The Most Cinematic Thailand Videos You'Ve Ever Seen!

[8milesfromhome]

8 Miles from home (Moving to Thailand) Episode 1

A Cinematic Travel Vlog. Detailing the lives of a Man, Woman & Dog as they embark on an adventure to emigrate to Thailand in search of a new start. This is a real life story of a couple that have always wanted more than an ordinary life and decided to do something about it.

Sacha & Jmayel El-haj are a married couple from the UK. 7 Years ago after a One Year Round the World Trip, they set out to find a way to make money online so that they could fund a more permanent travel solution. In the episodes to follow you will find out how they set this plan into action, and how the resulting lifestyle change will affect them.

8 miles from home (Songkran Festival Chiang Mai 2012) Episode 2

A few days after arriving in Chiang Mai to start a new life. Our Team of adventurers ended up in the center of Songkran Festival 2012. Where 1000's of Thai people and Farangs hit the city streets dowsing each other in icy cold water and jumping into the moat surrounding the city.

Chiang Mai is reported to be one of the best places to experience this unique festival which marks the beginning of the Thai new year. The celebrations lasted for 5 days so if you didn't want to get wet, you didn't go outside.

The '8 miles from home' team got straight into the heart of the action to produce this cinematic video of Songkran Festival 2012. Its possibly the Best Songkran Video you can find online at present.

If you like what you see... We'll see you in Thailand Next Year.

If you were there for Songkran Festival Chiang Mai 2012 then check to see if you made the cut into the final video. There are some funny clips!

Edited June 7, 2012 by 8milesfromhome

[8milesfromhome]

8 miles from home Episode 3 (Real Living in Chiang Mai Thailand)

Episode 3 sees our travelling trio experiencing the reality of emigration to Chiang Mai in Thailand. It's not all plain sailing as some might believe.

Sacha, Jmayel & Eden El-haj give you a cinematic insight into what can actually happen when you uproot your entire life and move country.

In 3 weeks they have had to tackle numerous time consuming tasks such as;

-Renting a house in Thailand

-Buying a car in Thailand

-Finding a mechanic in Thailand

-Shopping for household equipment in Thailand

-Learning Thai to communicate with the Thai Locals

& many more issues that will be covered in later episodes

8 miles from home Episode 4 (Driving a mk1 Escort from Bangkok to Chiang Mai)

A cinematic vlog of our adventures in Thailand. In this episode J is burdened with the responsibility to travel from Chiang Mai to Bangkok alone on the night train. Buy a car from a man he has never spoken to and drive 700kms back home in time to move house before the landlord returns from his holiday.

As with all adventures, not everything goes to plan...

More coming Soon!

[MrRed]

Very enjoyable watch and wish you good luck in your travels,enjoyed the commentary and love your dog!

Edit How much did you pay for the car?

Edited June 7, 2012 by MrRed

[8milesfromhome]

The car was 70000 baht but we asked the seller to fit AC before we bought it so i paid 85000 in total for it. The guy was british and had a couple of them for sale on thaivisa classifieds.

[UdeBoCM]

Excellent filming and editing! Bravo!

[8milesfromhome]

glad you like it. We are currently working on episode 5 which covers some of the beautiful scenery of Pai in North Thailand. Should be up soon!

[thelongshoot]

I thought that was pretty cool man. Very well made video and despite what the misserable bugger said about "real Songkran" or whatever i also thought it was one of the beter Songkran vids ive seen.

Seem like a real sound couple as well. Wish them the best of luck

[8milesfromhome]

Episode 5 is a testament to the beauty of North Thailand. Sometimes overlooked by holiday makers coming to Thailand, the North really has some stunning scenic areas to visit that are full of culture and relaxing atmospheres.

In this episode Sacha & Jmayel Celebrate their 1st year wedding anniversary by driving their old mk1 escort to Pai in the Mae Hong Son Province. There they visit the places that they remember from their Round the World Travels years ago when they were just 21. But this time with Eden the Dog in tow.

Returning to the Iconic Coffee shop that made them decide to move to Thailand in 2012. 'All About Coffee'. And climbing to the top of 'Wat Phra That Mae Yen' to soak in the beautiful panoramic landscape views.

Until Next Time, Enjoy this sweet taste of Thailand!

- 8 miles from home


If you like what we do, find more at:

8milesfromhome.tumblr.com
www.facebook.com/8milesfromhome
www.twitter.com/8milesfromhome Edited June 25, 2012 by 8milesfromhome

[msg362]

Nice video , enjoyed it, very well edited. Can I make some suggestions?

Sometimes the 'non horizontal ' shots don't work, pans of scenery maybe better truly horizontal, as are shots in houses.

Other effects, speeding up, slowing down, distract a bit

Your voice overs are great for your friends, but are often obscured by the high level of the music track. I can't do voice overs unless I practice to slow down A LOT, maybe go back and listen again? You can always fade down the music while you are speaking then raise it again if you want.

I've just got back from that area,it's great, very leafy at present. If you go again, try to visit Mae Hong Song, a wonderful Wat on the hill, great little town, less 'touristy' than Pai. The airport is amazing, almost in the high street.

Cheers

( BTW my previous comment was just a send up, great videos but maybe not 'the best')

[samsiam]

nice.....well put together....

Edited June 26, 2012 by samsiam

[8milesfromhome]

Nice video , enjoyed it, very well edited. Can I make some suggestions?

Sometimes the 'non horizontal ' shots don't work, pans of scenery maybe better truly horizontal, as are shots in houses.

Other effects, speeding up, slowing down, distract a bit

Your voice overs are great for your friends, but are often obscured by the high level of the music track. I can't do voice overs unless I practice to slow down A LOT, maybe go back and listen again? You can always fade down the music while you are speaking then raise it again if you want.

I've just got back from that area,it's great, very leafy at present. If you go again, try to visit Mae Hong Song, a wonderful Wat on the hill, great little town, less 'touristy' than Pai. The airport is amazing, almost in the high street.

Cheers

( BTW my previous comment was just a send up, great videos but maybe not 'the best')

Thanks for your feedback msg362.

We appreciate all comments and realise that not everyone will react positively to things that we make public. That is the double edged sword that is the internet.

Working the narrative into the video is difficult because we don't own all the professional equipment you'd need for a proper studio set up. That means the audio can sometimes end up with a lot of background noise which can only be subdued so much in post production. That is why we don't dip the audio all the way down when the voice over begins. Otherwise it would sound quite terrible.

We obviously do play the videos back over and over before we publish them. On our system it sounded good this time. But there is always room for improvement and better equipment over time.

With regards your comment about the non horizontal pans and speed shifts. Most modern edits (music videos, MTV cribs, General Cinematography) contain these techniques to add interest and fall in line with the bars of music. Usually to keep the audience focused on whats important.

Can I ask if you make videos yourself? You seem to be quite analytical with your comments towards our work and I was wondering if you create videos also? I'd love to see some.

Again thanks for your comments, we genuinely take everything on board.

P.S we are in fact going to Mae Hong Son for my birthday in August. We traveled through there years ago as well. So you can expect that we'll make a video about it.

Hope you enjoy the future episodes.

- 8 miles from home

http://8milesfromhome.tumblr.com/

@8milesfromhome

[WilliaminBKK]

Great JOB, I really enjoyed it. You're very talented.

Love Eden he is adorable.

[Tanlic]

Many years of happiness you guys.... Great videos thanks for posting them. and tell the dog I said woof! woof!!

[bluesky76]

they seem like a lovely couple.have fun.

chok dee krup

[cobra]

Nicely done, very professional.

Thanx for taking the time and sharing,

My attempt at capturing some of my travels on video sometimes ended up tedious and rambling.

Yours are concise and fast moving, looking forward to more.

Kudos

[johnbarpic]

Hi,

I have only managed to watch the first Video my net connection Where i am is to slow but great i look forward to catching this when I arrive home to Thailand in August happy travels love Eden We have the perfect girlfriend for him Millie, she answers to Thai & English she's a Bangkok girl ''Bichon Havanese'',but don't hold that against her.

all the best with your adventure John & Sally B-P Expat couple living the dream like you.

[jellykookabanj]

Welcome to Thailand. Good video and stories. Would like to ask if,in video 1, you were having your first cooked meal, how come all the furniture and TV plus fittings are in place. You were obviously not in a hotel and it is extremely rare to be able to rent "fully furnished" apartments in Thailand. Good l;uck with your futures.

[stoffel45]

As I sit here in gloomy, dreary Belgium, your videos brought a few rays of sunshine and Happy Thai memories - for which - thank you.

I make videos for a living and truly yours are not bad at all in fact for the genre - they are excellent. One does not find oneself using 'Fast forward' at all.

Thanks and best wishes to the three of you,

Chris, Magali and daughter Thais.

[PoodMaiDai]

Well put together. Entertaining to watch and moves along fast enough.

Nice DOF on some of those shots. DSLR? What camera / lens are you using?

[PoodMaiDai]

Also, since you just got a house, you may want to look into security. Thieves are everywhere here. They even remove tiles and come through the roof. Be careful with your valuables. Find a good hiding place in your house for anything you don't want stolen. High probability of being burgled in a lone house like yours.

[Latis]

Great videos. I watched one and had to see the whole series so far. Post production is excellent. Can I ask what camera do you use to film this? Is there a third person working the cam or do you stick it on a tripod? I am not a professional photographer, just loved the style, mood and tone of the videos that capture a real sense of living of Thailand. Well done!

[jpduggan]

Absolutely brilliant, go to the head of the class and collect your Advanced member certificate. Looking forward to looking at it all again.

[TantraMantra]

It's the best thing I've seen on Thai Visa. Exceptions should be made for content that enriches the site. This is Excellent work..Art even....More posts like this please...Less of where can I get my toenails clipped?

[ginglee]

Absolutely fantastic...I spent sonkran last year at Chaing Mai- fantastic place....Hope it all works out for you...and please keep the videos coming.

Are you going to cover setting up your business and the pitfalls you encountered?

Edited June 27, 2012 by ginglee

[lianab]

Hey, When you're envied enough to evoke Tall poppy syndrome you must be doing something right! Unfortunately there are a lot of contributors on this site who have embraced being negative to others as a perverse hobby.

I look forward to more episodes as we are excited about also moving to Thailand later this year (with our dog). I'll be studying Thai part time and the school organises the visa (For 3 years! - Not expecting to be ground down anytime soon ) Keep living the good life- being kind to each other makes all the difference in the world - why doesn't everyone just do that?

[alfalfa19]

Wow, thanks for the nice post. I congratulate on your courage to start a new life in Thailand. The house is beautiful, so is your dog. I am jealous, I want to live in Thailand too. Best of luck to you.

[WilliaminBKK]

a new member has talent and is showcasing Thailand in a very nice entertaining way.

[alfalfa19]

Hi again, I'm just curious as to how much the rent is on that wonderful house?

[bluebluewater]

Good stuff. It must take a lot of time & effort and I thank you.

It's easy to forget the wonderment and sensory overload that comes when someone arrives in Thailand. May you never loose it. As you can tell there are many hard hearts amoung us.

What visa's are you here under?

[Dararasmi]

A couple (and their dog) move to a modern city/cushy tourist mecca. Groundbreaking stuff. Absolute pioneers.