Songs for Living (LUXFILMFEST)

..Korakrit ARUNANONDCHAI, 73 min, 2024 - Thailand, United States
In Songs for Living, spirits literally take shape and merge with the world of the living in Thailand and beyond, guided by the narration of musician Zsela in a unique symphony. The celebration of the collective—bodies gathered in communion—also pervades Songs for Dying, a second short film featuring the artist's personal archives. It unfolds a narrative exploring death and Thailand’s history, through its religious, technological and political dimensions.

Songs for Living

Spirits finding bodies and re-entering the world. Thunderous drumming, screeching feedback, and a mystical narration by musician Zsela bring warmth to distant human bodies from Thailand to New York, in rituals that rejoice in collective existence.

Songs for Dying

Korakrit Arunanondchai’s Songs for Dying, composed of tropes and ideas from his “living archive,” combines the personal experience of accepting death and the perception of history with religious, technological, and political narratives.
Presented as part of artist Ho Tzu Nyen’s carte blanche at MUDAM, these two short films by Korakrit Arunanondchai explore different visual registers, where Thai societal movements and mythologies engage in a dynamic dialogue, guided by a captivating sense of rhythm.
As part of the special exhibition about Ho Tzy Nven at MUDAM