The series — which debuted on Youku on July 24 — was adapted from the hit online novel of the same title.

Penned by novelist Banming Banmei, the story takes place during a turbulent era in ancient China’s history. Trained as an assassin in the fictional town of Guihua, the protagonist, Wan Mei, a young beautiful woman, teams up with her devoted aide, Yingzi, to survive a series of conflicts and conspiracies. It’s the latest Chinese series to promote a strong female lead character, with distinct feminist overtones —a trend which is proving popular amongst female audiences.

The series will be broadcast in Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Mauritius, Italy, the United Kingdom, Spain, Turkey, Mexico and the United States — a new high for the overseas broadcast of a Chinese online series.

Banming Banmei adapted his novel for the screen, while Xu Jizhou, known for directing the crime thriller, The Liquidator, is executive producer. Additionally, the series is choreographed by Guo Yong, perhaps best known for his work on the fantasy epic, The Monkey King 2.

Actress, Li Yitong, who plays the lead role and also sings one of the theme songs, is joined by actors, Qu Chuxiao and Wang Duo.

 The first four episodes will be shown on August 4 in APAC markets excluding Japan and English-speaking regions excluding the US, and Episodes 5 and 6 will stream the same days as the Korean broadcast, on August 6 and 7 at 11.30pm, followed by a regular weekly schedule.

All other territories excluding the US and Japan will see two episodes weekly, every Monday at 11.30pm, while all episodes will be available in the US on September 12.

“Life” is a new medical drama from Lee Su-yeon, writer of “Stranger”, which was popular among Netflix viewers in Thailand last year.

The series won the Grand Prize in TV at the Baeksang Arts Awards in South Korea. Director Hong Jong-chan previously helmed “Dear My Friends”.

The drama series is about people in a hospital who want to protect and save and also those who want to defend what they believe is right.

Sometimes, like an inner body reaction, the characters in “Life” collide aggressively as the story progresses.

The K-drama features Lee Dong-wook, well known for his lead part in “Goblin”(“Guardian: The Lonely and Great God”) as Ye Jin-woo, one of the doctors in the hospital.

Jo Seung-woo, who was the lead in a mystery story in “Stranger”, plays Koo Seung-hyo, the new CEO of the hospital.

Khun Pan, the 1940’s cop hero, is coming back to the big screen later this month but fans shouldn’t expect the icon of righteousness to be as pure as driven snow. This time round, the detective crosses to the dark side to join forces with notorious criminals in “Khun Pan 2”

The first film, released in 2016, was a hit for director Kongkiat Komesiri, earning a respectable Bt60 million at the box office. And despite being criticised for his work, he’s back at the helm for round two.

Considered one of the most versatile filmmakers in Thailand since his debut “Long Khong” (“The Art of the Devil”), Kongkiat was also behind the acclaimed though not money making “Muay Thai Chaiya” and “Chuean” (Slice”). But, he says with a grin, “Khun Pan” is by far the most entertaining film he’s worked on.

“It’s been fun making this film but also very exhausting and full of problems. Even though this is a sequel, we still had a limited budget, which is difficult when you are trying to make an action movie, some of my team quit and my actors were burnt out from the tough shoot,” he says.

Yet despite the measly Bt30 million budget, which allowed little for visual effects, he is pleased with the outcome.

“Making an action fantasy movie like this is challenging but I loved the idea of reviving the Thai action movie style called raberd phookhao phao krathom (exploding mountains and burning shacks),” he says. The phrase refers to the popular scenes that appeared in the Thai action films so popular in the 1970s and 1980s featuring superstars like Sombat Methanee, Soraphong Chatree and Krung Sriwilai as heroes going up against influential people exploiting the rural poor. It’s a movie style that the director, like other kids at that time, was crazy about as a youngster. And thanks to the period and the background scenery, “Khun Pan 2” is filling the boots of yesteryear’s heroes.

Director Kongkiat Komesiri

“Making an action movie is challenging. It reminds me of my youth when I used to go to outdoor screenings. The story-lines were improbable, even crazy, but we loved them.”

“Khun Pan 2” is neither a tribute to nor a return to that style, more, the director says, a question of bringing mood and tone to audiences.

“There is a thin line between a remake of the style and being inspired by it. We have to tread carefully otherwise it’s outdated and boring. What we’ve done is similar to the approach Quentin Tarantino uses to bring some style from a Shaw Brothers’ movie or the slasher movies on which Robert Rodriguez draws,” he explains.

“Khun Pan 2” is set just after the World War II during an upsurge in crime and violence all over the country. Criminals rob people at will and law enforcement takes advantage of the corrupt system. Khun Pan (Ananda Everingham), who is now assigned to take down criminals in the central region, is suspended from duty as a result of the corrupt police system, leading him to question the state of justice. While suspended, he is drawn into a crime that affects the people around him and decides to investigate alone. That leads to him joining the notorious gang led by Suea Fai (Lt Col Wanchana Sawasdee) and Suea Bai (Arak Amornsupasiri.) “Suea” was the title by which notorious criminals were known in that era and both Suea Fai and Suea Bai were real-life robber barons in Thailand’s central region.

Has Khun Pan made the right decision in joining the gang of Suea Fai and Suea Bai? 

Rachawin Wongviriya plays the owner of an entertainment venue where both criminals and law hang out while Arpa Pawilai stars as Suea Bai’s girlfriend.

Khun Pan is more mature and more human than in the first part, which pleased actor Ananda and partly made up for the exhaustion he suffered during the filming. The casting of Lt Col Wanchana, who is best known for portraying King Naresuan in the epic “The Legend of King Naresuan”, will come as a surprise to fans though his characterisation of Suea Fai will bring to mind Sombat Methanee during his heyday.

“That’s my intention,” Kongkiat says, adding that he also would have liked to cast a supporting villain like that played by the late actor Phiphob Phoopinyo.

Magic weapons are also introduced including Khun Pan’s famous magical Red Sword, a whipped gun and a magic bullet that hits everyone in Suea Bai’s vision. There are magic spells too that help the characters survive as well as magic that helps them be invisible others or “Salikar Lin Thong” -the spell that makes people believe whatever you say.

Kongkiat introduced magic and superstition in the first film as he worked to create a Thai action hero franchise movie. The concept is more concrete in the second part helped along by the decision to make Khun Pan a fictional character in a carousel of tidbits drawn from real-life events.

The fist “Khun Pan” was adapted from the career of Pol Maj-General Khun Phanthrak Rajadej during the 1930s and ’40, who was best known for using his “superstitious” powers to take down notorious criminals in the south of Thailand and the central region. He died in 2006 but his name came back to everyone’s lips during the craze for the Jatukam Ramathep talismans in 2007. Khun Pan was a maker of the amulets.

The idea to make Khun Pan a franchise came from film producer Somsak Techarattanaprasert who wanted to make Khun Pan a James Bond type of character. However the first part was caught between biopic and fictional action hero and didn’t do either justice.

“That is why the first part was criticised by those who respect Khun Pan. So we decided to set the clear direction in “Khun Pan 2” as a fictional and entertaining approach. It’s just like watching Ethan Hunt in ‘Mission Impossible’,” he says.

The first “Khun Pan” was also disparaged for its poor visual effects, a criticism the director freely admits was down to a limited budget and time constraints. This time, he’s attempted to fix the problem by avoiding visual effects as far as he can.

“I don’t complain about the budget because I understand the investors’ position. We cannot be selfish and demand what we want while ignoring the risks. But the budget is a headache as it makes it impossible to make the film as perfect as we want,” he says.

Kongkiat adds that with Khun Pan’s universe clearly defined, he has plenty of ideas for continuing the franchise. In real life, Khun Pan took down many influential criminals across the country |and was also known for his superstitions and talismans, all facts that can be fictionalised for an entertaining story in the next “Khun Pan” sequel.

“I’ll be proud of the project if it has its own life without me. The project can now be handed over to other directors to continue the series,” he says.

“Ballers” returns for its nine-episode fourth season, at 9am, with a same day primetime encore at 10pm.

Exploring the glamorous, often cut-throat, world of pro football through a group of past and present players striving to stay in the game, “Baller” stars Johnson as ex-superstar Spencer Strasmore, who has reinvented himself as a financial manager for today’s players.

After refusing to compromise his principles by joining an alliance with the filthy-rich Anderson brothers to move a football franchise to Las Vegas, Spencer and his partner Joe set out to expand their foothold in the client-management business, weighing an opportunity to purchase an extreme-sports LA outfit.

“Insecure” begins its eight-episode third season, at 9.30am, with a same day primetime encore at 10.30pm.

Starring Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Issa Rae as Issa, Yvonne Orji as Molly, Lisa Joyce as Frieda, Natasha Rothwell as Kelli and Amanda Seales as Tiffany, the series follows the friendship of two African American women as they deal with their own real-life flaws while attempting to navigate different worlds and cope with an endless series of uncomfortable everyday experiences. In the third season, Issa attempts to navigate her complicated relationship with Daniel (Y’lan Noel), a childhood friend and on-and-off-again fling who’s looking to take his music career to the next level. On the work front, she begins to question her role at the non-profit “We Got Y’all” and Molly sets boundaries in order to concentrate.

Netflix hosted super-powered panels for more than 1,000 fans at Hall N featuring Marvel’s “Luke Cage” series star Mike Colter, showrunner Cheo Hodari Coker, and this season’s villain Mustafa Shakir (Bushmaster). Finn Jones, who stars as Danny Rand/Iron Fist on Marvel’s “Iron Fist”, joined showrunner Raven Metzner (Sleepy Hollow, Falling Skies) to tease season two of the fan favorite.

As part of the Nexflix Anime panel, fans heard from the creatives behind “Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle” (Toho producer Takashi Yoshizawa) and Castlevania co-executive producer Adi Shankar, who debuted the season two trailer of “Castlevania”.

Marvel’s “ Iron Fist” Season 2 features Danny Rand as he fights against the criminal element corrupting New York City with his kung-fu mastery and ability to summon the awesome power of the fiery Iron Fist.

It launches on Netflix on September 7.

Returning to Netflix for a second season, “Castlevania”, inspired by the classic video game series, is a dark medieval fantasy following the last surviving member of the disgraced Belmont clan, trying to save Eastern Europe from extinction at the hand of Vlad Dracula Tepes himself. Trevor Belmont, last survivor of his house, is no longer alone, and he and his misfit comrades race to find a way to save humanity from extinction at the hands of the grief-maddened Dracula and his sinister vampire war council.

“Castlevania” Season 2 will launch on Netflix on October 26.

The 25-year-old actress plays Nannoh, a new student brave enough to expose hidden agendas and dark side of people surrounding her. Those are Anuchit Sapanpong as Khru Tor, Komgrit Triwimol as basketball coach, Natthasit Kotimanuswanich as Daino, Claudia Chakrapan as Khru Aum, Chonnikan Netjui as Mew, Poompat Iam-samang as Hok, Thitinan Klangpetch as Taew, Nutchapan Paramacharoenroj as Nueng, Neranchara Lertprasert as Moey, Morakot Liu as Bam and Chanpim Ratchawongmuang as One.

“I’m very happy to play Nannoh. Every week, I attend an acting workshop with Khru No and Khru Bew and work with the director who is in charge of the next episode. Nannoh is different from a normal human. She breathes less, is never hungry or sleepy and feels no pain. In other words, she has no feelings. Nannoh is a new student at all the high school schools. Every time she moves school, she becomes entangled with mysterious and supernatural events. Nobody knows what Nannoh is thinking,” says Kitty.

“There are a lot of violent scenes from the beginning including one is which Nannoh is killed and buried. At first, the production team prepared a stand-in for me, but I decided to play it myself because I wanted it to be more natural and real,” she reveals.

“Dek Mai” will be broadcast on GMM Channel 25 every Wednesday at 10.25pm with repeats on Saturday at 11.55pm. It features 13 episodes and the first will screen on August 8.

In real life, Pinnapa “Minor” Pruksapan, the wife of the missing Karen environmental activist Porlajee “Billy” Rakchongcharoen, has been seeking justice for her husband for the past four years.

On the screen, the mother of five who plays herself in “The Purple Kingdom” is trapped somewhere a dream world and reality.

Produced by independent film director Pimpaka Towira, the short film is inspired by disappearance of Porlajee who went missing near Kaeng Krachan National Park in Phetchaburi province, 161 kilometres south of Bangkok.

Park authorities arrested Billy on April 17, 2014 for possessing a wild honeycomb and six bottles of wild honey but released him after giving him a warning. He disappeared shortly afterward and has not been seen since.

Two years before he went missing, Billy played a key role in collecting evidence and interviewing witnesses to file a case with the Central Administrative Court against park authorities accusing them of destroying the Karen’s habitat in the Thai-Myanmar border during the socalled Tenasserim Operation in 2011.

The film was produced in 2016 but was not widely screened. It was shown again late last month at the first “Movies that Matter”, a monthly film event organised by Amnesty International (AI) Thailand to promote human rights.

Pimpaka says she came to know Billy through his short movie “The Way of Lives”, which tells the story of Karen villagers living in Kaeng Krachan National Park’s Bangkloi community.

“Billy gave this voiceless ethnic group the opportunity to tell their story to society,” she says.

The idea for “The Purple Kingdom” was born when Pimpaka was contacted by a law reform committee to produce a film as part of the “Nine Short Films, Move Reform Forward” project.

With Billy’s disappearance still making headlines, she chose the Karen activist’s disappearance as the subject of her contribution.

Pimpaka picked Pinnapa to play her real life role but fearing it could have a negative effect on the continuing legal case of Billy and his wife, changed her name in the movie to Namthip Thongyod.

“No one can relay her story or message better than Pinnapa,” she says.

Pinnapa was hesitant at first but later agreed to take the role after consulting with her lawyers.

Pimpaka uses her film to draw attention to inequalities in Thai society by comparing two women whose husbands have gone missing.

While Namthip was treated badly by authorities when she tried to file a missing persons report with the police, Woon, the wife in the parallel story, received nothing but helpful cooperation in finding her husband who was killed in a helicopter crash in the jungle.

“I want to show the disparity in our society. Influential people tend to use their connections to help each other,” Pimpaka says.

The film shows Namthip repeatedly being told by a policeman to speak clearly and slowly while filing her report. Pinnapa is quick to add that this is a real life conversation and left Billy’s wife exhausted.

In real life, it took Pinnapa more than four years to convince the authorities to begin an investigation into her husband’s disappearance and it was only in June this year that the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) accepted the case. Pinnapa says she had to go over all the original questions again with the DSI officials to assure them of the validity of information.

Pinnapa has not given up hope although she often feels that justice does not truly exist in her case.

“Is it because I’m poor and don’t have any money to pay them so the officials are not interested in helping me?” she says of her journeys back and forth between her house in Phetchaburi and Bangkok to file petitions.

“I don’t know if Billy is still alive. But I hope that if they [authorities] take this case seriously, they will at least find some trace of Billy. If they don’t it’s hopeless,” Pinnapa explains.

The Karen villagers in Kaeng Krachan have never had it easy but their plight didn’t become known to the general public until 2011 when news broke that a joint force of military and park officials at Kaeng Krachan, led by then chief Chaiwat Limlikhitaksorn, had burned 98 properties in the deep forest close to the Thai-Myanmar border during the so-called Tenasserim Operation.

In 1996, 57 Karen families, including Ko-I Meemi, the 107-year-old Karen community’s spiritual leader were relocated from their homes in Bangkloi Bon (the Upper Bangkloi) and Jai Paen Din (the heart of the land) to new villages – Bangkloi Lang (the Lower Bangkloi), and Pong Luek.

However, three months after the relocation, Pu KoI, Billy’s grandfather and a few other Karen who could not adjust to the new environment went back to their old communities. Five years later, park officials and military officers decided to burn the dwellings and their contents.

In June this year, the Supreme Administrative Court, ruled on the case – the first in the country dealing with customary and land rights reclamation – instructing the National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation Department, to pay Bt50,000 to each of the six plaintiffs for the damage done.

But the court said it could not allow the Karen to return to live in their original land because it had been declared as being inside a national park and they had no land documents to provide their rights.

“We had no knowledge of these Karen communities who were forced off their land. We always regard the Karen as migrant labourers rather than an ethnic group,” Pimpaka says.

“We [Thai people] always think the land belongs to us while they [the Karen] just want to stay in their ancestors’ dwellings and don’t want to be owners,” Pimpaka adds.

The director shot large parts of the film in Bangkloi Lang and Pong Luek.

“I met Pu Ko-I there. He didn’t know who I was. He then started to pray for bad things to happen to bad people,” says Pimpaka of her first encounter with the elderly Karen man.

“He later asked me whether our film would help him to return to his original home at Jai Paen Din. I was speechless,” she continues.

“The Purple Kingdom” has been screened at overseas film festivals, including in Switzerland and Singapore, and is scheduled for release in Malaysia this month.

“‘Enforced disappearance’ is a universal problem and doesn’t only happen in this region. Many countries are unable to either resolve or pass a law to protect against the act,” the film director says.

“I want my movie to inspire society to look at this case and feel more connected to the story,” she adds.

Pimpaka plans to produce more films related to the ethnic group in the future.Get involved

“Movies that Matter” is an initiative organised by Amnesty International (AI) Thailand to provide a monthly creative space in which people get together to experience, share, and discuss human rights issues.

On the third Saturday of each month, AI Thailand and related organisations will screen different human rights-related films. Topics covered include freedom of expression, sexual diversity, human rights education, human rights defenders, and refugees.

Piyanut Kotsan, director of AI Thailand, says there are many ways to learn and express interest in human rights and film is a powerfully expressive medium where you can explain potentially complicated subjects in accessible manner.

She added that the event is not just a movie screening, but an opportunity for community members to engage in discussions with film directors, human rights defenders, and activists, in order to explore the real issues that our world faces and to learn about the experiences of different individuals.

At its core, the goal of this initiative is to bring people together through film and raise awareness of human rights issues and Amnesty’s works.

Get involved

“Movies that Matter” is an initiative organised by Amnesty International (AI) Thailand to provide a monthly creative space in which people get together to experience, share, and discuss human rights issues.

On the third Saturday of each month, AI Thailand and related organisations will screen different human rights-related films. Topics covered include freedom of expression, sexual diversity, human rights education, human rights defenders, and refugees.

Piyanut Kotsan, director of AI Thailand, says there are many ways to learn and express interest in human rights and film is a powerfully expressive medium where you can explain potentially complicated subjects in accessible manner.

She adds that the event is not just a movie screening, but an opportunity for community members to engage in discussions with film directors, human rights defenders, and activists, in order to explore the real issues that our world faces and to learn about the experiences of different individuals.

At its core, the goal of this initiative is to bring people together through film and raise awareness of human rights issues and Amnesty’s works.

Featuring more than 30 images documenting one of the oldest traditions of storytelling in the world, “A Life in Shadows” explores the nuance, sophistication and value of shadow theatre traditions in Southeast Asia – in particular Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Cambodia – and the people who perform them.

While each of these nations has its own distinct culture, they share common cultural, religious, linguistic and racial characteristics. Shadow theatre is the singular voice of the region and its common thread is the use of the Hindu epics of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata as the source of stories.

In 2014, Constantine Korsovitis began his research on shadow theatre by photographing and interviewing with puppet masters, musicians and craftsmen in their homes. The idea was to identify the man or woman behind the artist, behind the mask of performance. The photographer is concerned with the pressure under which traditional art forms find themselves today as well as celebrating the human spirit, honouring all the artists who build this wonderful art form, several of whom have since passed away.

“A Life in Shadows” provides a glimpse of the artist’s life, beyond the confinement of the traditional performance and studio. The aim of the project is to extend beyond documentation and to elevate awareness and appreciation of traditional arts in the region and around the world. The project is also planned to culminate in a publication and a public archive of shadow theatre documentation and research. After Bangkok, the exhibition will travel to Singapore, Sydney, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta.

The gallery is opens Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 7pm and the show continues through August 26.

PhotoBangkok 2018 is the second edition of PhotoBangkok, a triennial, not-for-profit international photography festival created by the renowned Thai photographer Piyatat Hemmatat. It is running from July 5 to September 9, with the main exhibitions staged at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC) and featured exhibitions housed at over 20 galleries across Bangkok. For more information, visit http://www.PhotoBangkokFestival.com.

Directed by Manit Sanubnan, this second series is about love and all its complications. “In A Relationship” shows how love isn’t just for two and stars Sarawut “Aon” Marttong, Pataratida “Tangmo” Patcharawirapong, and Raknapak “Namwan” Wongtanatat. “In An Open Relationship” talks about the irrelevance of body and mind and features Peera “Kampan” Panidchapong, Sudhasit “Maggie” Podthasak, and Papungkorn “Pak” Sakunsong. “Married” demonstrates that getting hitched is not a conclusion of love and has Thana “Nong” Chatborirak and Zuvapit “Baitoei” Traipornworakit as the stars, while in “Single” Suttirak “Jee” Subvijit and Supanaree “Fern” Suttavijitrong explore sex and love.

“I play Gun, a man who loves two girls at the same time and wants both to live with him. But before they’ll agree I have to solve all the problems so that three of us can live together,” says Aon Sarawut.

“I play Tent, a teacher,” says Kampan. “I have been in the entertainment circle for 20 years but this is the first time I have acted in a gay story..”

“Usually, marriage is the natural conclusion to love. The story is about a married couple having to face several unexpected problems and trying to solve them,” says Nong Thana.

“I star as Floyd, a man who doesn’t want to have sex with his lover. This part should make viewers everyone understand more about sexuality,” explains Jee Suttirak.

“Hipster or Loser” and “The Deadline” will play out the series.

Follow the movement at Facebook: @BearcaveStudio.TH, Twitter: @BearcaveStudio and IG: @Bearcave_studio.

When Shandling passed away in 2016, he was widely remembered as a top stand-up comic and the star of two of the most innovative sitcoms in TV history. But to those who knew him, the “real” Garry Shandling was a far more complex person. Now, Apatow has created a remarkable portrait of this iconic comedian in the four-and-a-half-hour documentary “The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling”, which debuts in Asia in two parts on Wednesday, August 1 and Thursday, August 2 at 8pm on HBO and HBO Go via AISPlay and AIS Playbox.

The documentary features conversations with more than 40 of Shandling’s family and friends, including James L Brooks, Jim Carrey, Sacha Baron Cohen, David Coulier, Jon Favreau, Jay Leno, Kevin Nealon, Conan O’Brien, Bob Saget, Jerry Seinfeld and Sarah Silverman, and four decades’ worth of TV appearances, along with personal journals, private letters and candid home audio and video footage that reveal his brilliant mind and restless soul.

From childhood tragedy to heartbreak, professional betrayal and unexpected physical trauma, to his emergence as a powerful teacher, friend and guiding spirit for a new generation of talent, Apatow’s documentary not only chronicles one man’s ability to survive the ups and downs of a life in show business, but also offers a profound investigation into the power of comedy to elevate the human spirit.

Shandling experienced a normal existence growing up in Tucson until age ten, when his older brother and only sibling, Barry, died from cystic fibrosis. His parents barely discussed their older son’s passing, and his mother, Muriel, began clinging to her younger son, developing an intense and sometimes troubling bond that would later generate some of his comedy material.

Shandling’s unlikely path towards success, through an encounter with George Carlin and an impulsive move to Los Angeles after college, took a turn in 1976, when he was involved in a serious traffic accident, resulting in a near-death experience. As he recovered, he noted in his diaries, which he began keeping in 1977, “Do it – you are ready, be a comedian. It is the real me. The secret is to be myself.”

“I thought of Garry as someone who told the audience, ‘You’re alright, because I have all these problems.’ But he did it in a way that was so incredibly clever, you had to respect him at the same time,” explains Jim Carrey,

Shandling made the leap from the pinnacle of stand-up success, appearing on “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson,” to develop his comic persona into something that would redefine television comedy. Realising that one of his strengths as a standup was simply the ability to “talk to people,” he created a show where talking to the audience was the central focus – “a show that allows Garry to be Garry,” as his journals read.

“It’s Garry Shandling’s Show” was a decade ahead of its time, the first modern “meta”-sitcom that brought him a new legion of devoted fans and elevated his profile in the industry. “It was kind of a revelation,” remembers Conan O’Brien about the show’s three-season run. “It showed everybody, this is what kind of show can exist.” He also met Linda Doucett, who became his fianc้e, began building a new home, and was even rumoured to be heir apparent for the host seat on “The Tonight Show.”

Part two of “The Zen Diaries of Gary Shanding” offers an extensive examination of “The Larry Sanders Show,” his landmark HBO comedy series. Colleagues remember the demands of producing material that met Shandling’s high standards, while his diaries reveal an ongoing struggle with complacency and search for authenticity. The impact of “Larry Sanders” was immeasurable. “That show will outlast all of us,” says Jay Leno.

But in the wake of the show’s success, soul-wrenching tragedy, fuelled at times by Shandling’s own demons, played itself out. Sanders and Doucett broke up and he fired her from the show, leading to a lawsuit, which in turn raised financial questions that led Shandling to sue his manager, Brad Grey.

“I see him as a tortured person, because he was always trying to rise above,” remembers Kevin Nealon. “I mean, his core was good. I think it was the skin around that core that he was trying to break away from.” After “The Larry Sanders Show” ended, Shandling’s neuroses and insecurities became more evident, as he worked through unexpected emotional, physical and professional crises.

The ailing Shandling found solace in community. Sunday morning basketball games on his home courtyard brought friends together and kept him emotionally connected, while a mentorship of younger comics gave his life fresh meaning. “He was a comic angel,” recalls Sacha Baron Cohen.

A successful gig hosting the Emmys, creating unique extras for the DVD release of “The Larry Sanders Show” and an appearance with his friend Jerry Seinfeld on “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” (where Shandling opined about death and mortality) hinted at some of the lessons he’d learned in his lifelong quest for peace.

As his friends say farewell and some of Shandling’s most personal, heartfelt letters and thoughts are shared, Apatow’s documentary, like its subject, transcends easy definition, being at once hilarious, sad, fascinating and, above all, completely authentic.