VISRA VICHIT-VADAKAN
Tisch School of the Arts
Master of Fine Arts, May 2010
Film & Television
Bio and Resume (.pdf)
Visra Vichit-Vadakan is an emerging Thai film director, screenwriter, and educator. She is part of a new wave of Thai artists passionate about both their individual art and shaping a community of young people who teach compassion and encourage social action and social responsibility through their work.
Visra’s artistic influences began at an early age at the Thai National Theater. Her grandfather, Luang Wichitwathakan, a progressive playwright and politician, instilled a sense of responsibility and commitment to a greater social well being in her through his work as an artist and government official.
Visra graduated from Stanford University with a Bachelor of Arts in Human Biology, which provided her with an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the human being from biological, behavioral, social, and cultural perspectives. Visra continued her studies at The Stanford University School of Education, earning an MA in International Education Administration and Policy Analysis, a degree, which later led her to work at an education think tank for the Royal Government of Thailand.
At Stanford, Visra was also a member of Stanford Taiko, a collegiate performing ensemble devoted to bringing awareness of taiko, the art of Japanese drumming, to the greater community. In 2003, she became its Artistic Director. In 2004, she organized an international tour for the group in Thailand where they performed at schools in Bangkok and Northern Thailand, and also at the National Theater.
When the tsunami hit Thailand in December 2004, Visra volunteered as a translator for foreign medical rescue teams and victims of the catastrophe. She later worked as a research assistant for the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for South-East Asia (SEARO) and Chulalongkorn University where she traveled to areas in Sri Lanka and Thailand to assess SEARO’s response to the needs of the local communities affected by the disaster.
After graduating from Stanford University, Visra returned to Thailand and worked for the Royal Government of Thailand under the Office of Knowledge Management and Development (OKMD). OKMD is a think tank promoting creative distribution of the country’s knowledge base through alternative museums and libraries, and through creative learning media including film. Visra worked closely with the Thai Film Foundation on archival projects and youth filmmaking outreach programs. She was also involved with Thailand’s first government sponsored educational virtual reality games, intended for distribution to all public schools across the country.
Visra began her film career as an actor in an independent film and
later moved on to direct her own films. Her first short film, rise, was
screened at the Thai Short Film and Video Festival in 2006 where it
gained the attention of internationally known film critic Jit Phokaew
who chose
Visra aspires to couple her background in education and film to nurture a community of artists and activists who will act as mentors for the next generations of emerging filmmakers. She is inspired and committed to creating a network of filmmakers who will use their talents to bring positive social change to their communities.