79 - UNT Digital Library

3AlIMUAY THAI (THAI BOXING)THESISPresented to the Graduate Council of theNorth Texas State University in PartialFulfillment of the RequirementsFor the Degree ofMASTER OF ARTSByAbhijati Jusakul,Denton,May,Texas1986B.A.79

Jusakul, Abhijati, Muay TMI ljThaiArts, May,1986,27 pp., 3 titles.Muay Thai (Thai Boxing)itsMaster ofBoxingj.is a kind of self-defense withown forms of fighting which are different from the self-defensestyleswrestling,fightingof other countries,Karate,Taekon-do,for self-defenseetc.whetheritisin a form ofMuay Thai is not onlybut also an art and sciencedemonstrated by using various parts of body and movementresulting into formsof offensedocumentary film was made forand defense.educational purpose and tospread the art of Thai Boxing to foreigners.wasused as a medium to presenttwosegmentssegmenttechniquesthisof Muay Thai.VHS video tapedocumentary.in this Muay Thai Documentary.presents the history,Thiscircumstances,ThereareThe firstand generalThe second segment shows theeveryday life of ordinary boxers by using a Thai child namedNoppadol as an representative for other fighters.

TABLE OF CONTENTSPageTHETREATMENT.SCRIPT -- -.PROBLEMSVIDEOTAPEANDw w w r w w s " " w w # r w r wSOLUTIONS.1wrt"!""iiiM"M" r w w w w r x r n w r w wrtei"f3s7.FILM, "r""rwrwr"reurfrwww r b"21r!1"t#rfM"

THE FILM TREATMENTI

2FILM TREATMENTTITLE:MUAY THAI (Thai Boxing)AUDIENCE:Strangers to ThailandTHEME:Muay Thai is a kind of self-defencewith itsown forms of fighting whichare differentfrom the self-defensestyles of other countries, whether itis in a form of wrestling,kon-do,etc.Karate,Tae-Muay Thai is not onlyfighting for self-defense but also anart and science demonstrated by usingvarious parts of the body and movementthat result into forms of offense anddefense.PURPOSE:This documentary film was made foreducational purpose and to spread theart of Thai Boxing to foreignersforbetter knowledge and understanding ofMuay Thai.LENGTH:20 minutes.FILM STOCK:VHS video tape, NTSC standard.PLOT DESCRIPTION:The Thai people originated from thecentralpart of China,then emigratedto the south to escape from thewarlords and to find a better

3location for settlement.During the journey,they had to fightand protect themselves from warlords,disease,and the local populace,causing their people be always readywhether in time of war or peace.trained to protect themselvesTheyin timeof peace to be ready for the nextfight.Therefore,one can really saythat Muay Thai has been developed for along period of time.Muay Thai is an art of fighting thatuses various parts of the body,fists, knees,elbows,feet,both offense and defense.Boxing Tournament hasdevelopedsuch asetc.forThe Thaiprogressivelyby changing the rules andregulations according to the WesternHemisphere type but they stronglyretained the sensational parts of MuayThai.Every Thai kids is involved withMuay Thai from birth,and everyoneknows the sport exceptionally well.Some of them make a living by becomeprofessional fighters.NOPPADOL PANYOI is another Thai kid who

4dreams of becoming a Champion inprofessional Muay Thai,NOPPADOLentered into boxing ring at the age of11 years old.old,Presently,he's 14 yearsand has been boxing professionallywith support from his father for morethan 60 bouts,loses.with a record of only 4NOPPADOL's lifeis veryinteresting, because everyday he has togo to school like every other kid thesame age,but the difference is this.Instead of going home to do hishomework or studies, he has to go tothe training camp to build up the bodyand his energy,techniquesand to learn newin offensive and defensivestrategies to be ready for his nextfight.The reason that NOPPADOL has workedharder than the other kidshis family is very poor.is becauseHis fatherhas raised the family with the moneyfrom his hair-cutting businessis not enough.Therefore,and itNOPPADOL,the eldest of the kids in the family,must find a way to help supporttheas

5family by becoming a boxer.He used to get paid with very smallamount of money in the past, but now,since he started making a name with agood record of fighting,the purseincreased for each fight and he is ableto help the family to live morecomfortably than before.We allbelieve that the road to thechampionship for NOPPADOL is not toofar off,and when that day comes,everyone in his family will be veryhappy and live a better lifethan whatthey do now.There are 2 segments in this MUAY THAIFIRST SEGMENTcircumstances,This segment recalls the history,and generalinformation from books,MUAY THAI.documentary:Besides alltechniques of MUAY THAI by usingrecommended by various masters ofof these,there is stock footage fromthose who love this sport and have recorded the contests ofMUAY THAI on 16 mm.film.The first segment has been made in black and white andthen dyed with Sepia to give afeelingofthe past.

6SECOND SEGMENTThis segment shows the lifeof one Thai kidnamed NOPPADOL who is involved with MUAY THAI in order tohelp cover the family's expenses by going to school andboxing whenever the opportunities occur.This segment also shows the everyday life of ordinaryboxers withthe hard training to build up their energy andtoughness, and thelearning of new techniques both offensiveand defensive from trainers who were ex-fighters themselvesin the past.There is also the present bout in this segment,using NOPPADOL as a representative for other fighters.This segmentis made with natural color and environmentshowing the difference in time from the firstsegment.

THE SCRIPT7

8(THAI BOXING)MUAY THAI1. TITLE2.'MUAY THAI'(An old Thai book is(fadeon and out)--Music--The Thai people as a race hasdeserved sympathy for a veryopened.)long time, that is,from thebeginning of the Buddhist erauntil the present.They wereconstantly harassed and theirpeaceful existencedisturbeduntil about 25 B.C. when theyleftlandthe rich and fertilecalled THAI MUANG, on bothsides of YANGTZE and HWANG HOrivers in central China to theSouth.--For reasons of security and toensure theirfuture freedom,asystem of self-defense wasdevised which aftergenerations of changesimprovements resultedandin a setof rules and regulations.--During times of peace,the

9Thais trained under theguidance ofwarriors,experiencedlearning thedifferent fighting techniquesbased on the manual,substituting thereal weapon,but often"arm" for thein other words,practicing unarmed combat,orwhat is commonly known toThais as DEE MUAY or Boxing.3.Stockfootage of the oldThai Boxers.Muay Thai--(Film 16 mm)isthe artof self-defense using various parts ofthe body.Because it is basedon the principleof"doing nomore than necessary to teach alesson",it is equally wellsuited to be used as acompetitive sport as well as a"fight to the finish".-Muay Thai isscience,havea philosophy,and art,aunlikely tocome about easily or bychance.Itisthe resultdiligence,perseverance,and error,and endlessoftrail

10practice sessions to masterthose techniquesthattransform a beginnerinto anexpert.4. C.U. the pictures of theThai boxersin the past.--Inthe old days the horse hidethongs were later replaced byhemp ropesor starched stripsof cotton soaked in gluebefore being tied to a boxer'shands.Itis also said thatfor some matches and with theagreement of both contestants,ground glass was mixed withthe glue.The fighters woregroin guards of tree bark orsea shells held in place witha piece of cloth tied betweenthe legs and around the waist.In those days there were nosuch arrangements as weightdivisions,round.or three-minutesA bout lasted as longas a fighter could continue.Many a boxer is said to haveleftthe arena on a bamboo

11stretcher--dead.5.Stock footage of the old--Muay Thai is said to haveMuay Thai techniques.basic techniques.(sub--titles)have been the case in the oldThis might-Montho Nangtanndays but certainly doesn't-Jorrakhae Fardharnghold true today.-Hork Mokhasakdays each move was known by a-Morn Tangkritcomplicated name,-Khonkaow Prasumainincomprehensible to a layman,-Huchkguang Aiyaraand often in no way relatedIn the oldquiteto its function.--A number of techniques existin theory only.neitherThey areseen during training,nor are they ever used in thering.6.Stock footage of theuse of fists.--Basically, Muay Thai employsof punches,elbow attacks,knee kicks,and foottechniques.Today,usesthe fistMuay Thaiin a fashionsimilar to that of westernstyle boxing,punch,jab,like straightreverse punch,hook,swing,and uppercut.

127.Stock footage of theuse--The useof elbowsa veryistypical Muay Thai short-rangeof elbows.weapon,which is also employedat longer distances when usedwith jump.Every fighter isproficient in its use andfully aware if the damage itis capable of--inflicting.The elbow has the distinctioncausing the highest number ofinjuries.8.Stock footage of the--The most powerful anddevastating piece of equipmentuse of knees.in the Muay Thai arsenal isknee,likes elbow, used mainlyfor in-fighting.becomes aItlong-range weapon when used incombination with a jumpingattack.areKnee kicksdirected at part of the body,though the main targets arethe solar--plexus,kidneys,ribs and head.9. Stock footage of theuse ofkicks.--The Round Kick is thewell known Muay Thaitrade

13mark,delivered with theinstep or lower shin,tworather sensitive parts of theleg that have been toughenedto an unbelievable degree.The Round Kick is directed atany part of the body and hasbeen responsible for a greatnumber of first-roundknockouts.10. Pictures of the--Most Muay Thai fighters arepresent Muay Thaifrom provinces,boxers.promise by beating the boxersafterin their own area,showinghave movedto the city in search of fameand fortune.11.Noppadol in the classNoppadol Punyoi is another kidwho dreaming of becoming theroom.C. U.--Noppadol then zoomout to L.S.champion of Muay Thai.He's only 14 years old, andhave been boxingprofessionallyfor 4 years.From the record of 60 boutsaround the countrycity,and in thehe lost only 4 times.

1412.(From11.)Noppadol has to go theeveryday and tryschoolto do thebest he can like any otherkids in school.13. Noppadol walking out ofHe's a happy kid beloved byhis class.14.Interviewing (teacher)his teachers and friends.--Noppadol Punyoi is the studentin Math and Science,(sub-title)with good grade.studentLearning inschool and boxing to makemoney--in thesametime.In general, he has goodbehavior,neat,and shouldhave good support in what he'strying to accomplish.15.Noppadol walking tothe camp.--Music (fade in)--Music (fade out)--Everyday after school,Noppadol has to go to thetraining camp and starts workout to learn new techniques,including offensivedefensivefrom trainerandto keepin shape and be ready for the

15next fight.16.The way of practicing--(Background sound)--For Noppadol, he's veryand environment of thetraining17.camp.Interviewing (Trainer)(Noppadolinterested in his training,is thebackground)his future,(sub-title)and trying to makemoney for his family,in thesame time wishes to be thechampion in the future.18.Practicing (owner andThe camp owner and trainertrainer) of a couple ofwill worked very hard withboxers and Noppadol.Noppadol and other boxers toimprove their skill andtactics to be more experiencein delivering their punch andkick.19.Interviewing (The camp--For Noppadol.is the hope ofowner and Noppadol)training camp that have put so(sub-title)much time and energy for himto become a champion,providethat he did not get out of hisway and ruin hiscareer.