The camera zooms in, revealing a bald Chinese man in a suit lying unconscious by a stream. Eventually he opens his eyes and asks: "Where are we?" Another man walking towards him replies: "Thailand." That is the moment their journey in the Land of Smiles begins.
The Railway Man starring Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman was filmed at a locomotive storage centre in Bangkok.
On the way, they experience culture shock related to ladyboys, illegal dealing of Buddha statues, Thai spas and more. In the end, one of them fulfils every one of his dreams, including enjoying a Thai spa and fighting a muay Thai master.
Lost In Thailand, a 2012 Chinese comedy , was made with a budget of around US$2.2 million (72 million baht), but grossed more than $203 million at the Chinese box office. Interestingly, it inspired about 2.5 million Chinese people to visit Thailand just over the first five months after its opening in December last year. So many tourists have followed the characters' journey to many places in Bangkok and Chiang Mai where the film was shot.
Locations on the list include Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports and Hua Lamphong railway station, a homestay village, a hotel, a school, Wat Buppharam, Wat Sanphang, Wat Phra Phutthabat Si Roi, Tha Phae Road, Warorot and Mae Malai markets, a fish spa, two elephant centres and a Thai boxing camp in Chiang Mai.
"Lost In Thailand was filmed in our country and the production team spent about 50 million baht here, but the movie was very successful and helped attract tourists to Thailand, bringing more than 1 billion baht in revenue," said Ubolwan Sucharitakul, director of the Thailand Film Office under the the Department of Tourism.
According to the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, about 2.8 million Chinese tourists visited Thailand last year, up 60% from the previous year. By the end of this year, the number is expected to reach 3.3 million.
A pantip.com user who is a tour guide recalled that in July he saw three Chinese tourists riding motorcycles in downtown Chiang Mai and chatting about Lost In Thailand. Many Chinese people flocked to the northern province, especially in February amd March. All Chinese-speaking guides were booked and all elephant centres and Doi Suthep mountain were crowded with Chinese.
From Nov 1 to Dec 20 this year, Hollywood movie The Coup starring Pierce Brosnan and Owen Wilson was filmed in Chiang Mai and Lampang, where a lot of action and warfare scenes were created. It is expected to attract more tourists and foreign filmmakers to the north of Thailand in the future like Lost In Thailand did.
The director of the Thailand Film Office said: "Foreign film productions in Thailand have continued for 40-50 years. In the early years, a very famous one was James Bond _ The Man With The Golden Gun. In recent years, foreign moviemakers have come to Thailand regularly." According to Ubolwan, the number of foreign film shoots, including things like adverts and music videos, has increased every year since 2005, from more than 400 to over 600, except in 2009, a year which saw political turmoil in the country. Each year, Thailand earns over 1 billion baht in revenue from foreign productions.
Japan is the country with the most productions shot in Thailand during 2005-2013, followed by Europe, India, Korea, Hong Kong, the US, China, Australia, Taiwan and other countries combined.
Apart from the beauty of this country, the other major factors behind increasing foreign film shoots here are the highly skilled and experienced Thai production teams, convenient transport, many equipment rental companies, and a good climate which allows for shooting all year round.
Ubolwan said movie locations vary. About 80% consists of natural attractions overseen by the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation. Some other locations include temples and historical sites overseen by the Fine Arts Department.
Bangkok is the most popular location for the shooting of foreign documentary films and TV shows with no outdoor scenes and movies with created settings, followed by Phuket, Krabi and Pattaya. Pattaya is very popular among production teams from India, especially for the shooting of music videos.
''Sometimes, foreign films are shot in Thailand with sets created to resemble other cities. It is not necessary for them to present Thainess in their movies, but they choose Thailand probably because of the lower cost of living and good production teams,'' Ubolwan said.
For example, Shanghai, starring John Cusack, was filmed here, and recreated scenes in Shanghai. The Lady was filmed in Pathum Thani for the scenes of Aung San Suu Kyi's house.
''Thais are good at making sets. Good examples are the sets for Shanghai, which really looks like the Chinese city, and those of the award-winning The Rocket, which are very similar to Laos,'' she added.
Acting Second Lieutenant Arnupap Gaesornsuwan, director-general of the Department of Tourism, said overseeing, monitoring and facilitating the production of foreign movies in Thailand is one of the department's four major duties.
To attract more foreign filmmakers to Thailand, the department's Thailand Film Office operates a one-stop-service centre for considering film-shoot requests. Synopses, scripts or storyboards and the lists of locations must be shown to the office depending on the types of movies. Usually, it takes approximately three days for its committee of authorities and experts to grant permission. Extra requests must be submitted to the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation or the Fine Arts Department if some of the locations involve forests, national parks or historical sites.
According to him, the department plans to use movies as PR for the country by publishing beautiful shots on websites and providing routes for tourists to visit film locations in Thailand.
''We will create scenes from these movies, such as the landing of aircraft in The Man With The Golden Gun, and build a storytelling centre near a model of the James Bond Island by the sea in Phangnga. We will do the same in Ubon Ratchathani where Alexander was filmed in order to promote local tourism,'' he said. The department is also planning activities at locations tied in to famous movies, including Lost In Thailand.
Visit www.thailandfilmoffice.org.
