A melancholic and political reflection on the experience of being uprooted
Filmed in 16mm, A Place Called Home follows — over a year, one day each month — the daily life of a young Thai woman living in Amsterdam. She maintains a relationship with her sister living in Bangkok and exchanges with friends she has made there, in an attempt to stay close to her roots and find her place in the Netherlands.
Presented in its world premiere at the Luxembourg City Film Festival, this softly contoured film wanders between documentary and fiction, adopting the intimate form of a filmed diary. Away from both her family and her roots, co-director Pattrawan Sukmongkol drew her inspiration from her own reflections to create this singular piece where fear and hope come together, and to evoke with upmost accuracy the experience of Asian people living in Europe.
Born in Thailand in 1986, Pattrawan Sukmongkol studied psychology at Thammasat University and design, innovation and brand management in the UK. She began her career in publishing before launching her own design studio and co-directing the short film Grandma’s Chilies with Max Jacoby in 2021. Based on similar themes of uprootedness and place, A Place Called Home is her first feature film.
Born in Luxembourg in 1977, Max Jacoby studied at the London Film School, graduating in 2001 after directing the short Babysitting. His subsequent short films have won numerous awards. His first feature film, Dust, released in 2009, premiered at the Busan Film Festival in South Korea. Alongside his film projects, he also directs commercials. A Place Called Home is his second collaboration with Pattrawan Sukmongkol.
