrum. But don't take it.

Yan must think it was Chom's plant. So he doesn't want to risk it.

-Remember how Chom gets mad? -When he curses, I can't bear to listen.

-I can't catch up with what he says. -Is that a Santol?

-No, no need to take that. -Would you like this turmeric?

No.

Why would I? It will just turn into junk.

-Take this one. -Don't have.

Why take out the clothesline? I still have to do laundry.

-Put the clothesline back now. -Calm down, I'll fix it.

Take this right away.

You can put it back. Calm down.

After the Tom Yum Kung financial crisis in 1997,

Chulalongkorn University, the landowner,

increased the rent exponentially every year.

The initial ten-year lease was changed to a one-year lease.

A movie that used to screen for over a week.

Now they have to show multiple movies in one day.

The popcorn that used to be sold in front of the cinema is no longer being sold.

They sell only snacks instead.

The younger employees would quit to find other prospects.

My dad got a new job.

Auntie Ree left to look after her grandchildren.

As for me, I moved in with auntie Leka

not long before the coup d'état in 2006.

That is such a white shirt.

He's snooping around.

Ning, see? He walked this way.

Ning, go check the other camera at the stairs for me, but at this exact time.

Here, the stairs, this camera.

Camera number 28, then.

Here. Play backward.

Let me see the time first.

He's wearing trousers. Is he a driver trying to wake someone?

-Here. Right here. -Well…

Come, come.

He looks like Mr. Apaiwong.

What?

I was on duty there.

Stop and play.

-This camera. -At 5:29 a.m., who's that?

-There's the phone. There. -Looks like Miss Wang.

-Who is that? -She went down the stairs.

Only three milk left.

I didn't drink it.

Drink it, then.

If you're afraid it'll run out, drink it.

One bag of sticky rice is not enough anymore.

How many do you need, then?

Five Baht, right?

Ten Baht per. What sticky rice costs five Baht anyway?

When was the last time you had a five Baht sticky rice?

I can buy at this price because of those government apps.

It was only ten Baht.

No way it's ten Baht without that app.

So that's five Baht. The government pays five Baht.

-What is this? -What? What's up?

It says, "You've got a pillow. Let's go to bed."

Let's shop.

-Oh, shopping, huh? -Again?

So that the officers can follow up

and arrest the criminals for further prosecution…

And that's uncle Gen's house.

Want some bananas?

Down with Feudalism, Long live the People!

Down with Feudalism, Long live the People!

Down with Feudalism, Long live the People!

Take this first.

And then see what all we can load on the truck.

Yod. The coil, take it.

Okay, just put it down.

Has the truck come yet?

Not yet.

Can't wait for the rope.

-Be careful, don't rush. Take it easy. -The middle.

Okay, right?

That piece is for you anyway.

Put it down.

-Go, go. -Take the papers.

Wrap them with the papers.

Wrap them with two sheets of paper.

Got to sleep today.

-Drive to… -Wait, wait.

Shit.

The whole fucking thing came down.

One evening in May 2010,

I heard the news on television that the Siam cinema was on fire.

There were red-shirt protests rallying at Ratchaprasong Intersection

demanding Prime Minister Abhisit's resignation since March.

It was the last day of the military crackdown.

Live ammunition was used to disperse the assembly,

which resulted in at least 99 deaths.

To this day, no one knows who burned down Siam Cinema.

Later on, the Siam cinema became a new department store.

Auntie Leka didn't go back to work ever again.

When the Lido's lease expired in 2018,

the remaining staff from both cinemas went to work at the Scala,

the last standalone cinema.

I beg them not to remove the handrail yet.

How am I getting up there, then?

We said to do it later.

Miss Peak, hello.

Hello.

They're here. Don't step on the wire.

Careful not to trip.

Here they come. Good.

Have you seen your father lately?

I just realized you are his daughter.

So, have you seen him recently?

So you lived with miss Leka after that, right?

Please tell your father that Peak misses him.

I used to be close to him.

Tell him I am the Lido's accountant.

We used to be close.

What do you do for a living?

I make documentaries.

Documentaries?

Sometimes, I take photos at weddings.

Is it okay?

Is it hard to make a living?

With everything going on now, it's hard.

I ask because I see people selling things on live streaming.

Is it hard?

Well, not really. Any camera will do.

Phone cameras?

Yes, Front camera phones and internet.

It's all about the product, right?

I'm tired.

What are you going to sell?

That's just it. I don't have any products.

Prayut, get out! Prayut, get out!

Prayut, get out! Prayut, get out!

Prawit, get out! Prawit, get out!

Brothers and sisters.

Free our friends.

Draft a new constitution.

Abolish 112.

Prayut, get out! Prayut, get out! Prayut must get out!

THE SIAM CINEMA'S FIRST FILM SCREENING WAS ON DECEMBER 15TH, 1966

IT BURNED DOWN ON MAY 19TH, 2010.

DURING THE MILITARY CRACKDOWN ON RED-SHIRT PROTESTERS.

THE LIDO CINEMA'S FIRST FILM SCREENING WAS ON JUNE 27TH, 1968.

IT CAUGHT FIRE ON MARCH 16TH, 1993

AND WAS LATER RENOVATED INTO THREE-SCREEN MULTIPLEXES.

SCALA THEATER'S FIRST FILM SCREENING WAS ON JANUARY 31ST, 1969.

ITS FINAL FILM SCREENING WAS ON JULY 5TH, 2020.

AFTER DISMANTLING THE CINEMA'S KEY COMPONENTS

AND CLOSING DOWN THE BUSINESS,

THE PROPERTY RETURNED TO CHULALONGKORN UNIVERSITY.

THE REST OF THE BUILDING WAS DEMOLISHED ON OCTOBER 31ST, 2021.