Thailand: The upcoming Bangkok International Film Festival promises to be better than ever, with features films, documentaries and short films from every corner of the globe highlighting Bangkok's role as one of the world's foremost places of entertainment.

Announcing the launch of the Bangkok Film Festival, Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Governor Jutamas Siriwan said that the film festival is scheduled to run from 22 January to 2 February 2004 and would showcase an enormous range of films, including 10-15 feature-length movies from the Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) members including Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines.

In addition, visitors to the Bangkok Film Festival in Thailand would be able to watch ASEAN short films, together with documentaries and animations, she said. For those interested in Thai cinema, there would be both feature movies and documentaries on important events from Thailand's past.

Mrs. Jutamas said that the Bangkok Film Festival would be more spectacular than previous years' events, with grand opening and closing ceremonies at the Scala cinema, film competitions, prizes, seminars, golf contests for film stars, and concerts.

The movies would be shown at five leading cinemas in Bangkok: SF Cinema City Emporium, Major Cineplex Central World Plaza, Lido Siam, EGV Metropolis Big C Rajadamri, and Grand EGV Siam Discovery