DEADLINE:This is the second highest-grossing film in Thailand for 2024.
What do you think people are responding to?
What are they telling you when they walk up to you?
Billkin stars in ‘‘How To Make Millions Before Grandma Dies’Vertigo Releasing, GDH
PAT BOONNITIPAT:Someone typeda response, I think she was a film student from the States.
She said she watched the movie.
That was really beautiful for me.
DEADLINE:Do you know Taweewat Wanta, who has the first highest-grossing film in 2024?
Have you called him and told him to relinquish his title?
BOONNITIPAT:I love this question because that director is also my friend.
So now we always [bet] each other.
Now Im winning [laughs].
He also contributed a lot of materials to the movie.
DEADLINE:So, you didnt block him?
BOONNITIPAT:No, I didnt block him.
But maybe he should block me [laughs].
DEADLINE:Youve done directing work in TV, but this is your first feature film.
Talk about creative challenges and lessons you learned in the switch?
BOONNITIPAT:For television, what I learned is that it comes down to the script.
That matters a lot more.
DEADLINE:What led you and your co-writer, Thodsapon Thiptinnakorn, to bring this story to life?
BOONNITIPAT:This started with Thodsapon.
After I finished reading the script, I thought a lot about my own family.
DEADLINE:So, you signed on this famous popstar Billkin.
What led you to ultimately change your mind?
And I found that very dedicated.
The second time he came back, he was more natural, and thats what I loved about him.
DEADLINE: How did you guys work together to get this particular performance out of him?
Because he plays this insecure kid who feels unloved.
Did you worry that this was going to mess up his popstar image?
Even on set, he never looked at the monitor.
He wanted him to stay in the moment, like the teaching of Buddhism.
She was acting so cool, but she looked nice [laughs].
So, we called her in, and she nailed it.
It was a scene that many people struggled with.
She nailed it in one take.
DEADLINE: What was non-negotiable in making this film?
Something that you absolutely could not make this movie without.
BOONNITIPAT:Im a very flexible.
But, I insisted on having time to revise everything over and over until all the way through pre-production.
We spent a lot of time doing practice in the process of pre-production.
We went to the real locations several times.
We would tape, for example, the scene where they are eating together on Sunday.
We would have our crew do the exact blocking, and we would tape it and record it.
Then, I would show the blocking to the cast and said they should walk exactly in this order.
I really loved this process, and this is the thing that I wouldnt compromise with.
Talk about the vibe of this movie.
They let the audience breathe.
DEADLINE: Food is so important here.
I really wanted the fried fish from the market.
However, Im wondering what your favorite familial dish is.
BOONNITIPAT:Actually, I included this in the movie [laughs].
Its the vegetable stew that the grandma cooked.
Its called jub-chai ( / vegetable stew).
The more you boil it, the better it gets because it seeps into the soup.
So thats my favorite dish because my grandmother liked to cook that too.
DEADLINE: Has your grandma seen the film?
BOONNITIPAT:Yes, she saw it at the premiere.
She could never watch any of my work except this one.
I was like, Wow, thats the best reaction.
And I was like, Whoa.
So thats what I love about her.
The camera just starts panning, and then you see into the past.
But we stuck to it, no improvisation.
I think it works though, now.
DEADLINE: That scene made me cry.
Theres the scene that you mentioned earlier regarding the audition.
The hospital scene where M says he feels unloved to the grandmother.
Talk more about the creation of Ms inner turmoil.
You never really know when he stops caring about her just for the money and as a person.
So, M becomes mad at that.
That feeling of someone taking advantage of someone is relatable to me.
DEADLINE: Congrats on making theOscarsshortlist; there is only one more round of nominations to go.
What do you want people to take out of this film?
A lot of one generation lived in one house, where theres 20-plus of us.
I was there to witness that.
I would also take photos without knowing why.
