Reflections on the Human Condition - Api-fellowships.org

132 SESSION II
me if I had seen Sanae in person or if I had been to
Bangkok. I said no and that I only saw his works
on banners and covers of novels. He asked me if I
knew any other artist. I said I only knew Shalami and
Sanae. He asked me who between these two artists
I liked more. I said, “Shalami. Sanae has beautiful
drawing but no life.” He smiled. Then, he asked me
draw. After looking at my drawing, he invited me
to come to Bangkok because “Sanae can meet you
there and I think, he will also like your drawing.”
But I said “For now, no. I am just in secondary.”
He politely insisted, “After you finished school, go to
Bangkok. Just opposite of Siphaya Temple that is the
building.” Then he said, “You know, Sanae and I
are very similar.” Then, he left that night to go
to another job. From that day, I remembered how
polite he talked to me and persuaded me to meet
Sanae. At that time, I was just 12 years old. Then,
the war started. The Japanese came. So I wasn’t able
to go to Bangkok. Then after finishing secondary, I
went to Bangkok. After World War II, Bangkok
looked bad. I didn’t know where to find him. And
then, I remembered his instructions. I rode the
bus, went to the temple and walked to the opposite
building. Finally, I saw the man painting. He was,
after all, Sanae! From that day on, I came to see
him and learned so much from him. 3
Later, this locally renowned artist inspired him to be
part of an animation project in Bangkok. Unfortunately,
Sanae passed away without realizing his dreams as his
animation project failed to materialize due to lack of
sponsorship and government support. Galvanized by
Sanae’s memory, Payut resolved to pursue his friend’s wish.
Sanae tried to make animation. But the government
did not support him. He got sick. He was
so frustrated. He could not make animation. After
he died, I decided that I would make animation.
I tried asking everyone who worked with Sanae
how animation worked. But no one knew. I kept
on asking until one told me Sanae worked on celluloid.
So I realized how to do it. I tried to do it
and it worked! I used X-ray film. I asked a Chinese
friend how to clean it. I told him I tried scrubbing
it but it was still dirty. He said he didn’t know. So I
asked him to clean the X-ray films by putting some
ash to the water then dipping in it the X-ray film.
It worked! 4
In 1955, Payut decided to animate a cartoon he had
been drawing for the newspaper, Lakmuang. Sala
Chalerm Thai Theater house on July 5, 1955 and
received tremendous acclaim. This gag cartoon entitled
Ref lections on the Human Condition: Change, Conflict and Modernity
The Work of the 2004/2005 API Fellows
Haed Mahasajan showed a policeman (who) directs
traffic, swaying to the tune of music in the manner of
Thai classical dancers. A woman begins to cross the
street when the zipper (a newly introduced fashion
accoutrement in Thailand) on her dress splits, diverting
the policeman’s attention with the result that cars pile
up all around him. 5
Recognizing Payut’s talent, the United State Information
Service (USIS) awarded him 10,000 baht and sponsored
him to go on vacation in Japan. For training, the agency
gave Payut a choice of spending six to eight months
with Disney Studios or going to Japan. He chose Japan,
where he just looked around, as animation did not exist
there at the time. 6
Payut only made one animated film for the USIS, a 20minute
propaganda film entitled Hanuman Pachon Pai
Krang Mai (The Adventure of Hanuman, 1957) that
recounted the story of Hanuman, the white monkey
in the classic Ramayana. The propaganda element was
present in the form of the defeated red monkey, which
represented communism.
The Americans hired me to create animation after
World War II to fight communism. It was for
propaganda. Since animation is cheaper here than
done in Hollywood...for their propaganda, I was
asked by the American Embassy to create a 20minute
animation. So I made Hanuman in 1958.
But we could not make the final film in Thailand.
So I sent it to Japan laboratory. The first animation
I made, I sent to Australia. But the government
banned Hanuman in Thailand because one of the
government officials, who owned a matchstick factory,
used the Hanuman character for the cover of the
match. So, he didn’t want Hanuman to be used
in my animation. He thought my animation was
not good for his matchstick. But he didn’t even
watch it yet. He thought my animation would
show a bad Hanuman, which would be bad for his
business. Dr. John Pikering, the American investor,
became so disappointed because he invested a lot
of money. But the government who did not support
my production wanted to ban Hanuman. He invested
much but nothing came out of it. Nothing. 7
Later, Payut created another short cartoon entitled
Dek Kab Mee (A Boy and A Bear, 1960) for the Southeast
Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO), based on the
theme that unity was necessary to combat communism.
Apart from working at USIS, Payut also worked on
part-time job on making commercial animation films
to many products, of which many advertisements are
still in contemporary Thai’s memory. In 1976, Payut