In the swim

Hormones stars pool their talents

By Suwitcha Chaiyong
Photos by Varuth Hirunyatheb and courtesy of GTH

For his 2011 horror movie, Ladda Land, award-winning director Sophon Sakdaphisit received rave reviews locally and internationally, including in Variety and Hollywood Reporter.

The director’s upcoming thriller, Fak Wai Nai Guy Thoe (The Swimmers), has also created a buzz because the three stars of the film —Thanapob Leeratanakachorn (Tor), 20, Supatsara Thanachat, (Kao), 19 and Chutavuth Pattarakampol (March), 21 — are from the popular TV series, Hormones.

The Swimmers is about Pert (March) and Tan (Tor), who are friends but also rivals in swimming competitions. Pert is always the underdog, and when he falls in love with Tan’s girlfriend, Ice (Kao), things get complicated. The situation becomes bizarre when Ice is mysteriously found dead in a swimming pool.

Student Weekly recently met up with March, Tor and Kao at the GTH office to hear all about The Swimmers, which is due to open in cinemas on August 7.

Student Weekly: Do you believe in ghosts?

March: I take the idea of ghosts with a grain of salt. Some ghost stories seem to be true, but some are definitely not.

Kao: If there was no such thing as ghosts, we wouldn’t have heard about them since the time of our ancestors.

Tor: I experienced some supernatural things when I was a Buddhist novice. I’m not going to tell you the details because it’s a secret, but I believe in ghosts.

Student Weekly: How did you feel about working on your first movie?

March: Working on a ghost movie was very new to me. I’ve never seen a ghost before, so acting in this movie required a lot of imagination for me.

Tor: I felt honoured to work on a movie produced by GTH, which is one of the top movie production companies in Thailand. I really dedicated myself to this film.

Student Weekly: Are characters of Tan and Ice similar to Pai and Sprite from Hormones?

Tor: Not at all. Because of the movie trailer, viewers might assume that Pai and Tan are alike because they both have fighting scenes, but Tan has more complicated thoughts than Pai.

Kao: Sprite and Ice are totally different. Their facial expressions are not similar at all.

Student Weekly: If your friends had to deal with teen pregnancy like in the movie, what advice would you give them?

Kao: I’d ask them to keep the baby because it’s innocent. That’s what I’d do if I was in that situation.

March: I agree with Kao. I believe that abortion is a sin. I know somebody who had an abortion and her life became a mess.

Tor: I wouldn’t suggest anything because it’s a complicated issue. They’d have to make their own decision, and as a friend, I would just listen to them.

Student Weekly: Is it true that you guys had to jump into a pool from a 10 metre-high springboard?

March: We were trained by a national diving athlete, starting from one metre high, but only Kao jumped from 10 metres. She also used a safety wire.

Kao: There are a lot of specific techniques for diving. Once I was in the wrong position when I jumped and I hit the water very hard. My face turned red!

Student Weekly: What was the best thing about acting in this movie?

Tor: We learned a lot of new things that we can use forever. We don’t know when we’ll have another chance to film underwater. It was a great experience.

Student Weekly: How did you feel about working together again?

March: I felt comfortable. Kao and Tor are talented actors. They helped me to get through the movie easier, and the end result was better than I expected. I hope we can work together again.

Kao: I’ve known them for a long time, so we’re close. March is really dedicated and took good care of me, while Tor always gave me a new perspective on things.

Tor: It was fantastic. I was worried that I might not do my best in my first movie, but working with them made things run smoothly. March is talented and I always trust Kao. Kao and I have good chemistry when we act together. I’m lucky to work with them!

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