Who has time for heaven when the most exciting Thai film of the year is playing right here on Earth?

After winning praise across the global festival circuit, 9 Temples to Heaven, the only Thai feature film to enjoy a Directors’ Fortnight premiere at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, returns home as the official opening title of the Bangkok International Film Festival 2026, which runs from 13-27 September.

Cannes was just the beginning. Directed by Sompot “Boat” Chidgasornpongse and produced by Kissada “Ohm” Kamyoung of At A Time Pictures alongside Apichatpong “Joe” Weerasethakul, this unconventional family drama about staving off the inevitable has been lighting up screens worldwide, from the Sydney Film Festival 2026 and Melbourne International Film Festival 2026 to the New Zealand Film Festival 2026 and a recent main slate selection at the 64th New York Film Festival. 

The international acclaim has been matched by major wins abroad. Before even premiering at home, the film dominated the 28th Shanghai International Film Festival 2026, where star Sompop “Jing” Songkampol won the Golden Goblet Award for Asian New Talent Best Actor and Boat won the Golden Goblet Award for Asian New Talent Best Director.

So, what’s it actually about? For starters, this isn’t your average road trip movie. Panicked by a grim prophecy that his ageing mother is running out of time, 63-year-old Sakol decides the only fix is a single-day pilgrimage across nine temples. Just two weeks shy of her birthday, he packs three generations of family into a car to speed-run Thailand’s most sacred temples. But as they drag themselves from one ritual to the next, a heavy truth sets in: some fates just can’t be outrun.

Just as the family on screen embarks on a soul-searching pilgrimage across nine temples, the film itself has been on a grand festival pilgrimage around the globe. Now that its journey finally brings it home to Bangkok next month, local cinephiles can at last see what all the international hype is about!