Three centuries before the birth of Christ, Alexander the Great of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia launched a successful military campaign to expand his power eastward, conquering Egypt, Babylonia, Persia and many more along the way as well as beyond. In Thailand's northeastern province of Ubon Ratchathani, at a site next to the Moon River, his name still prevails. There, you can also find Macedonian-style armour and weapons, actually an entire military camp, on display.
A mural at the park of Alexander's final battle against King Porus of Paurava.
Nope, the Greek warrior and his army never ever came to this part of the world; as a matter of fact, after years of relentless battles, they decided not to cross the Beas River in what is now the northern Indian state of Punjab and started to head home. But two millennia later, the production crew of Oliver Stone's 2004 epic film Alexander did come to Ubon Ratchathani.
Thailand has been a popular destination for film production teams from around the world. In 2014 alone, there were 631 visiting crews. The Alexander Park in Ubon Ratchathani is part of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports' project to create new tourist attractions. It features not only movie props and sets similar to those in its namesake film — shot at several locations in Thailand including the province's Pha Taem National Park about 90km further east — but also two cinemas. One of the facilities is reserved for screening old movies and short films produced by amateur filmmakers as well as for lectures, while the other, thanks to some awesome special effects, gives viewers an enhanced experience of a battle scene from Alexander.
Visitors can enjoy pretending to be actors in the epic film.
Apart from various informative and entertaining exhibitions on the movie and the ancient king who inspired it, the park also tells visitors about the history of foreign films shot in Thailand, which dates back to 1924 when a team from Hollywood, led by film director and producer Henry MacRae, came to film Miss Suwanna Of Siam. The silent romance film, starring a Thai cast, was the country's first Hollywood co-production. In 1957, Santa Pestonji, a son of Rattana Pestonji who was a pioneer in contemporary Thai cinema, set up a company to facilitate foreign film production crews that came to use locations in Thailand.
In the past, the Thailand Film Office, which granted permission and oversaw foreign film projects, was organised by the Public Relations Department. But since 2003, the office has been transferred to the Tourism Department of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, which late last year launched the Alexander Park and a similar project in Phangnga province, based on the 1974 James Bond movie, The Man With The Golden Gun. Both sites were created by the department and handed over to the local communities to manage.
"Apart from sustainable tourism and education, another aim of this project is to spark inspiration in the visitors," revealed Sasisupa Sungvaribud, film business promotion adviser to the Tourism Department, adding that many of those who visit the Alexander Park are student groups from Ubon Ratchathani and nearby provinces.
According to Sasisupa, here the young visitors not only get to learn about one of the greatest men in world history and understand many aspects of filmmaking, but also feel proud to know that Thailand appears in such a world-class production and that Thai people played various roles in its creation. In the scene of Alexander's last battle, for example, the man who played King Porus who fought against the Greek commander was famous Thai actor Bin Bunluerit.
"Who knows, one day a foreign film crew might show up in their hometown or village and they themselves might get the chance to work with them, too," she said. "Such a feeling will eventually result in Thailand becoming even friendlier to foreign film production teams."
The 4D mini-theatre.
