8 Chinese nationals held in Chiang Mai for illegal series production
Eight Chinese nationals were arrested for illegally filming a social media drama series without permission in an accommodation in the Hang Dong district in Chiang Mai.
Officers from Tourist Police Division 2 acted on a complaint that a group of Chinese nationals had rented accommodation in the district and were using it as a filming location. The complainants questioned whether the group had obtained the required permits.
Police inspected the property and found eight members of a production crew filming a short-form drama intended for distribution on social media platforms. This format of short series has recently gained popularity among Thai online audiences as well.
The group admitted they had not applied for official permission to carry out the production. One member of the team, identified as Wei, told officers that Chiang Mai was chosen as the filming location due to its popularity among Chinese nationals.
Investigators found that all eight individuals had entered Thailand on tourist visas and did not hold valid work permits.
Police informed the group that film production in Thailand must comply with the Film and Video Act and requires oversight from relevant government agencies.
Under the law, content and scripts must be reviewed in advance to ensure they do not damage the country’s image or present misleading information. Violations of the Film and Video Act can result in fines of up to 1 million baht.
The eight suspects were initially charged with working without permission, which carries penalties ranging from 5,000 to 50,000 baht, deportation, and a ban on applying for a work permit for two years.
Further action related to the filming offence will be considered by the Thailand Film Office under the Department of Tourism.
In a similar case in February, 46 foreign extras were arrested in Krabi for filming a television series without permission at an abandoned mine. The group included individuals from the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Iraq and Morocco, and the production was reportedly set in Dubai.
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