Nestled in Bangkok’s Silom business district is Doc Club&Pub, a 50-seat cinema founded in 2021 by the team behind documentary and independent film distributor Documentary Club. Hosting film festivals and regularly screening alternative films not often seen in commercial theatres, it serves as a haven for Bangkok’s cinephiles and indie filmmakers.

But in late December 2024, Doc Club&Pub cinema had to suspend its screenings after being told that it could not obtain a cinema licence because the building it currently uses does not meet the safety requirements for obtaining an entertainment venue permit.

Doc Club&Pub's 50-seat cinema

Co-founder Krittawit Rimthepathip said that the suspension order came after an official from the Ministry of Culture came to the cinema to make sure they were checking IDs when selling tickets for a film with a 20+ rating. The official asked to see their license, and upon finding out that they did not have one, told them that they must obtain one. The team then found out during the application process that the building the cinema currently uses does not meet the requirements for an entertainment venue.

Following the screening of another 20+ film, during which an official also visited the cinema, the team was informed that they were operating a cinema without a permit. They received a fine and were told to suspend screening immediately. Officials from the Department of Public Works and Town and Country Planning also came to check the building and told them that they must cease operations as an entertainment venue.

Legal limitations

Under Thai law, cinemas are required to obtain an operating license from the Ministry of Culture and an entertainment venue permit from the Ministry of Interior. To obtain the venue permit, a cinema must meet the safety standards stipulated by the entertainment venue building code, which sets the requirements for the size of the hallway and staircases, as well as the number of fire exits. These requirements are imposed on all venues regardless of the number of seats.

Mom Rajawongse Chalermchatri Yukol

Mom Rajawongse Chalermchatri Yukol, filmmaker and Chair of the Subcommittee Empowering the Film, Documentary and Animation Industry of the Thailand Creative Culture Agency (THACCA), said that such requirements make it impossible for small cinemas to obtain a licence to operate legally because it is not viable for them to invest in the same facilities as larger venues. When they are unable to obtain a licence, officials are required to enforce the law.

And while Krittawit said that he understands why these regulations need to exist, he said they are not relevant for small screening spaces, or “micro-cinemas,” which often have less than 50 seats, while commercial theatres could have anywhere from 200 to over a thousand seats.

Both Krittawit and Chalermchatri said that regulations should be tailored to the size of the room. Smaller venues housing 10 - 50 people should not be subject to the same requirements as commercial theatres housing hundreds of people but should be required to follow regulations designed for their scale and function.

“It shouldn’t be the case that the same legislation is imposed everywhere, or every coffee shop that exists now in the country ... would need the same number of fire exits as a cinema because they have the same number of seats,” Chalermchatri said. “For these things, you have to look at how each of them works.”

Not only does legislation need to be amended, Chalermchatri said work also needs to be done to build an understanding among lawmakers and government officials about how each type of space works. He noted that, under existing laws, officials are authorized to interpret and enforce regulations. Although he said that officials are doing the right thing because they are following the law, rules could be misinterpreted, while the legislation itself may not be conducive to development and it could be time to amend it.

Several filmmaking associations, like the National Federation of Motion Pictures and Contents Associations and the Thai Film Director Association, issued statements following Doc Club&Pub’s suspension calling for amendments to the 1979 Building Control Act so that micro-cinemas can obtain a licence. Meanwhile, several independent cinemas and cinephile groups across the country are organizing documentary screenings in support of Doc Club&Pub and backing the call for amendments.

Krittawit was surprised by this outpouring of support. He had expected other micro-cinemas to be worried about their own activities.

“What surprised me was that it doesn’t concern them, but they will stand by what they believe in. This is something that I never expected,” he said.

Little cinemas, big dreams

Krittawit Rimthepathip

If micro-cinemas can operate without running into legal obstacles, Krittawit said, the public will have more choices beyond the mainstream. They would be exposed to more diverse films and would become more open to different styles of storytelling.

“We have the mainstream, but right now we have almost no alternative,” he said.

For student filmmakers Naruepong Boonkert and Warat Bureephakdee, micro-cinemas are where they first encountered alternative films they could not find in commercial theatres. Naruepong, who started making short films in high school, said he was inspired to make films by a short film festival at Doc Club&Pub. It was also where he met Warat, who became his friend and later collaborator.

Warat said that micro-cinemas also offer filmmakers the opportunity to connect with viewers, critics, and potential donors, as well as make room for diversity and people often excluded from mainstream cinema.

“Some people might say that people watch films on streaming these days, so why do you care about cinemas, but streaming cannot give you this,” he said.

There should be more funding available to support filmmakers and film festival organizers, Warat said. Running a micro-cinema often doesn’t make a profit, but it would be good for people to earn money from what they do. He also said that screenings need more publicity. For example, a list could be compiled and posted online so people could find out about independent cinemas or screenings near them.

Doc Club&Pub's sign at the building entrance. The word "cinema" on the sign has been covered with a piece of paper.

Meanwhile, director Patiparn Boontarig, whose 2023 film Solids by the Seashore tells the story of the relationship between a young woman from a conservative Muslim community in the south of Thailand and a rebellious woman artist from the big city, said that alternative films tend to get more screen time in independent cinemas, giving the audience more time to go see them as these films often leave commercial cinemas quickly.

He noted that micro-cinemas are springing up in provinces outside Bangkok and are slowly building an audience, giving people who live outside of Bangkok the opportunity to see films that may not otherwise get screened in their province at all. However, he is concerned that these cinemas could also run into legal obstacles if they want to run a regular screening schedule if micro-cinemas still need to meet the same legal requirements as large cinemas.

“If there is more awareness about these things among the general public in our country, I think the film industry and other creative industries will be able to go further,” he said. “I’m waiting to see how far the support for micro-cinemas can spread, and what a law that supports small groups would look like.”

Krittawit hopes that once the legal limitations are removed, and with the support of others in the community, Thailand’s independent cinema scene will grow beyond what he has ever imagined, and other artforms will flourish as well.

“I don’t believe that anything that has already begun will go back to square one. It can only grow, but how slowly or fast it will grow depends on other factors that will be related to cases that happened in the past,” he said,

“I hope that it will be opened up, and once it is opened up, people will see that these things are important. After everybody spoke out, it will grow in a way that I think is beyond what I imagined, which is that we will take it slow, and for myself, I hope that once it is opened up, it will allow other branches of art the chance to grow without having to be blocked by obstructive laws.”