The story
The movie
Twenty-three years old, with a first class honours degree and forty-eight grand in student loans, Emily Davidson’s sick and tired of being told she’s part of the ‘Snowflake Generation,’ accused of having unrealistic expectations and an over-inflated sense of their own importance.All Emily wants is a chance and she knows she has to strive to get it. There’s no easy route into political journalism – she has to make a splash.
Emily sees a world of senseless wars, western democracy in crisis, the re-emergence of the far right. The rich get richer, the poor and vulnerable can go to hell, and drugs are the only escape for millions. Yet the media is full of football, celebrities and fake news.
Her generation didn’t create this screwed up world – but they’re going to inherit it. Armed only with a video camera, Emily sets out to shine a light on the chaos – starting at the bottom of the heap - South-East Asia, where poverty and the drugs trade are endemic.
Her journey takes her to Bangkok, where the darkest side of Asia and western capitalism collide in spectacular fashion.
Daeng is the street-wise local who promises to guide her through the underbelly of Thai society and deliver the perfect coup de grace for her film. Dah is also trying to make her way in a world where the odds are stacked against her but in Thailand there are few choices for a local girl who needs money fast. Emily discovers that the drug of choice in Bangkok is a form of amphetamine -YaBa - literally... Crazy Medicine. She sets out to trace it's path from producer to eager consumer. It’s a ride that challenges all of Emily’s preconceptions – and delivers a terrifying lesson. It’s almost impossible to get that close to a big story without becoming a part of it.
The original short
Crazy Medicine first appeared in an anthology called Thai Lottery.... and Other Stories from Pattaya, Thailand by Matt Carrell. When we decided to produce a short film based on this original concept, Matt combined the plot with that of another story in the same collection and replaced "party girl" Emily with the driven young woman who appears in our movie. The story on which this movie was based is now available as a e-book or in paperback. Please just click the cover below -
Check out all of Matt Carrell's books on Amazon
