It never fails to amaze me how some shoot locations are so underrated. We have just returned from a scout/shoot in the Chiang Dao mountains of Northern Thailand, a location we have worked in a lot and a place that, like so many others, is put in to a ‘pigeon hole’ and rarely considered. Be it for survival (as in this case) Cultural, Natural history or what ever, the region has so much to offer, yet when ever pitching it as a location, producers seemed to have their Southern Thailand, Sex industry, full moon parties, beaches and tourist blinkers on and rarely give it a second thought. Incredibly diverse, easy to film in, in terms of permissions and clearances and about as far from the Southern image most have of Thailand than you can get, the huge array of colourful Sino, Tibetan hill tribes, lush jungles and Bamboo forests, vibrant temples, Markets and bustling cities, are a film makers paradise. Please take a moment to view the gallery and enjoy a glimpse of Northern Thailand.
(Images courtesy and copyright of Isabelle Neill and TAFFS.tv)
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- Chiang Dao National Park, overlooking Chiang Dao Mountain
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- Over looking the Mountain at dawn
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- One of the ridge’s running of Chiang Dao Mountain, or the 3 brothers as the locals call the mountain.
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- One of many waterfalls as we walked off the mountain
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- Looking back up towards the the “3 brothers”
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- Opium poppies in a ‘private garden!’
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- Opiume poppies in amongst the vegetables in a well concealed plot on the mountain
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- Kha, one of our local guides.
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- Base camp at the rangers station before we set out into the park
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- Kha and Nu, two of the local guides and absolute mines of information on the local flora and fauna warming themselves by the morning fire.
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- Hmong girls at the Hmong New year celebrations
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- Hmong ladies playing a ‘courtship game”
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- Hmong Elders
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- The next generation of Hills tribe, Hmong
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- Hmong dress in all its glory
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- The all important game of ‘Spinning the top” a national sport with the Hmong
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- Spinning the top
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- Concentration as one competitor has to firstly strike his opponents top with his, and then the winner is the last one spinning
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- Team Hmong!!
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- One of many tricks to keep the ‘top” spinning
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- With time to kill we visited a few temples.
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- Monks taking in the view
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- The pagoda
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- Temple
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- Main building in the Temple
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- … and then on down to the markets …
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- truely spectacular in thier own rights.
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- The husle and bustle of the market