October 9th 2010: A 92-year-old theater is about to be brought back to life. Built in 1918 right after the Russian Revolution, Sala Chalermthani sits right at the center of the historic Nang Loeng community. Despite its long history, Sala Chalermthani has been targeted by government officials who attempted to demolish and transform it into a more lucrative parking lot, citing that a parking lot would provide jobs to the residents and generate more profit. 

E-lerng started as a project that invited 7 artists to produce experimental short documentaries on anything about the Nang Loeng community. After a year of production, we screened all 7 shorts at our Sala Chalermthani. 

However, on the day of screening, we received a not from the landlord, saying: 

NO SHOW IN THE THEATER TODAY;

DUE TO AGED STRUCTURE, THERE ARE SAFETY CONCERNS. 

The note was unexpected, and the crowd, food vendors, and visitors were already arriving to celebrate the cinema’s 92nd anniversary. We had no say in this decision as this property belongs to the Crown Property Bureau, and we need its approval for anything related to events and festivals. 

Suddenly, a bearded man exclaimed, “Why not flaunt it anyways? Outside the cinema!” Several hours later, we managed to assemble a giant white canvas and spread it across the historic cinema, on which the shorts will be screened after dusk.  

There were whispers of speculation that this traditional theater would be demolished soon. Since it would be exceedingly difficult for the developers to demolish a historic theater if it is still active in the public’s eyes, they were against any sort of celebration associated with the place. 

​Currently, a giant poster that reads "E-LERNG: A DOCUMENTARY" is displayed in front of the theater. The food vendors secured their food carts with umbrellas when they realized that the crowd would remain as they waited for the movie to start at dusk.

A flash of light has just shown on the white canvas screen that has been set up in front of the historic theater, "1, 2, 3.." The sun is barely visible above the horizon as they test the image, and Nammon and her guerilla crew of filmmakers are now ready to work their magic. All of this is happening while the Ministry of Culture drafts a law to censor "hazardous cinema," a law intended to prevent the release of politically sensitive films.