Catch silent-era classics scored live at this two-weekend Bangkok festival

The Silent Film Festival in Thailand hits its 10th edition across two weekends, with celebrated accompanist Stephen Horne at the keys.

The Silent Film Festival in Thailand is back for a landmark 10th edition, and it puts classic silent-era pictures back on the big screen where they belong. Every screening comes with live music, exactly how films of this vintage are meant to be seen, and the whole run spans two weekends. Catch it at the Sala Cinema Theatre on August 29 and 30, then Nang Loeng Cinema (Sala Chalerm Thani) on September 5 and 6.

If a dialogue-free night at the cinema sounds like hard work, think again. With a pianist reacting to every gag and gasp in real time, this is about as lively as the flicks get, and no two screenings sound quite the same. Leading the charge is Stephen Horne, a British musician widely regarded as one of the world's finest silent-film accompanists. He has played for Thai crowds once before, at the festival's 2nd edition in 2015, and this time he scores four programmes, each pitched in a completely different mood.

First up is the comedy, Keaton's Our Hospitality (1923), an early showcase for the king of the straight face at his stunt-loving best. Next comes a trio of shorts starring the era's biggest child star, Baby Peggy, in A Muddy Bride (1921), The Kid Reporter (1923) and Peg O' the Mounted (1924). For drama, Song (1928) stars Anna May Wong, the first Chinese-American star Hollywood ever produced. And for real heft, the documentary Grass: A Nation's Battle for Life (1925) follows the Bakhtiari people on their gruelling migration across Persia, captured by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack.

The Thai Film Archive weekend also serves up two extra titles, Stella Dallas and The Manxman, paired with a recorded score Horne composed himself. Over at Nang Loeng, local talent takes the keys, with sets from Lad Lad and the Fong Nam Orchestra carrying the closing films. The historic picture house teams up with the Cinematic Nang Loeng series for both dates, making a fittingly old-school setting for the finale.

Admission is free, and every film will be presented with both English and Thai subtitles.

Schedule

Sala Sinima Theatre (Sala Cinema Theatre, 6th floor, Sapphasat Suphakit Building). Book through the linked titles.

Saturday, August 29

• 1pm Our Hospitality (1923, 74 min), live music by Stephen Horne
• 3pm Stella Dallas (1925, 110 min)
• 5pm Grass: A Nation's Battle for Life (1925, 71 min), live music by Stephen Horne

Sunday, August 30

• 1pm Baby Peggy Short Film Collection (64 min), live music by Stephen Horne, then a chat with Horne himself
• A Muddy Bride (1921, 23 min)
• The Kid Reporter (1923, 21 min)
• Peg O' the Mounted (1924, 20 min)
• 3pm The Manxman (1929, 109 min)
• 5pm Song (Germany, 1928, 102 min), live music by Stephen Horne

Nang Loeng Cinema, with the Cinematic Nang Loeng series (tickets on sale 30 minutes before each screening, no online booking)

Saturday, September 5

• 1pm Our Hospitality (1923, 74 min)
• 4pm Baby Peggy Short Film Collection (64 min), live music by Lad Lad
• A Muddy Bride (1921, 23 min)
• The Kid Reporter (1923, 21 min)
• Peg O' the Mounted (1924, 20 min)

Sunday, September 6

• 4pm Chang: A Drama of the Wilderness (1927, 69 min), live music by the Fong Nam Orchestra

The Silent Film Festival in Thailand runs at Sala Cinema Theatre on August 29 and 30, then moves to Nang Loeng Cinema on September 5 and 6.