Stills and stillness in Apichatpong Weerasethakul's cinema

Song Hwee Lim has argued that 'slow cinema' can be formally identified by its employment of stillness and silence. Expanding on Lim's arguments, this book chapter explores the use of stills and stillness in Apichatpong Weerasethakul's feature films, especially 'Syndromes and a Century' and 'Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives'. The chapter traces the ways in which photography and the still image are deployed in Apichatpong's output, and connects his films with those by Chris Marker; it also examines the Thai director's use of 'cinematic stillness', and compares this with films by Andy Warhol. The essay argues for a broader understanding of 'stillness' in cinema than Lim's arguments allow, and identifies how moments of stillness in cinema can have political force.