Thai documentary filmmaker Nontawat Numbenchapol’s first fiction project, "Doi Boy", premieres on 24 November, promising to shed light on socio-political issues such as human rights, border conflicts and refugees in Thailand. 

The film, which Numbenchapol both wrote and directed, stars Awat Ratanapintha ("Girl from Nowhere") in his first lead role as 21-year-old illegal immigrant Sorn, who is forced to accept a risky proposition after the pandemic shuts down his workplace. 

Arak “Pae” Amornsupasiri ("Me Always You") plays Ji, a regular customer who offers Sorn a deal that involves Wuth (Aelm Thavornsiri), an activist wanted by the government amid local political turmoil and the mysterious disappearances of fellow activists. 

Numbenchapol is best known for factual works such as "Boundary" (2013), "By the River" (2013) and "Soil Without Land" (2019). 

Netflix says the film was inspired by "Soil Without Land", an 80-minute factual feature about a young stateless Shan man, living in a buffer zone between Burma and Northern Thailand, who submits to a life in limbo as he trains to become a soldier for the Shan State Army.

“Many of them don’t have dreams and don’t even realise that they can have the luxury to dream. One possible dream is to live in Chiang Mai for a better life. But without identification documents, their choices in life are limited, and many end up working in the gay bars for better pay,” Nontawat says.