>> Winners of national film festival awards announced
Leaving impressions of innovations in organisation
Themed “Vietnam’s Cinema - Ethnicity, humanity, innovation and integration", the festival invited the public and participants to experience various activities, including opening and closing ceremonies, which gathered artists from many generations, and featured exchanges between artists and the audiences, students and soldiers.
Two workshops were also held with the participation of international film makers, who shared their experiences and contributed ideas to lift Vietnamese cinema’s position in its cause of development and integration. Free screenings of 20 films competing for Golden Lotus Awards and 15 others featured in the ‘Panorama of Vietnamese cinema’ programme enabled the audiences to enjoy high-quality films.
According to Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Head of the event’s organising board, Vuong Duy Bien, the films competing at the festival were of a top quality, thanks to the efforts and brave investments from 41 participating film studios at home and abroad.
The 2015 festival also showed the organising board’s determination to renovate the organistion and evaluation of the event in accordance with international regulations through the establishment of a council to classify films, and the division of two categories: Competing Films and Panorama of Vietnamese cinema.
In this year’s event, in addition to judging from the jury board, competing films were also evaluated on votes from the audience after the screenings.
Placing trust in young film producers
One of the top successes of the 2015 VFF that was appreciated by the public is the rising of young film makers. Veteran director, People’s Artist Dang Nhat Minh said that he was pleased to see a successor generation.
Young film makers also stood out as winners in major categories. Victor Vu, who scored a double victory with the Best Director award and the Golden Lotus Award for his film ‘Toi Thay Hoa Vang Tren Co Xanh’ (Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass), demonstrated his creativity in approaching and executing his film’s theme. He set his name on fame ahead of the 19th VFF with the release of ‘Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass’, which reached a box office gross of nearly VND 80 billion (US$3.59 million) and won the praises of cinema goers.
Studying cinematography in the US, Vu said that he had to learn a lot and received much support during the production of ‘Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass’ since the film is set in 1980s featuring the childhood of two brothers, while most of Vu’s childhood was not spent in Vietnam.
Vu also won the Golden Lotus Awards in the 18th VFF for his feature film ‘Scandal – Bi Mat Tham Do’ (Scandals – Red Carpet Secrets).
Another well-regarded film in this festival was ‘Nguoi Tro Ve’ (The Returnee), which was named the Best Feature Film on the theme of Armed Forces and Revolutionary War, by 1980s-born director Dang Thai Huyen and her colleagues from the People’s Army Film Studio.
Touching the post-war scenario, the film made its debut in August as the country was celebrating the 70th anniversary of the August Revolution and National Day. It won the hearts of audiences and screening rooms for the film were fully crowded.
Huyen also earned the Best Director Award for her video film ‘Dat Lanh’ (Good Land). The two prizes are expected to light up the passion and encourage more contributions from the young director.
The 19th VFF also saw many other young talents working in different categories including documentaries, scientific films and animated films in the many different roles of scriptwriters, musicians, animated artists, camera crew, actors and actresses. Regardless of their level, they share a common aspiration to contribute to Vietnamese cinema by perfecting their cinematic works.
It is hoped that innovations opened by the 19th VFF and the vitality brought by young film producers will lift the development of Vietnam’s cinema so that Vietnamese audiences, in the coming time, can enjoy even more cinematic works.
