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“9 Temples to Heaven,” directed by Sompot Chidgasornpongse, has been chosen as Thailand’s submission for the international feature film category at the 99th Academy Awards.
The selection was revealed by the National
Federation of Motion Pictures and Contents Associations (MPC).
A specialist committee assembled by MPC and drawn from across the Thai film industry – directors, producers, distributors, and theater operators – worked through 51 eligible titles before settling on a shortlist of eight.
“9 Temples to Heaven” debuted at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year. The film is an ensemble drama about a Thai family’s one-day pilgrimage to nine temples. It follows Sakol, who – after a fortune teller warns him his elderly mother may die soon – gathers the family for a ritual journey across Thailand’s temple landscape. Produced by Kick The Machine Films and At A Time in Thailand, with international co-production from E&W Films (Singapore), petit chaos (France), Needle in the Haystack (Norway), La Fonte (China), Square One Film (Hong Kong) and Qun Films (Indonesia), the film has international sales handled by Playtime.
Chidgasornpongse spent more than two decades as assistant director to Apichatpong Weerasethakul, working on films including “Tropical Malady,” “Syndromes and a Century,” “Cemetery of Splendour” and “Memoria.”
MPC’s choice now advances to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which will reduce the full slate of national submissions to a shortlist of 15 films before announcing five nominees. The 99th Academy Awards ceremony is scheduled for March 14, 2027.
Thailand has submitted films for the category since 1984 and has sent 33 entries in total without once reaching the nominations stage. The closest the country has come was at the 97th ceremony, when “How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies” became the first Thai film to crack the Academy’s 15-film shortlist.
