Uploaded September 2026 | Updated September 2026, 5 hours ago
At the 83. Venice Film Festival, the director Phuttiphong Aroonpheng presents the film YAK MAI (THE BURNING GIANTS)
Interview by Gianluca De Angelis
Editing by Paolo Valenti
YAK MAI (THE BURNING GIANTS)
A mysterious smoke covers western Thailand, triggering a strange infectious disease whose symptoms resemble burns inflicted by an invisible fire. A villager from the Karen ethnic group is arrested deep in the jungle and taken to a quarantine centre. There, he dreams of returning to his mountain homeland. His wife, who has sought refuge in Bangkok, shares the same longing. But their hope is threatened by forest rangers determined to burn down their village to make way for a national park. Beyond the veil of smoke, an abandoned theatre stands hidden in the jungle, haunted by ogre soldiers fleeing the King’s army in an ancient war reflecting the struggle of the villagers.
At the 83. Venice Film Festival, the director Phuttiphong Aroonpheng presents the film YAK MAI (THE BURNING GIANTS)
Interview by Gianluca De Angelis
Editing by Paolo Valenti
YAK MAI (THE BURNING GIANTS)
A mysterious smoke covers western Thailand, triggering a strange infectious disease whose symptoms resemble burns inflicted by an invisible fire. A villager from the Karen ethnic group is arrested deep in the jungle and taken to a quarantine centre. There, he dreams of returning to his mountain homeland. His wife, who has sought refuge in Bangkok, shares the same longing. But their hope is threatened by forest rangers determined to burn down their village to make way for a national park. Beyond the veil of smoke, an abandoned theatre stands hidden in the jungle, haunted by ogre soldiers fleeing the King’s army in an ancient war reflecting the struggle of the villagers.
