We Chat with Founder of Wonderfruit Festival, Pranitan “Pete” Phornpraha

PUBLISHED September 28th, 2016 07:00 am | UPDATED March 26th, 2019 01:13 pm

Originally scheduled for December 2016, Thailand’s globally conscious, boutique camping festival Wonderfruit recently made the decision to postpone until February 16-19, 2017 to honor the passing of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej and respect the country’s mourning period.

Having said so, the nature and wonders at Wonderfruit has managed to ‘wow’ us twice and we can’t contain our excitement for the upcoming edition in February 2017. While we’re still two months away from the 4-day celebration of immersive arts, including music, farm-to-table feasts, health and wellness, talks, workshops, and natural adventures, we chat up with founder of the festival, Pranitan “Pete” Phornpraha about all things Wonderfruit. 

Wonderfruit is running for its third year, what can we expect for the upcoming edition?

I think that now, in year three, we have a clear purpose that goes beyond providing entertainment, and that transcends the four days of the event itself. We are more comfortable as a creative unit now, and I think it will show in the content we produce going forward.

For example, this year we are excited to make a social and artistic statement with our brand new Farm Stage, which is based on traditional ceremonial structures and built entirely of rice from local farmers’ yields. Placed within our rice farm, it’s not just a beautiful performance space, but a demonstration of our ethos and national heritage. Our series of seminars will center this year around eco heroes, most of whom come from around the region. They are small people doing huge things, with inspiring stories to tell. Additionally, we are going to focus more experiences and activities around sunrise and sunset.

What is the one defining characteristic of Wonderfruit that sets it apart from other festivals in the region?

Wonderfruit is distinct in the sense that sustainability was our starting point and then the fun and activities were curated around that, whereas other events are perhaps approached the other way around.

Where do you draw your inspiration (from design to set productions to music) from?

Besides our core values of social awareness and sustainability, which informs everything we do, a lot of our inspiration comes from being Thai people in Thailand, so our culture is infused into all aspects of the event. That’s important to us, but it’s also inevitable.

The festival’s ambition to be completely sustainable within five years. How is that progressing?

In the first two years we started with initiatives including making biodegradable, reusable water bottles available for all guests on site and insisting our food vendors use recyclable plates. Our artists and engineers use natural and recyclable materials in our build to create many of the structures and stages. Since we own the land, we can take more initiatives: we don’t rely on external water sources, but use a water filtration system, pumped from a natural lake, which is used throughout the site.

The Wonderfruit farm is always being expanded and we’ve started targeted landscaping so that we can use our plants and trees. This year, we’re pledging to offset the event’s carbon emissions by investing in Rimba Raya Biodiversity Reserve in in Borneo, Indonesia. Going forward, we aspire to be a catalyst for positive change, and will continue to look for creative ways to live sustainably and responsibly and be a net positive influence on the planet.

How would you describe Wonderfruit to someone who has never been before in ten words or less?

An inspiring, diverse, multicultural, hedonistic, mindful celebration of the arts.

What are your future plans for Wonderfruit?

I want it to be regarded as more than a festival. Hopefully, if we continue on this trajectory, we can get to a stage where it will be seen as a way of life, a broad and all-encompassing platform that promotes and celebrates positive, impactful social change.

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Wonderfruit Festival has been postponed due to 16 – 19 February 2017 at The Fields at Siam Country Club, Pattaya, Thailand. For more information, please visit their website.

Also read: The Wonderfruit Festival 2015 Experience