Thai PBS has concluded '50 Years On: SCENE OF OCT From Scars to the Future' into an exhibition that invited people of all generations to look at the events of October 6, 1976 through contemporary eyes. Presented at the VIPA International Film Festival 2026 (VIFF2026), it ran from September 21 to October 16 at Thai PBS, with free admission.
Built on the concept of ‘6 Scenes, 6 Perspectives,’ the exhibition explored October 6 through art, film, music, poetry, questions and board games. It went beyond revisiting what happened, asking how the stories and memories of October 6 are still passed on, interpreted and questioned in Thai society today.
Paphaphorn Chalermwanich, Director of the Public Communication and Marketing Centre at Thai PBS, said the exhibition was designed to show how the same story can carry different meanings when told by people of different ages, experiences and forms of expression. Visitors could choose how to explore, learn, ask questions and interpret for themselves.
"We wanted this exhibition to be a place where people of different ages could talk to one another, despite their different experiences and views," she said. "Learning about October 6 is not just about knowing what happened. It should lead us to ask what we learn from it today, and how we can build a different future together."
The six scenes
SCENE 1: 6 Q&A
Six questions from today's generation, posed by DAOFAA, Wannasingh Prasertkul and Prao TuayP, were answered by people who were teenagers in 1976, including Jiranan Pitpreecha, Ajarn Yingsak Jonglertjesdawong and lawyer Dang. The interactive, mixed-media piece showed how perspectives shift as history travels through time.
SCENE 2: The Missing Poems
Poems inspired by October 6 from two writers from different eras, Jiranan Pitpreecha and Tul Waitoonkiat. Visitors searched for hidden text and interpreted the poems themselves.
SCENE 3: Which Song Is Your October 6?
New songs and covers by emerging artists. Visitors picked up headphones at random to discover the stories told through music and find the songs that connected with their own memories.
SCENE 4: October 6 on Canvas
Works by street artists from different generations: Teaw TRK (Teerayut Peuchpen), Thongchai Sirinantiphak and HOOTIVE (Kritapong Chayaprathum).
SCENE 5: From Scars to the Future
Created with The Active team at Thai PBS, this scene introduced the people connected to the events and the roles that link past and present. It then invited visitors to choose policy proposals and advocacy approaches for a different future.
SCENE 6: October 6, When Memory Still Has Questions
Two board games showed how information and viewpoints differ. In Truth Detective, players analysed news, photographs, testimonies and documents to separate fact from distortion. In Missing Voice, players took the roles of people with different access to information and different rights to communicate, showing how whose voice is heard can shape society's perception of the truth.
The exhibition also featured "+1 SECRET 6 QUOTE," which traced the legacy of October 6 in Thai cinema through powerful lines from six films selected by VIPA. It reflected how the events have left their mark on the thinking, culture and storytelling of later generations, and tied into the festival's aim of using film as a starting point for learning, questioning and new conversations.
About VIFF2026
VIFF2026 ran from September 11 to 25, 2026 at Thai PBS, in collaboration with the Thai PBS Foundation, the Department of Cultural Promotion (Ministry of Culture), the Thai Media Fund and the Thai Independent Filmmakers Association (ATIF). Under the theme "FIRST," it brought together new stories, emerging filmmakers and audiences through more than 46 Thai and international films, plus film talks, workshops, networking and exhibitions. The festival was hybrid, with on-ground events and online screenings on the VIPA platform. The exhibition, one of its key programmes, remained open until October 16.
