Joe Cummings Talks Movies, Writing and Tourism Recovery [S5.E8]

Greg and Ed do a tag team interview of legendary Thailand
expat Joe Cummings, a renaissance man and expert on Thai culture
if there ever was one. Joining us during a break on his latest
film role, Joe and Greg discuss how they met in the jungles of
Mae Hong Son 18 years ago, and discuss how Joe went from being
known primarily as a writer (most famously founding Lonely Planet
Thailand) to being an actor, musician and consultant on Southeast
Asian mythology and culture, most recently for the Disney film
'Raya and the Last Dragon'. Although a consummate traveler and
consumer of Thai nightlife, Joe also explains that he has two
Master's Degrees, one in Southeast Asian Studies and one in
Applied Linguistics. It's safe to say Joe's expertise is grounded
both in the academic world and the real world of his hundreds of
adventures in Thailand and around the world. 


The guys then traverse a wide range of subjects from the
apparent increase in Asian representation in American cinema to
the extent to which both the U.S. and Thailand are really
'melting pots' of different ethnicities. Joe then discusses a
recent documentary film on the controversial Dhammakaya sect of
Buddhism that is based in Thailand. 


Part One of the interview concludes with Joe's take on the
future of Thai tourism in light of the COVID pandemic. Many more
interesting topics await in next week's Part Two. 


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