Regionalcross-Over

It helps that the part doesn't require him to speak much. Playing a soldier stationed in the Spratlys, a group of disputed islands in the South China Sea several nations lay claim to with some even flexing their military might, Ananda Everingham, in the new Filipino film Kalayaan, only has to speak three sentences in Tagalog.

For the Australian-Lao actor and one of the best-known faces on his Thai turf, it's an opportunity he welcomed with laughter and relish.

"The Tagalog dialect has a singsong quality, beautiful but strange," says Ananda, who speaks English and Thai. "But the three sentences in the film were the most difficult in my life."

Kalayaan, or Wildlife, is a new film by prolific Filipino director Adolfo Alix Jr.

An independent production made with a modest budget, the film tells the story of Julian (Ananda), a military officer who's forced to remain on one of the Spratly islands after a coup d'etat in Manila. The sun is fierce, but solitude is worse. The island is barely inhabited, thus the paltry three sentences for Julian in the script. And as the soldier spends his days haunted by his painful past, the claw of madness slowly gnaws him.

"It's not hard to visualise the character as a castaway," says Ananda. "And because on that island, what Julian experiences is alienation and loneliness, it's appropriate to have a foreigner play the role."

In the regional traffic of pop-culture, Ananda is one of those actors who're expanding the possibility of Southeast Asian co-operation (he's not biologically Thai, though to Thais, the bloke is as good as one). As the buzz has become louder with the upcoming Asean Economic Community, cultural exchange hasn't received that many policy bullet-points despite recent incidents of showbiz cross-over. Thailand in particular has the advantage of having a strong film and television industry.

For years Thai movies _ horror and romantic comedy mostly _ have been released in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines, while Thai TV series, despite the region-wide tremor of the Korean Wave, have enjoyed steady viewership in Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia and, now, even China.

Ethnic ambiguity has its advantage, and in that department, Ananda is not alone. In the past year, German-Thai star Mario Maurer has cultivated a huge following in the Philippines after the Thai films he starred in _ Rak Haeng Siam (The Love Of Siam), and Sing Leklek Tee Riak Wa Rak (Crazy Little Thing Called Love) _ became hits in Manila.

On his first trip there last year, the 24-year-old actor enjoyed a frantic welcome from Filipino fans with "the same intensity as when Korean boy bands come to Bangkok", said his manager.

Mario is now a presenter of a Filipino clothing brand Pennshoppe (go to its official website, and Mario's picture greets you). He's already shot a Filipino movie, a romantic comedy called Suddenly It's Magic, which is slated for a release in a few months. Like Ananda, Mario also plays a foreigner in that film.

"The Filipinos seem to like men whose looks aren't nationality specific," says Supachai Srivijit, Mario's manager. "You can say that Mario has an international appearance, which is a big plus.

"And people everywhere seem to like Thais in general because we're humble and respectful, even big stars behave themselves properly."

In China, the market that Asean and the world drools over, Thai stars have made considerable headway. With the combination of official releases, pirated DVDs and YouTube, Thai movies and soap operas have carved out a portion of that populous country.

Television actors like Jessadapon ''Tik'' Pholdee, Sukit ''Bee'' Wisetkaew, Nawat ''Pong'' Kulratanarak and Teeradej ''Ken'' Wongpuapan have fan clubs in that country, and their latest series are awaited with great anticipation. Mario, too, saw a few of his Thai soap series winning high ratings in China.

Last year at the World Expo in Shanghai, Chinese fans gathered in front of the Thai Pavilion, holding signs to express their admiration of our stars, Teeradej and Ann Thongprasom chiefly (who weren't even at the Pavilion). And recently, a Thai lesbian film Yes Or No became a hit through unofficial channels; over 800 fans waited at the airport to greet the stars when they arrived in Shanghai in June.

''The internet plays a big part in spreading the popularity of Thai actors,'' adds Supachai, who's known to have groomed a number of young stars.

''There are other Thai actors and actresses who've been approached to join film projects by producers in the Philippines, China and even Indonesia. They may choose to pass that chance, but clearly there's an interest.''

Back in Asean, Ananda, with his hybrid looks of Western robustness and Asian classicism, has long realised his cross-over potential. In 2008, he starred in a Singaporean romance, The Leap Years. Half-Lao, Ananda has for years tried to use his clout and influence to revive the filmmaking activity in Laos. He starred in Thai-Lao films, a franchise that began with Sabaidee Luang Prabang in 2008.

He's now part of the Lao New Wave movement, a group of young Lao directors who have a couple of film projects lined up.

Alix Jr, the Filipino director of Kalayaan, seemed to realise that too. ''After I met Ananda at the Bangkok International Film Festival in 2006, we discussed how we could work together,'' he says. ''I remembered that back then I already had the concept of Kalayaan. For most of the film, the soldier is alone and just exorcising his demons on an island that feels like purgatory.

''The film explores isolation, loneliness and madness, so I thought it would be great if I could get a foreign actor who may feel isolated during the shoot because of the language barrier and other factors, and it may add up to how he interprets the role.'' (See a full interview with Alix Jr in the sidebar).

What Ananda pursues, however, may be different from other mainstream Thai actors who enjoy regional magnetism, including Mario. Known for switching back and forth between commercial and independent projects, Ananda sees his Southeast Asian films as aesthetic and professional adventures. Kalayaan is a good example, for it's a movie that will appeal more to arthouse crowds than to Manila multiplex-goers _ a stark difference from Mario's upcoming Filipino movie.

But the bottom line is clear: there's obviously an opportunity for Thai stars to chart an extended showbiz map.

''Language is still a barrier _ it'd help if I could speak Chinese, for instance,'' says Ananda. ''So we need to look for productions that are developed with the aim to accommodate foreign actors, with roles that can fit international performers.

''Among the independent film circuit, it's easier in a sense that we seem to have an understanding, and in Southeast Asia, we seem to know one another,'' the actor adds. ''I want to work with someone with whom I can feel the chemistry, and I'm sure there'll be more regional opportunities in the future.''

Into the wild

An interview with one of the Philippines' most prolific directors

It's almost impossible to catch Adolfo Alix Jr when he's not busy. In the past six years the Filipino director has made 20 feature films, all of them independent productions, and quite a few have travelled extensively to international film festivals.

One of the most distinctive voices of Southeast Asian cinema, Alix Jr's latest film, Kalayaan (Wildlife), is about a Filipino soldier stranded in the Spratlys, a group of islands in the Pacific claimed by several nations.

It stars Australia-Lao Ananda Everingham in the lead (see main story).

Kalayaan premiered in mid-July at Cinemalaya film festival in Manila. Alix Jr's films have never been released in Bangkok, though some of them were shown at film festivals here. He talked to Life recently about his new film.

The Spratly Islands are in the news mainly because of their geo-political importance. How did you approach a story set on one the islands?

I read an article about how different countries are laying claims to the Spratlys and the military installations put up by the Philippines on some of the islands.

I chose to tackle the microcosm to explain the macrocosm. This may mean a less controversial take on a very heated subject matter but what I wanted to explore more than the obvious was the real victims of this situation _ the Filipino soldier who doesn't even know what is the real purpose of guarding those islands.

Was it possible to shoot on the Spratlys?

Since late last year, we've been exploring with the AFP, the local military agency, the possibility of shooting the film in the Spratly. As we are pressed for time and mainly because of security reasons, I opted to shoot the film in Palawan. We had to re-create the installation based in the photographs we were able to obtain. We found a similar landscape on Cowrie and Luli island so we built our sets there.

Julian, the soldier, is a character that spends most of the screen time by himself. He's a castaway, a Robinson Crusoe. Can you say something about the concept of the character?

Julian reflects the typical Filipino soldier who only accepts orders. He doesn't fight back. He just continues his duties despite the accumulating sense of disorder in his personal life. The real meaning of freedom is not in the open spaces we walk in but it is the liberation of the mind against all sorts of oppression that only can make us truly free.

You've made some films that have political undercurrents, such as Aurora, which is about the kidnapping of a social worker in Mindanao. How do you usually approach politics in your movies?

I always agree in that what is personal is political. So in most of the films that I did, a character will always reflect the current situation no matter what. So as a film-maker, I focus on building the character in a milieu that will best bring out his potential.

Lastly, why did you cast Ananda in the film?

A lot of people in Manila recognise him mainly because of his work in Shutter [a Thai horror film that was a huge hit across Asia]. After we met at the Bangkok Film Festival, we discussed working together.