When Cinema Oasis announced plans to host Bangkok's Amazing Stoner Movie Fest, I wondered how this was going to play out, especially given Thailand's rather murky legal situation around the stuff.
The four-day event on November 20-23 brings together cannabis enthusiasts and the curious-but-never-tried crowd for a celebration of stoner cinema. No smoking required, naturally – though the festival's existence does make you wonder: wait, there are film festivals like this?
The line-up features 10 feature films competing for the Golden Ganja trophy (which comes with B30,000 prize money), and eight short film programmes containing 49 films vying for the Baby Golden Ganja trophy and B5,000. Some screening slots remain mysteriously TBA, which only adds to the intrigue.
It's not just the films themselves either, there's a talk titled 'Thai Ganja: Boom or Bust?' featuring Thai cannabis legalisation activists. Timely stuff given nobody seems entirely sure what's legal anymore.
The festival runs across two zones: inside Cinema Oasis you'll pay B160 per screening or grab an all-day pass for B420 (very on-brand pricing there). Outside screenings kick off in the evening and won't cost you anything.
Though cannabis oil remains dubious in medical circles and Thai laws continue to shift like smoke in the wind, this festival feels like a cultural moment for Bangkok, and it's worth checking out what stoner cinema actually looks like when it's given the festival treatment.
Amazing Stoner Movie Fest runs from November 20-23 at Cinema Oasis, Sukhumvit 43, BTS Phrom Phong.