What’s Countdown about?
The movie’s kind of a thriller. It’s about three Thai teenagers who study in New York. They arrange a party on New Year’s Eve but some unexpected guests suddenly show up.

What kind of character do you play?
My character, Jack, is one of those Thai teenagers who studies abroad, kind of a badass. We share some characteristics because I used to study abroad, in England. Even though he studies in America, it’s a similar lifestyle. And I used to be a badass, skipping classes and doing other jackass stuff with my friends.

When you first started acting some people dismissed you as a rich kid; has this changed?
I don’t know what they’re thinking about me. I can’t control their minds. All I can do is my best and prove that most of them are wrong. But it’s up to them whether they acknowledge it or not.

What’s your favorite part about your job?
It’s fun. You get to meet a lot of people.  Most directors have interesting philosophies and opinions about society and the world, and working with them is a good chance to talk to them. It’s one of the big advantages of being an actor.

Do you have any acting role models?
I have many. One is James Franco. He’s devoted himself to being an actor, not just a good looking guy. And Sean Penn, he’s a great actor. He does very good preparation before filming. Like for Milk he did a really good job studying the character.

How did you prepare for your last film?
For Countdown I did a lot. I changed the way I talk, the way I walk, even the way I dress and how I live. I changed completely. You need to be ready to enter the set in character, so I worked really hard before we started shooting. We shot some parts in New York and some parts in Thailand, and we had very limited time shooting in each location.

What’s next for you?
After this film I’m going to focus on playing music with my band. We’re going to start recording our first album in December and we hope to launch it around May next year. I’m going to do both [music and acting] if possible.