Sompote Saengduenchai ( th, สมโพธิ แสงเดือนฉาย; ; 24 May 1941 – 26 August 2021), internationally known as Sompote Sands, was a Thai film director, special effects creator and producer best known for directing several Thai films especially ''

tokusatsu is a Japanese term for live action film or television drama that makes heavy use of practical special effects. ''Tokusatsu'' entertainment mainly refers to science fiction, War film, war, fantasy, or Horror film, horror media featuring such te ...

'' (special effects-based) genre or

monster films A monster movie, monster film, creature feature or giant monster film is a film that focuses on one or more characters struggling to survive attacks by one or more antagonistic monsters, often abnormally large ones. The film may also fall und ...

such as '' The 6 Ultra Brothers vs. the Monster Army'', '' Jumborg Ace & Giant'', the illegally produced '' Hanuman and the Five Riders'', the 1980 cult classic ''

Crocodile Crocodiles (family (biology), family Crocodylidae) or true crocodiles are large semiaquatic reptiles that live throughout the tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. The term crocodile is sometimes used even more loosely to inclu ...

'', '' Phra Rod Meree'' and the 1985 fantasy monster film '' Magic Lizard''. He was the founder and owner of Chaiyo Productions based in

Bang Pa-in Bang Pa-in ( th, บางปะอิน, ) is one of the 16 districts (''amphoe'') of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province, central Thailand. History Bang Pa-in was established in the Ayutthaya era in the name ''Khwaeng'' Uthai. In the Rattanako ...

, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya.

Early life

Born as the youngest son in a

Thai Chinese Thai Chinese (also known as Chinese Thais, Sino-Thais), Thais of Chinese origin ( th, ชาวไทยเชื้อสายจีน; ''exonym and also domestically''), endonym Thai people ( th, ชาวไทย), are Chinese descenda ...

family in the outskirts Bangkok, Sompote's father was a Chinese immigrant from

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

. While he was studying at grade three, Sompote became a freelance photographer. His work was to take photos of

King Bhumibol Bhumibol Adulyadej ( th, ภูมิพลอดุลยเดช; ; ; (Sanskrit: ''bhūmi·bala atulya·teja'' - "might of the land, unparalleled brilliance"); 5 December 192713 October 2016), conferred with the title King Bhumibol the Great ...

in a boy scout uniform. A photo was published on the cover of ''Chaiyaphruek'', a youth magazine at that time. He was also a private photographer for Jim Thompson. At the age of 15, he was the youngest photographer for ''

Siam Rath ''Siam Rath'' ( th, สยามรัฐ, , ; lit.: 'Siamese State') is a Thai newspaper founded on 25 June 1950. It was one of the most politically influential newspapers during the latter half of the twentieth century, and was closely associat ...

'', a newspaper with M.R.

Kukrit Pramoj Mom Rajawongse Kukrit Pramoj ( th, คึกฤทธิ์ ปราโมช, , ; 20 April 1911 – 9 October 1995) was a Thai politician, scholar and professor. He was Speaker of the House of Representatives of Thailand 1973–1974. He was t ...

as the owner and editor.

Tsuburaya co-productions and resulting controversies

In 1996, Sands presented

Tsuburaya Productions is a Japanese special effects studio founded in 1963 by special effects wizard Eiji Tsuburaya and was run by his family, until October 2007, when the family sold the company to advertising agency TYO Inc. The studio is best known for producing t ...

with a document claiming that he had ownership of the international rights of

Ultraman ''Ultraman'', also known as the , is the collective name for all media produced by Tsuburaya Productions featuring Ultraman, his many brethren, and the myriad monsters. Debuting with ''Ultra Q'' and then ''Ultraman'' in 1966, the series is one ...

, the

Ultra Series ''Ultraman'', also known as the , is the collective name for all media produced by Tsuburaya Productions featuring Ultraman (character), Ultraman, his many brethren, and the myriad monsters. Debuting with ''Ultra Q'' and then ''Ultraman (1966 ...

before 1974, and

Jumborg Ace is the titular superhero of a tokusatsu science fiction/kaiju/superhero TV series. Produced by Tsuburaya Productions, the show was broadcast on Mainichi Broadcasting System from January 17 to December 29, 1973, with a total of 50 episodes. This wa ...

. These were all the properties licensed to Chaiyo Productions by Tsuburaya to direct the films '' The 6 Ultra Brothers vs. the Monster Army'' and '' Jumborg Ace & Giant''. He claimed they were turned over to him twenty years earlier in 1976 by the patriarch of the Tsuburaya brand, Noboru Tsuburaya, who died the year before. While Chaiyo were licensed to create international material based on these licenses, they had also created original characters under the Ultraman name, starting a franchise called "Project Ultraman". Initially set to release films and television series under this name, they were ordered by Thailand courts to cease and desist anything they were doing outside of the original licenses in April 2007. On November 20, 2017, a Los Angeles Federal Court ruled that Sands, nor his companies Chaiyo and UM Corporation, did not have ownership of the brand after a jury found that the 1976 document was not authentic. The final judgement on April 18, 2018, forbids him and his companies to use the Ultra Franchise and all of its related characters, forcing him and the company to pay infringement damages.

Death

Sands died of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

on 26 August 2021, at the age of 80.

Filmography

Films *'' Tah Tien'' (1973) *'' Jumborg Ace & Giant'' ''(Yuk Wud Jaeng Vs. Jumbo A)'' (1974) *'' The 6 Ultra Brothers vs. the Monster Army'' ''(Hanuman pob Jed Yodmanud)'' (1974) *'' Hanuman and the Five Riders'' ''(Hanuman pob Har Aimoddaeng)'' (1974) (A controversial production that was made without the consent of the creators of the

Kamen Rider series The , also known as ''Masked Rider Series'' (until Decade), is a Japanese superhero media franchise consisting of tokusatsu television programs, films, manga, and anime, created by manga artist Shotaro Ishinomori. ''Kamen Rider'' media genera ...

.) *''Yod Manut Computer'' (1977) *''Land of Grief (Pandin Wippayoke)'' (1978) *'' Ka Ki'' (1980) *''

'' ''(Chorakhe)'' (1980) *''Kraithong'' (1980) *'' Phra Rod Meree'' (1981) *''

Khun Chang Khun Phaen ''Khun Chang Khun Phaen'' ( th, ขุนช้างขุนแผน, ) is a long Thai epic poem which originated from a legend of Thai folklore and is one of the most notable works in Thai literature. The work's entire length is over 20,000 ...

: Prab Chorakhe Tan Kwand'' (1982) *''Phra Chao Suea Panthai-Norasing'' (1982) *''Noble War'' ''(Suek Kumphakan)'' (1984) *''Space Warriors 2000'' ''(Hanuman pop Sib-et Yodmanud)'' (1984) *''Kraithong II'' (1985) *'' Magic Lizard'' ''(King-ka kay-a-sit)'' (1985) Television films/ Series *''Kraithong'' (1972) Channel 7 *''

Phra Aphai Mani Phra Aphai Mani is a 48,700-line Epic poetry, epic poem composed by Thai poet Sunthorn Phu ( th, สุนทรภู่), who is known as "the Bard of Rattanakosin" ( th, กวีเอกแห่งกรุงรัตนโกสินท ...

'' (1973) Channel 3 *''Yai Ka Ta'' *''Long Prai'' *''Project Ultraman'' (suspended broadcast due to court judgment)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sands, Sompote 1941 births 2021 deaths Deaths from cancer Special effects people

Sompote Sands Sompote Saengduenchai ( th, สมโพธิ แสงเดือนฉาย; ; 24 May 1941 – 26 August 2021), internationally known as Sompote Sands, was a Thai film director, special effects creator and producer best known for directing ...