My name is Jim Brewer and I’m a documentary photographer and filmmaker. My career has taken me to a few different parts of the world,
but having lived in Bangkok for 17 years it's the place, if asked, that I would probably best describe as home.
Although, of course, there is good and bad everywhere, in my time in Asia I have come to witness the tolerance and generosity of spirit that underpins many societies here and allows typically for a non-confrontational approach to life and to work.
Even though the image – and often the reality – is of kindness and hospitality, in recent times Thailand's reputation as a host, particularly towards migrant workers, has come under some scrutiny. Stories frequently appear in the printed press about the conditions of workers and there exist evidence of incidents of abuse online.
Never easily satisfied, I was motivated to understand the exact nature of the truth first-hand and when invited, I was keen to be involved in a documentary revealing more about the reality of migrant workers in Thailand.
Initially it's of note to look at the scale of the issue. I found that the number
of migrant workers who were permitted to work in Thailand by the Department of Employment’s Office of Foreign Workers Administration, exceeded 1,900,000. I also found out that the majority of workers were from Myanmar, that they lived in various provinces in Thailand and worked in different kinds of industries such as fishery, textiles and sugarcane.