How a Tiny Photo in a Bangkok Bookshop Led to an Epic Alexander the Great Film Location

Back in 2003, I was on a scouting mission in Thailand for an HBO show about Alexander the Great called Fire from Heaven. One of the biggest challenges? Finding the perfect dramatic high river vista. This was before the days of easy internet research, so I spent hours flipping through every picture book I could find.

One day, while browsing a small bookshop in Bangkok, I spotted a tiny photo in the corner of the back page of a book about Ubon Ratchathani province. It was a stunning view from Pha Taem National Park — a sweeping panorama over the Mekong River.

I asked my local producer, Piya Pestonji from Santa Films, “Have you scouted Ubon Ratchathani before?” He hadn’t, so I said, “Let’s go tomorrow.”

We caught the first flight to Ubon Ratchathani early the next morning and drove straight to the park. When I saw that view in person — cliffs towering above the Mekong, mist rising from the jungle, the river winding endlessly ahead — I knew I’d found something truly special. I took as many photos as I could.

Unfortunately, the Fire from Heaven project was eventually shelved, so the show was never made. But a few months later, Iain Smith, a producer, called me about scouting for Oliver Stone’s film Alexander. I was already committed elsewhere and couldn’t take the job.

Then, Piya messaged me with some incredible news: he had shown Oliver Stone my photo of Pha Taem, and Oliver said, “This is where we’re shooting.” And they did.

It’s amazing how a small, almost overlooked photo in a dusty Bangkok bookshop turned into the backdrop for one of the biggest epic films about Alexander the Great. Sometimes, the best discoveries come from the most unexpected places.

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