Fan frenzy

Tao and Tina grapple with a groupie

By Tatat Bunnag
Photographs by Varuth Hirunyatheb
and courtesy of Sahamongkol Film International

Being a fan of a rock star can be fun, but it can cause problems for your friends and loved ones if your enthusiasm gets out of hand. Director Tanwarin Sukkhapisit explores that idea in his latest romantic comedy film, Fin Sugoi.

In Fin Sugoi, Noona (Saipan Apinya) is a young Thai girl who falls madly in love with Japanese rock star Makoto Koshinaka. She plans to do whatever it takes to get close to Makoto when his band TRICK come to Thailand to perform a concert. Unfortunately, Noona’s passion for Makoto is so strong that it ends up destroying some of her close relationships.

Also starring in Fin Sugoi are 24-year-old actor Sattaphong Phiangphor (Tao) and 23-year-old actress Suppanad Jittaleela (Tina), who play Noona’s boyfriend and close friend respectively.

Student Weekly recently caught up with Tao and Tina at Bangkok’s House Theater RCA to chat about the making of Fin Sugoi, which is due to hit local cinemas on September 25.

Student Weekly: What does the title Fin Sugoi mean?

Tao: Fin is a new Thai slang word for the feeling of being completely into something, and Sugoi is Japanese word meaning really cool. The director wanted to have a Japanese word in the title because part of the movie was shot in Japan. There’s also a Japanese actor in the film.

Student Weekly: Can you tell us a bit about your characters in the film?

Tao: I play Noona’s boyfriend, Suer-krong, who is a school karate champion and a pretty blunt person. He doesn’t understand Noona’s passion for Makoto and he gets really jealous.

Tina: I play Mooham, one of Noona’s best friends. Mooham tries to help Noona with her plan to meet Makoto. But Noona doesn’t realise that Mooham is secretly in love with her.

Student Weekly: How long did it take to make the film, and how many locations were used?

Tina: The film took almost six months to complete because all the actors had different schedules. Makato was also busy touring in Japan, so some of the scenes were delayed.

Tao: The film was shot at many different places in Thailand and Japan. We all had a great time filming in Japan, especially the scenes at the famous intersection in Shibuya, Tokyo. We also filmed at an onsen while it was snowing.

Student Weekly: Were you guy’s fans of Makoto’s music before working on this film?

Tao: His bands Lucifer and TRICK are both pretty cool. J-rock was really popular in Thailand a few years ago, so I’d heard some of their songs.

Tina: In Japan, the story of his band was made into a comic book. Most of my friends read it at school. Makoto’s character in the comic book was really cool.

Student Weekly: Tao, how would you feel if somebody you loved became obsessed with a pop idol?

Tao: I’m not sure. I’ve never had that kind of experience. [Laughs.] But Saipan did a great job of acting like an obsessive fan. I think I’d be annoyed if my girlfriend was that crazy over a rock star. But I’d react differently to my character in the film. I’d try to be reasonable and explain my point of view clearly rather than freak out and start yelling like Suer-krong does.

Student Weekly: Tina, you recently worked with pop idol Kim Woo-bin in the Chinese film We Are Young. What was it like to working with a Korean superstar?

Tina: It was one of the most exciting experiences of my life. He’s so cool, handsome and talented! [Laughs.] He was really nice, but it took me a while to get used to it because I was so nervous.

Student Weekly: What makes Fin Sugoi different from all the other romantic comedies that have come out recently?

Tao: The film explores different kinds of relationships. The director also managed to smoothly incorporate different stories into one movie.

Tina: Fin Sugoi is inspiring, and it has some moral lessons that viewers will understand after watching the film.

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