Apichatpong Weerasethakul, who will be honored at RIFF this year for his singular artistic vision, is among the most original and radical filmmakers of our time.
Born in Bangkok in 1970 and raised in northeastern Thailand, he first studied architecture before pursuing film in Chicago, where he developed a distinctive style centered on memory, emotion, and spiritual exploration rather than conventional, linear storytelling. A dreamlike magical realism pervades his work. His films are known for their meditative pacing and their seamless, dreamlike shifts between reality and inner worlds. Blissfully Yours (2002) and Tropical Malady (2004) quickly drew international attention, but it was Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010) that won the Palme d’Or in Cannes and brought him worldwide recognition.
Though Apichatpong—affectionately called Joe by admirers—may appear apolitical at first glance, his films often reflect underlying tensions: censorship, social constraints, and Thailand’s repressed histories. Rather than making overt statements, he conveys through mood and atmosphere—his cinema often resembling elusive, half-remembered dreams.
In Memoria (2021) Tilda Swinton wanders Bogotá haunted by a sound only she can hear. What follows is a strange, exquisite dream of memory and time, half-remembered, half-imagined. A shimmering, slow-burn mystery from a true master of the in-between.
The film will start at 17:00 with a 20 minute break before the Masterclass at 19:40.