TH 1: LIFE AND LANGUAGE: THAI LANGUAGE VIDEOS. Color. 1 hr. 35 min. Thai. VHS.

TH 2: JAN DARA. The title character, played by Suwinit Panjamawat, is established early on as a pariah in his home, when his mother dies while giving birth to him. His father, Khun Luang (Santisuk Promsiri), ostracizes him, labeling him a bastard and delivering brutal beatings to the boy. Khun Luang (which means "master") has an insatiable sexual appetite, and the child's earliest memories are of witnessing his father's conquests. The boy's own sexuality is initiated at an early age, and continues to blossom despite the violence of his father. Eventually thrown out of the house, the grown Jan (Eakarat Sarsukh) is years later asked back into the fold to save the family name. He sets about wreaking his revenge, inadvertently continuing the cycle of cruelty established by his father. Color. 1 hr. 54 min. Thai/Thai with English subtitles. DVD.

TH 3: MYSTERIOUS OBJECT AT NOON. Thai independent filmmaker, Aphichatpong Weerasethakul, used a surrealist storytelling technique to interview people throughout Thailand, asking them to contribute to the film's evolving oral story. What emerges is a portrait of Thailand's disenfranchised lower classes — farmers, fruit vendors, village performers — and their resulting collective story about a handicapped boy and his tutor, a mysterious woman named Dogfahr. 2002. Color. 1 hr. 25 min. Thai/Thai with English subtitles. DVD.

TH 4: LIFE AND WORK OF BUDDHADASA BHIKKHU. Documentary of the life and teachings of Buddhadasa Bikkhu, the revered Thai Buddhist monk. Received the highest honor at Thammasat University's film competition in 1987, given the award of best documentary videotape. Features narration in English by ordained monk Phra Santikaro Bikkhu, an American monk who studied under Buddhadasa Bikkhu, which aims to give those unfamiliar with both Thai culture and Buddhism an insight into the profound thoughts of this monk. 25 min. English. Color. VHS.