(news.sawf.org) - The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), organiser of the Bangkok International Film Festival for four consecutive years, said the fifth festival would no longer take place as scheduled on January 26 to February 5.
"The festival will be rescheduled to early July and TAT will announce the exact date early next month," TAT spokesman Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya told AFP.
TAT said the cinema hosting the gala had pulled out because of "financial considerations".
"This unexpected decision has compelled TAT to significantly alter its preparations, which had been having good progress until the sudden position change by the theater operator," the statement said.
Organisers have said they hope the festival will eventually rival Busan in South Korea as Asia's leading film event.
The last Bangkok International Film Festival in February this year boasted directors Oliver Stone and Terry Gilliam and actors Willem Dafoe and Catherine Deneuve, but was also dogged by controversy.
It was marred by a spat between TAT and the Thai film industry federation, which complained it had not been adequately consulted and pulled several films, including the Oscar-winning "Brokeback Mountain".