Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke | |
|---|---|
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| Born | Bangkok, Thailand |
| Occupations | Film director, screenwriter |
| Years active | 2010s–present |
Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke is a Thai film director and screenwriter, whose debut feature film A Useful Ghost was released in 2025.[1]
Born and raised in Bangkok, he studied film at Chulalongkorn University.[2] His short film Red Aninsri; Or, Tiptoeing on the Still Trembling Berlin Wall won the Youth Jury Award in the Pardi di Domani competition at the Locarno 2020 Film Festival.[3]
He began writing A Useful Ghost in 2017, partially as an indirect metaphor for the political environment of Thailand following the 2014 Thai coup d'état.[4] The film, a dark comedy-drama in which a deceased woman's spirit possesses a vacuum cleaner, had its world premiere in the Critics' Week section of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival,[5] winning the Grand Prize.[6]
It was submitted as the Thai entry for Best International Feature Film at the 98th Academy Awards,[7] although it was disqualified due to submission errors by the production studio.[8]
Filmography
- Red Aninsri; Or, Tiptoeing on the Still Trembling Berlin Wall - 2020
- A Useful Ghost - 2025
References
- Amy Nicholson, "Plug into ‘A Useful Ghost,’ a quirky, deep Cannes winner about a possessed vacuum". Los Angeles Times, February 4, 2026.
- Bruce Scott, "Meet Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke, the Creative Force Behind the Award-Winning Film ‘A Useful Ghost’". Prestige, July 10, 2025.
- John Hopewell, "Lucrecia Martel, Mari Alessandrini, Miguel Gomes Win at Locarno Film Festival". Variety, August 14, 2020.
- Rebecca Ratcliffe, "A Useful Ghost: Recognised in Cannes, Thai director hopes film stirs political debate at home". The Guardian, June 13, 2025.
- Naman Ramachandran, "Cannes Critics’ Week: Thai Director Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke on Possessed Vacuum Cleaners and Dust Pollution in ‘A Useful Ghost’". Variety, May 17, 2025.
- Dalton, Ben (22 May 2025). "Thai comedy-drama 'A Useful Ghost' wins top prize at Cannes Critics' Week 2025". Screen International. Retrieved 22 May 2025.
- Ramachandran, Naman (20 August 2025). "Thailand Selects Cannes Prize Winner 'A Useful Ghost' as Oscar Entry". Variety. Retrieved 20 August 2025.
- ""A Useful Ghost" misses Oscar bid after submission mishap, 185 Films explains". nationthailand. 2025-11-05. Retrieved 2026-02-06.