An obsessive-compulsive Japanese librarian living in Bangkok spends most of his empty days contemplating suicide alone in his lifeless apartment. His life completely changes when he witnesses the death of Nid seconds before he was about to jump off a bridge. This pivotal event paired the lost Japanese with Nid's elder sister Noi as these two lost and lonely souls help each other find the meaning to their meaningless existences. Last Life in the Universe was awarded in Thailand two times by the Thailand National Film Association Awards and the FIPRESCI Prize (Bangkok International Film Festival). For his role as Kenji, Tadanobu Asano received the Upstream Prize for Best Actor at the 2003 Venice Film Festival. The film received the AQCC Award and Jury Prize at the Fant-Asia Film Festival. It was also chosen to be Thailand's official submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2003.