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ADOBO EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Thanonchai “Tor” Sornsrivichai, The Most Awarded Director in the World 1999-2009 Gunn Report

Interview by Angel Guerrero

Photo by Pran Indhapan

 

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Thanonchai “Tor” Sornsrivichai, 42, named the “Most Awarded Director in the World” (1999-2009) [2010 as well – Ed.] by the Gunn Report, is one of Thailand’s commercial geniuses. His name is associated with Phenomena, one of the world’s most awarded production houses, and Thailand’s pride. While there is no contesting Tor’s output and his thousands of awards, the man has made himself scarce to media, shunning the limelight at every opportunity.
 

But those who know him well have nothing but good words for him. "He’s not only a film director but also one of my best friends," says Creative Juice Thailand ECD Thirasak Tanapatanakul, who describes Tor as an "all-in-one man" with "truly great talent": well-rounded but sharp, inspiring  and developing young blood in directing. 

In this rare interview with adobo, Tor shares his deference to his audience as a student of the video rental school of filmmaking, proving that the path to thousands of awards is forgetting yourself, and that the best education is not always found inside the classroom.

adobo: Does your nickname "Tor" have a significant meaning?

Tor: It’s not a short form of Thanonchai. My parents named me “Tor,” which means “Next”, because my older brother’s name is “Ton,” which means “beginning.” I have been using the name since I was born.  

adobo: Would you describe yourself as a funny person? You seem to have the knack in capturing humor in your TV commercials. 

Tor: I am the kind of person who loves to read and to study. By doing all that, I found out that there are many funny things in this world. I think the world is full of funny people 

adobo: You took up architecture in King Mongkut’s University of Technology in Bangkok. Why did you choose architecture? 

Tor: Actually, I graduated from industrial design. I love to draw and industrial design is one of the fields where I get to draw. I love the arts and I also studied in the science curriculum. Architecture is where art and logic comes together.

adobo: You started as a graphic designer in 1991 in the Samnoh Company in Bangkok. How would you describe your stint as a graphic designer? 

Tor: I worked very hard but I got paid very little. My life at that time was very exciting – I worked 15 hours a day, seven days a week. I was very eager to work and I liked it. I won awards on my second year there. Luckily, I had Khun Satit Kalawantawanich as my boss. He works very hard like me. We have a good policy, which is to work at our best. 

adobo: When did you get your break into directing TV commercials?

Tor: I started doing TV commercials because after two years in graphic design, I came across the book The Third Wave by Alvin Toffler. The book said that there would no longer be paper in this world. And the first thought that came to my head was “F**k! What should I do?” And graphic design has its limitations. It can make people smile but it cannot make people cry. I was too young then to know what I liked and I wanted to try new things, so I started to direct TV. My boss Khun Satit asked me to join the new company [Phenomena] as a director for a low-budget TVC production called “Promo Phobia.” I read a lot of books on business, marketing, economics, strategy, and advertising – because I have never studied them before – in order to direct the TVC and to convince my clients. 

adobo: Who was your mentor in directing? What was the most important thing you learnt from him?

Tor: Aside from Khun Satit, another teacher is Blockbuster, where I rented lots of movies full of good directors. I watched a lot of movies, three or four a day, when I had free time. And then people around me who gave me advice on what I should do. Lastly, books and bookstores are also my good teachers.

adobo: Is there a director that you respect and admire? 

Tor: There are a lot of directors that I admire! Stanley Kubrick, Steven Spielberg, Akira Kurosawa, Takeshi Kitano and many more.

adobo: Are you familiar with names like Frank Budgen, Daniel Klienman, Traktor, Chris Palmer, Jonathan Glazer, Joe Pytka?  You have bested them in the Gunn Report over the past ten years.

Tor: Hmmmmm… yes! They are my teachers too.

adobo: Do you have a TV commercial that is your favorite?

Tor: There is none for me. When I have my best TV commercial I will stop directing. I think there is no best TV commercial for me because I can still see flaws and mistake in my commercials. 

adobo: How would you describe your work style as a director during a shoot, with your crew and with your agency creative? 

Tor: My style is very easy going, no serious talk, and I try to make us and the agency to feel like we are partners helping each other in our jobs. Everyone is most welcome to give an input, even the maid who serves the water or whoever is in the room. My biggest concern is what the best idea is, not whose idea it is.

adobo: What do you look out for when you get a storyboard?

Tor: I try to look for what the audience wants from the TV commercial and I try to think and do what is best for them. If the commercial has a new idea, it is because the audience wants the new idea, not you, not the creative, not the director.

adobo: What type of TV commercials do you like to direct? And what type of commercials do you prefer not to shoot? 

Tor: I want to do all kinds of TV commercials with clients who have an open mind and good heart. Alcoholic beverages like beer and whisky, and golf courses, are not the kinds of projects I want to do.

adobo: Where do you find inspiration as a creative person and as a director? 

Tor: My inspiration comes from all the people around me – the food vendor, taxi driver, craftsman, advertising people, monk, business person, product owner, guard, maid, my colleagues. Everyone is my inspiration. And the problem of my country is my inspiration, too.

adobo: Do you watch reels of award-winning commercials? 

Tor: I stopped watching TV for a year. I have seen very few reels in the past six years.

adobo: We noticed that your best works have come from two of Thailand’s and Asia’s top creative directors, Jureeporn Thaidumrong of JEH United and Thirasak Tanapatanakul of Creative Juice G1 in Bangkok. You have worked with them for over 10 years and the collaboration has been working. 

Tor: These two people are very talented, very open-minded and have a very positive attitude, which is very important. They know what a good idea is and what is best for the clients. 

 

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adobo: One of the first TV campaigns you directed in the 1999 that received global recognition was for the Bangkok Insurance TV spots "Tire," "Tornado" and "Robber." They were fantastic, delightful to watch and still very memorable!  Can you give tell us about this production?

Tor: In this TVC, everything is computer graphics. It’s not that difficult for others who want to do it.

adobo: You also directed in 2005 the ground-breaking and celebrated "Smooth E Baby Face Foam" TV campaign. It received high acclaim from the global advertising industry. It was lauded for its direction, editing, and humor especially for the facial care category. Could you describe the creative process in developing this campaign? 

Khun Judee (JEH United’s Jureeporn Thaidumrong) came to me and told me that the client wanted to do a mini series. We started thinking about everything by aiming on how to make this TVC special, accessible and touching. 

 

 

We wanted to change the history of this kind of product. We wanted to use the “Smooth E” TV commercial to tell the other consumer product owners who still have the old belief of how a commercial should be done, that now, the world has changed and audiences want this kind of TV commercial. Something that understands what they want and is entertaining, not just boring, hard-sell advertising. 

adobo: How would you describe your directorial style?

Tor:  When I direct a TV commercial, the first thing I cut is what I want. My directorial style is to think of the audience first. Everything should be based on the consumer’s need.

adobo: You have been named by the Gunn Report as the “Most Awarded Director in the World,” the first from Asia to achieve this status. Can you tell us how you feel about this recognition?

Tor: I think a good commercial can change people’s attitudes. I think my work is finished the day the TV commercial goes on air and people see it. The award is not the part of my job. My award is that people see and like my TV commercials. I have never been to any award ceremony. It’s a boring event and it slows my life down. Awards are heavy and not very useful. It is just an overly expensive doorstopper. I just like to produce my work, and that’s it.

adobo: What challenges you as a director? What do you want to achieve? 

Tor: What challenges me is how to change the attitude of the people in my country through my TV commercials, by giving them something to think about. 

adobo: With this recognition, you have been doing projects outside of Bangkok. Was it difficult and challenging?

Tor: I do a lot of projects in Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, India, but there are no challenges in working with foreigners because they are human and we are all the same.

adobo: In Asia, Thailand is considered one of the best countries for TV commercial productions. How would you describe the TV production scene in Thailand? And compared to other markets?

Tor: I think the Thai market and the clients are very open and appreciate good work and good ideas. Other markets are not that open. Thai people love to be entertained, so I produce TVC’s to entertain them. I still believe that in the end, we all like funny stuff and like to be entertained. 

adobo: Would you comment on this statement by a regional creative director that Thai TV commercials with its wacky humor amused many awards juries but now the novelty has worn off.

Tor: It’s none of my business. If you don’t want to give the award but my audiences still like it and laugh about it, I have the award from my audience already. We use our heart to see it, not the brain. 

adobo: Recently, you directed a 150-second  TV spot, "Sorry Thailand"  with Khun Judee of JEH United, reflective of the political situation in Thailand, described as "The worst in Thailand modern history." Can you give us your sentiments of the situation in Thailand and about the film you directed, which was eventually banned by the censorship committee?

Tor: The situation here is very complex. When I first got the brief, we wanted the TV commercial to re-unite Thais back together. It was very difficult to do this commercial because if you say one thing you will immediately be accused that you are on the opposite side. It made me think hard about how to communicate to all of them. The easiest way is to find the cause of the problem and find the solution for it. 

The best way was to tell that we have all made mistakes in one way or another. And I decided to say in the “Sorry Thailand” TV commercial that it is time to say sorry to Thailand. We caused the problem. If we do nothing, don’t want to get involved, ignore the problem, that’s wrong. 

I knew for sure that this TV commercial would be banned. When I showed this commercial to Judee, I told her and the team that this commercial you are about to see will not be banned by the censorship department. It was banned eventually, but someone posted it on YouTube and people talked about it. It became national news and people really wanted to see it, resulting in more than two million views, which is a lot more than the people who will get to see it from free TV. And that is the success of this TVC.

 

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