Waranya Buranakarn (Va)
Visual artist in academic exile (Comm PhD '25)
live-code practitioner
Intro
Coming from Thailand, where Buddhist-moralized politics emerged and where the grassroots are angry, I wonder which moral emotion is prioritized, and why it is prioritized. How these expressed in political communication, especially in movement mobilization and countermovement mobilization, as well as, information diffusion in platform-mediated environments.Outside of the boring job work, I explore live coding performance, and also work in anything related to text and visual.
Research Interest
Social Movement (East and Southeast Asia) including both gender movement and counter-movement
Politics of Morality and Emotion
Online Political Engagement
[State-sponsored] "strategic" communication
Computational Text Analysis
Participatory Action Research
Education
| Title | Institution | Location | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| PhD in Communication | The Chinese University of Hong Kong | Hong Kong | Present |
| Master of Arts (Journalism and Communication) | Shanghai Jiao Tong University | Shanghai, China | March 2025 |
| Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts (Journalism and Information) | Chulalongkorn University | Bangkok, Thailand | July 2020 |
| High School (German Language Concentration) | Triam Udom Suksa School | Bangkok, Thailand | March 2015 |
| Exchange Student | Max-Steenbeck Gymansium | Cottbus, Germany | May 2014 |
Current Project
LLM-Assisted Narrative Analysis of Thai Military Facebook Discourse During the 2025–2026 Thai-Cambodian Border Conflict
The Politics of Feeling Rights: Computational Textual Analysis on the 2020-21 Thai Secondary School Student's Movement
Exploring the Influence of User and Message Characteristics on Twitter Engagement: A Case of the 2019-20 Hong Kong Protests
Thai Lesbian Archive
Selected Articles and Presentations
Buranakarn, W. (2019), #ใต้พรมสาธารณสุข: วัฒนธรรม'กินหัว' ความรุนแรงเชิงโครงสร้างในสถาบันวิชาชีพหมอ-หมอฟัน [#InsideNHS: 'Kin-Hua' Culture, The Structural Violence Within Medical/ Dental School], Thai Civil Rights and Investigative Journalism(TCIJ). (ENGLISH TRANSLATION)
Buranakarn, W. (2018),จาก ‘เด็กสาวข้างบ้าน’ สู่ ‘ศาสดา’ ของเหล่าแฟน[From Girl Nextdoor to 'idol: BNK48], The 101 World.(ENGLISH TRANSLATION)
Research and Teaching Experience
| Title | Project Name | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freelance Tutor | Guangdong, China | I taught primary school Chinese kids conversational English so that they could be able to speak with foreigners using daily basis stuff to help them learn faster, and provide tools to engage with their daily life. | July 2023 |
| Research Assistant (UX&Communication) | Tamsang-Tamsong: Social Distancing promotion and Job security for motorcycle taxis and food vendors during the COVID-19 crisis. This project is funded by Thai Health Promotion Foundation, Chulalongkorn University’s Centre for Labour Research (CU_ColLaR), CU Social Innovation Hub | We do the community-based food delivery and ride-hailing platform prototype, first operated in Ladprao 101. It began after the economic consequences of the social-distancing measures for food vendors and motorcycle taxis. Thus, our action research aims to link these stakeholders under the solidarity economy framework. We research by tracking and pinpointing success factors and obstacles to ensure that this model can serve other areas in the country to increase job security and empower communities, even when the social-distancing measures are no longer in effect. | May - September 2020 |
| Volunteer Instructor | Social Media Marketing for Community Service and Social Entrepreneurs, Satit Bilingual School of Rangsit University. | I helped teach high school students from Satit Bilingual School of Rangsit University how to do social media marketing for social entrepreneurship. | May - August 2020 |
| Volunteer Instructor | Nerdy Nite by Triam Udom Suksa Alumni | Nerdy Nite Project is a formal discussion group using the Socratic seminar method; the theme includes human rights, equality, gender, feminism, refugees, and internet privacy. It encourages high school students to engage with particular issues worldwide by debating. | June 2018 |
| Research Internship | Exploring Universal Design for Disability in Thai Universities. | This project aimed to rank the Best Thai university for disabilities by researching and collecting data about universal design in Thai universities. I assisted in gathering data and information from Thammasart University and Chulalongkorn University by interviewing, investigating the university, and doing a literature review about universal design for disability. This project is done by the disability rights advocate media in Thailand, which aims to report and increase awareness to assist disabled persons in obtaining knowledge in higher education. | December 2016 |
Achievement
CU See Your Rights runner-up Award (Short Story), Chulalongkorn University (2019)
Certificate for CU Blood Coordination (Online Public Relation) , Chulalongkorn University co-op with National Blood Center under Thai Red Cross Society. (2017)
Online Freedom of Speech Short Film Grants for Youth Videographers and Filmmakers, Prachatai.(2016-2017)
Skills
Thai (Native), English (IELTS 7.5/2024, TOEFL 102/2024), Chinese (~HSK3-4), German (Read)
HTML & CSS
R Programming
Basic Python for research
Adobe Creative Suite & Canva
Figma, Lark/Feishui
Social Media and Content Management
Professional Experience
| Title | Organization | Job Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overseas Product Marketing Operation | WINK TECHNOLOGY PTE. LTD | I am responsible for conducting comprehensive research on dating apps, analyzing industry data and local Thai market news to understand trends, competitor strategies, and user behaviors, and providing actionable insights for the marketing team. I assist in developing social media content plans aligned with marketing goals and target audience preferences, and review and recommend product localization versions. | May 2024 - Present |
| Co-Founder and Brand Strategy Lead | COMMON PEOPLE | COMMON PEOPLE is a community-driven initiative launched in Sisaket, Thailand, providing a platform for individuals to share skills, socio-cultural knowledge, and creative expression. My overall responsibilities are overseeing and developing a brand strategy, brand identity, marketing materials creation, and social media management. | March 2024 - Present |
| Product Designer | NovelMonkey | I assisted in conducting market research and analyzing trends, user needs, and competitors, I also helped modify and revise existing designs to enhance user experiences. Apart from that, I create wireframes, user-flow charts, and product prototypes, and collaborate with the development team to ensure design implementation. | September - November 2023 |
| Project Manager | Songs From the Second Floor Project | I was responsible for planning and overseeing this project from the beginning to the end, which included the team recruitment process, tracking the progress, managing whole stakeholders, and solving the issue. | July - December 2022 |
| Support Analyst | Teleperformance Malaysia | As a member of the APAC multi-national team, I worked with clients on social media software products, tracking all support cases to ensure the timely resolution of open tickets and issues in the support system for end-users. I investigated end-user issues, identified problems, and escalated cases according to resolution guidelines from best business practices. Additionally, I recorded product user errors and technical issues in the database and reported on performance and errors in the workplace to the supervisor weekly. | July 2021 - July 2022 |
| Associate UX/UI | Tamsang-Tamsong | My responsibilities included collaborating with the developer team in Figma and Trello to evaluate the effectiveness of the user experience, flows, UI elements, and usability for our target audience, many of whom are not accustomed to using new technologies, and developed copywriting and navigation labels within the platform to enhance its user-friendliness for local and target users. | July - September 2021 |
| Online Journalist | SPECTRUM | Achievements included articles reaching over 10,000 users and 1,000 engagements. | December 2020 - April 2021 |
| Lead Content Editor | Feministnhoi | In my role as Lead Content Editor, I am responsible for writing and editing articles. Our website provides an intellectual virtual space for engaging in the discourse of feminism and equality in Thailand and has been mentioned by publications such as A Day Magazine, The Matter, WaveEd 101, Feminista, and True PlookPanya as one of the best resources for learning about feminism and gender issues in Thailand. | July 2018 - Present |
| Visual Artist | Self-Employed | Notable achievements include being featured in #SaveThaiDemocracy for an article published in A Day Magazine, hosting a vaporwave music event at Jam Cafe in Thailand, and organizing a public space event in response to the prime minister's Animal Farm reading endorsement. | November 2017 - Present |
| Creative Director | Bad Taste Cafe | I was managing the various social media content platform and designed graphics related to craft beers, vaporwave, and memes as they related to the brand's identity, developing a strategic plan to increase publicity of the bar, and organizing events to ensure the consistency of the bar's publicity. | 2017-2018 |
| Editorial Staff | ReadMe Egazine by TK Park | I was responsible for generating content ideas tailored to young adults, and authored lifestyle articles covering diverse topics for both online and offline publications. | 2015-2020 |
Extracurricular Activities
| Title | Organization | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Writers That Matter Workshop | Amnesty International Thailand | Workshop for writers to advocate ending enforced disappearance in Thailand | 2022 |
| Young Journalist Workshop | Thai Civil Rights and Investigative Journalist (TCIJ) | Selected as one of the young talents to learn the process of investigative journalism | 2019 |
| Young Feminist Workshop | Together Equality for All (T.E.A.) | Participated as a press during the workshop to explore the gender and sexuality issues in Thailand, especially sexual harassment and assault | 2017 |
| Volunteer Graphic Designer and Journalist | ILaw | Created infographics about educational-related law and wrote news about the draft amendment of Thai Computer Crime in concern of its censorship and abusive political usage possibility | 2017 |
| Public Relation Assistant (Digital Content Writer) | TEDxBangkok | Cooperated with the PR team to create content on various social media platforms. My responsibility included real-time tweets and relies to promote TED ideas and value | 2016 |
| Head of Public Relation | Bann Indy (Chula Freshman Orientation Group) | Supervised video content and other related stuff for promoting the group from pre- to post- production | 2016 |
selected Painting
2021
GRANDPA IN GERMANY SERIES
I tried to capture these memories of my grandpa during the time he studied abroad (the 1960s) using my own interpretation as he did not mention them much as if they will eventually cease to exist.
TRIDEVI POP
Being Southeast Asian, We developed belief systems with an influence on both India and China. There are many followers of Hindu goddesses in Thailand, although they do not necessarily believe in Hinduism. Hindu goddess represents women's divination in three aspects: Strength, Wealth, and Knowledge.
2019
BLURRED MEMORIES OF LATE GRANDPA
This work was done before my grandpa passed away from cancer. The photo behind the candle wax that I tried to burn down was from when my grandpa went to Germany. It was a foreign memory for him. Everything was like a dream. I learned that my grandpa got a scholarship when my older uncle was born. He fleed back after a while without finishing the master's degree. The work is my memorial towards him, as well as a part of my identity that he left it. I was somehow similar to him. I went to Germany as well, and I came back to Thailand earlier than I should have. Germany became our blurred memories -- my grandpa and me
Other painting works
selected Digital Art
2022
BIRTH OF VENUS BUT QUEER
2021
NANG KWAK AS A SPIRIT OF LATE CAPITALISM
Nang Kwak is one of the prominent spirit divinity of Thai folklore, she is deemed to bring good fortune, and prosperity, attract customers to a business, and be found among thai merchants. As we live in the late capitalism during covid-19, we could never be sure about our lives. We tried to find another thing to keep us alive, and we then cling to spirituality, spirits, ghosts, angel, and gods or goddesses. We hope that we could find a solution to lead our lives as we are lost generations here. Nang Kwak can be a product of late capitalism that has been lost and obscured.
2020
SEXUAL PROTEST
This is not just a visual but rather a poem, a lyrical image. At this crucial moment in Thailand's politics, though there are protests, daily lives continue without exhaustion. Sex then is a moment to escape the anxiety to come, the future that may never exist, or exist without precaution as it always is. The protest then has since begun in the bedroom; we made love with our flesh and blood. We never really escape politics since it's haunting the bed. It haunts you and me, us. The liberation must also come from the bedroom. Sexual tension is never released if we didn't embrace the anxiety to come, we never escape the existence of self and others.
Other digital art works
film/video art
2021
The Late consumerism of Thailand
another brain rot, using barbie song to understand the notion of idol, idolization and the consumerism culture of idol worship and things- I-could-not-say-because-of-the-lese-majeste law
2019
the death of vaporware and the beginning of whatever it is
Brain rot, internet culture, the nostalgia of the consumerism and late capitalism. This has shown in the live music event at Jam Cafe Bangkok in 2019 as a visual background.
2017
Within the Room Temperature around 25 Celsius
Love is merely political, there is always a power dynamic of being a couple. In "Within the Room Temperature around 25 Celsius" (ในอุณหภูมิห้องที่ประมาณ 25องศาเซลเซียส), I am exploring our political love within a Thai public sphere. [A short film for the "Jor Jew" festival, Faculty of Communication Art, Chulalongkorn University.]
Nanaoutai
nanaoutai is a short film set in a world reversed — where womanhood holds power, and men live in the shadows of denied rights. In this near-parallel reality, the rules of gender are rewritten, but the emotions remain: alienation, exclusion, quiet violence masked as order. As the line between real and unreal fades, nanaoutai asks: in a world built to mirror power, what does it mean to live with those we were never meant to understand?Thanks for Prachatai again
2016
I filmed, therefore I exist
"I film, therefore I exist" is a short film intended to explore the epistemic injustice when women were experiencing sexual assault. Women could not explain their experience, their existence. And their lack of knowledge of being assaulted makes it an unexplainable situation. This film is a women subjects investigation when they could not describe what has happened to them. They somehow keep silencing and expressing weirdly. Thus they let the 'men' speak about them, which may not be the reality that she experienced.
** Screened in WTF What The Film festival @ ChangChui in September, 2017
Unfinished Sequence 01 (or Untitled sequence 001; or ปิดกั้น-แทรกแซง)
During the era of the NCPO government, political expression was severely restricted. Organizing gatherings to express opinions or hold public assemblies was strictly prohibited. Even academic seminars or university activities were suppressed through both direct and indirect means. Sometimes, these interventions or obstructions were subtly carried out, with state officials avoiding public visibility, so that society would not perceive the efforts to silence dissent. As of the end of February 2016, there had been at least 111 instances of obstructed or intervened activities—38 were public events, and 73 were discussion-based or seminar-style activities.
Although activists sought alternative ways to express themselves through “symbolic activities” such as reading books or eating sandwiches, these actions were still banned in the name of public order and national security. When expression was not allowed, society entered a state of silence. It was as if the people had been blindfolded, not knowing who was behind it or how it was done. The information and opinions accessible to the public were limited only to what the state deemed acceptable and permitted to be shared.
Thanks for Prachatai and I-Law that help us finishing this very first film to be online.
10.18 A gift and our relationship
ของขวัญวันเกิดและความสัมพันธ์ของเขากับเธอ
ภาพยนตร์สั้นรับน้องปีสอง นิเทศศาสตร์ จุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย ปี 2559 ; It is a so-called first short film that I've done. Inspired by my conversation with a friend who has a crush with another friend of mine.
NOISE
Research
2024
User/Message Characteristics x Engagement in HK protest
2020-2021
Tamsang-Tamsong (ตามสั่ง-ตามส่ง)
- Collaborated with a team to design and launch a prototype initiative aimed at promoting social distancing and job security for motorcycle taxis and food vendors during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ladprao101.
- Assisted with prototyping and developed navigation labels to enhance user experience on the website and LINE application.
- Managed social media content to raise awareness of the project and increase its visibility, with a focus on publicity to secure future public funding.
2018
ALLIES PROJECT FOR LGBTQ+
- Assisted with data collection for a survey on the experiences of LGBTQ+ individuals in Thailand with sexual harassment.
- Conducted a literature review to support the development of a project proposal.
- Contributed to the overall research efforts of the project to promote LGBTQ+ rights and advocate for safer, more inclusive communities.
2018
EXPLORING UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR DISABILITY IN THAI UNIVERSITIES
This project aimed to rank the Best Thai university for disabilities by researching and collecting data about universal design in Thai universities.
- Assisted with data collection in the field research, contributing to the research efforts aimed at exploring universal design for disability in Thai universities, especially at Chulalongkorn University and Thammasat university.
- Conduct in-dept interviews with the responsible college staffs and the architect professor in the school
Writer and Editor's Works
My expertise has always been editorial works, I have worked in various places from TK park's magazine, 101 world, feministnhoi, spectrum and etc (both public and confidential works)
English
Double Happiness (short fiction)
The Transformation of ‘SEX’: How Technology Transforms Our Authentic Humanness — Sexuality.
Vaporwave is dead, Long live Vaporwave: The storytelling of a digital companion species and a (reincarnated) posthuman.
Thai
อาหารและห้องครัว: ภาระที่แบกรับภายใต้ความเป็น 'ผู้หญิง' (Food and Kitchen: The Institution of Domestic Violence), Nisit Journal, Chulalongkorn Journalism Undergraduate Journal.
#ใต้พรมสาธารณสุข: วัฒนธรรม 'กินหัว' ความรุนแรงเชิงโครงสร้างในสถาบันวิชาชีพ 'หมอ-หมอฟัน' (#InsideNHS: 'Kin-hua' Culture, The Structural Violence Within 'Medical/Dental' School), Thai Civil Rights and Investigative Journalism(TCIJ).
จาก 'เด็กสาวข้างบ้าน' สู่ 'ศาสดา' ของเหล่าแฟน (From 'Girl Next Door' To 'Idol': How Fan club/Otaku perceived BNK48 Girl Group.), 101 World, Thai Online Media.
‘ความฝัน’ ที่สูญหายในระบบการศึกษา กับ School Town King
Bad Taste Is Dead, Long Live Bad Taste: ความสูญสลายของคาเฟ่ (irl) ที่นักท่องเน็ตชอบสุมหัว
‘บ้านที่เต็มไปด้วยความฝัน’ ของเบสท์-วรรจธนภูมิ ลายสุวรรณชัย
ทำไม ‘มดลูก’ ต้องขูดถูกรีดเพื่อรัฐชาติ ในสังคมโลกทุนนิยมที่ผู้ชายเป็นใหญ่ ชวนคุยประเด็นนี้เมื่อ สธ.ไทยเสนอให้ ‘ปั๊มลูก’ ในวันวาเลนไทน์ หลังวิกฤตเด็กในชาติลดลง ทำให้แรงงานในชาติขาดแคลน, SPECTRUM, Thai LGBTQ Online Media’
เผด็จการประชาธิปไตย: ความพยายามดำรงอยู่ของ’อำนาจ’ และการสร้างภาพเสมือนการเมืองประชาธิปไตย
Localization and Translation
I have translated on a variety of topics, such as gender and sexuality, art, and law. Other than that, I have translated and summarized an academic literature review and other theoretical stuff that falls in philosophy, history, gender studies, Asian studies, media studies, and information/computer sciences.
Example of Localization Work
Example of Thai to English Translation Work
Example of interview translation work
COVID-19 and How it Affects Women.
Can gender equality exist under the military regime? (Thailand)
Example of English to Thai Translation Work
Ethereum.org project
8 เสียงของผู้ชายที่ถูกข่มขืนและล่วงละเมิด (แต่คนไม่เชื่อ)
“พระอัลลอฮฺนั้นยังไม่ได้ทอดทิ้งคุณ ให้เราช่วยไล่ปีศาจออกไปจากคุณ” แอคทิวิสต์ LGBT+ อินโดนีเซียถูกส่งข้อความให้ไปบำบัดเพศ ด้วยพิธีของอิสลาม ‘รุกยะฮฺ’ กับการ ข่มขืน ช็อตไฟ และ ไล่ผี
มนุษย์เริ่ม ‘จูบ’ กันมานานแล้ว ตั้งแต่ยุคก่อนประวัติศาสตร์ สรุปวิจัยทางโบราณคดีและเซ็กซ์ชิ้นสำคัญล่าสุดจาก BBC FUTURE กับการผสมข้ามพันธุ์ของ NEANDERTHAL และ EARLY MODERN HUMAN
Design Works
Poster Design
Social Media Post
Layout Design
User Experience
2025
Launch Event
“Nong Koey Ma Tao Rai” & “Tamsang-Tamsong”
Applications for a Solidarity Economy
I was helping doing an event and experiment design in the space, organizing this launch event for a solidarity economy platform for motorcycle rider taxi in Bangkok
2023
Fictio's Redesign
I helped redesign the existing application of the company to make it more user-friendly
2022
Songs From the Second Floor
I created the draft user flow diagram based on the team leader's scattered ideas, and then coordinated with the developer to make the web-app for this experimental installation art exhibition to become fully function.
Due to the Budget and the tight timeline, we used on-budget external resources available online to make the most of the user experience, both in the web app and the exhibition.
Below was the sample draft design of the page that is used for inputting the data from the UI designer, however, the final app was changed to match the output display.
2020-2021
Tamsang-Tamsong Project
For this startup project which was once an active research, I was mostly in charge of all parts of the writing, user experience journey and flows, and copyediting, with some SEOs. Aside from this, I was also in charge of various communication fields from the UX to manage the online visibility of the project to raise funding.
