9 Temples to Heaven
After learning that his elderly mother may not have long to live, Sakol sets out on a pilgrimage to nine temples in the hopes of reversing her fate. He gathers his ailing mother, wife, siblings and children for the journey, traveling from temple to temple amid the splendid glory of Thai architecture. Over the course of the day, rituals are performed, prayers are offered and the family bridge their divides, while their matriarch grows increasingly frail. The meditative, beautifully composed fiction debut of Sompot Chidgasornpongse, assistant director to Weerasethakul on Memoria (SFF 2021), Cemetery of Splendour (SFF 2015) and more, 9 Temples to Heaven is a warm, resonant reflection on faith and family.
Special Guests
Sompot Chidgasornpongse holds a bachelor’s degree in architecture from Chulalongkorn University in Thailand and an MFA in Film/Video from the California Institute of the Arts. His short films have screened at numerous international film festivals, including Rotterdam, Oberhausen, Visions du Réel, Viennale, IndieLisboa, Film Fest Gent, and SGIFF. His debut documentary, RAILWAY SLEEPERS (2016), premiered in competition at the Busan International Film Festival and had its European premiere at the Berlinale. He has also worked closely with Apichatpong Weerasethakul as an assistant director on several films, including TROPICAL MALADY, SYNDROMES AND A CENTURY, CEMETRY OF SPLENDOUR, and MEMORIA. He is currently based in Bangkok.
Tickets
Sydney Film Festival acknowledges Australia’s First Nations People as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the land, and pay respect to the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, upon whose Country SFF is based.
We honour the storytelling and culture of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities across Australia.
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