BANGKOK — The different plights and struggles of a former American footballer and Syrian refugees reflected in two acclaimed docs will screen and be discussed this month.
Two mid-June “DocTalks” are coming from the Doc Club with two interesting films to see and discuss the issues.
On Saturday, the 2016 hit documentary “Gleason” will show. After premiering at the Sundance Film Festival, it captures the last five years of Steve Gleason, former defensive back of the New Orleans Saints, as he suffers from chronic Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. The documentary shows how instead of giving up, Gleason stood up for himself and his wife and his son, living live as fully as possible and giving to others by building a foundation.
The film is in English with Thai subtitles and will show twice Saturday at 1pm and 3:15pm. A discussion in Thai on ALS disease in Thailand will follow at 5:30pm.
The second screening and with discussion will be livestreamed online at Doc Club D-Cinema. Tickets are 99 baht and can be purchased at the site.
“After Spring,” a 2016 documentary on Syrian refugees will show Thursday to follow on World Refugee Day, which is Tuesday. After raising funds via Kickstarter, the film crew went to Jordan’s Zaatari refugee camp to follow two displaced families in a place that was never designed to be permanent.
The film premiered at the 2016 Tribeca Film Fest and will show in Arabic and Korean with English and Thai subtitles.
Thursday’s discussions will cover two topics in Thai, with English translation. The morning session starts at 10am with a discussion on Thailand’s urban refugees, while the refugee struggle in Thailand will be the topic of a session beginning at 5pm.
Tickets for both events are 100 baht and can be reserved online. More information for “Gleason” and “After Spring” screenings can be found online.
The venue is on the fifth floor auditorium of the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, which can be reached by skywalk from BTS National Stadium.