King of Cyborg Elephant 

2025  15 mins, Animation

Since the 16th century, elephants have played a pivotal role in Thailand’s nation-building and colonial endeavors—serving as diplomatic emissaries, cultural symbols, and central figures in royal propaganda. In 1940, Thailand released its first English-language feature film, The King of the White Elephant, as a vehicle to promote monarchist and pacifist ideologies to Western audiences on the eve of World War II.

King of the Cyborg Elephant, named in reference to a Thai propaganda film, draws upon a constellation of historical narratives surrounding elephants—from the Buddhist era and the Napoleonic period to Thailand’s modern political landscape. This film seeks to interpret the collective subconscious memories of elephants embedded in human history, reimagining them as instruments through which history itself is authored and transmitted.


Synopsis

A group of Thai filmmakers visits an elephant village to investigate the strange phenomenon of people hearing elephant voices in their dreams. Magically, an elephant is able to speak and tells them about its insomnia and traumatic memories, as it attempts to forget and find peace to sleep.

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