TV series Vũ Điệu Đón Xuân (Dance of the Dragons) about Dragon Dancing will be released for Tết. Photo courtesy of the producer

HCM CITY — Local TV stations and film producers have planned to release several new dramas during the Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday.

SCTV, jointly owned by Việt Nam Television and state-run Saigon Tourist Corporation, will introduce the musical series Tết Muôn Nhà (Tết is Here).

The production, directed by Nguyễn Anh Tuấn, will consist of three episodes telling three different stories about family, love, life and Vietnamese traditions in Tết.

According to the producer, the film will depict the Tết celebrations of people who cannot return to their hometown for the annual festival.  

The work will include traditional cải lương (reformed opera) music, mixed with pop and rap. All the compositions will be about spring and Tết.

The series will feature veteran actors like Mỹ Duyên, Bạch Long, and cải lương (reformed opera) actress Thanh Hằng, and young actors Thanh Duy, Lê Trang, and Dương Yến Nhi.

Tết Muôn Nhà will be broadcast on the SCTV4 channel on February 1-2, the first days of the Lunar New Year.

Vĩnh Long Television will introduce two comedy-dramas Vũ Điệu Đón Xuân (Dance of the Dragons) directed by Xuân Phước, and Tình Thắm Duyên Xuân (Love in Spring) by Phương Điền.

Vũ Điệu Đón Xuân revolves around the life of a family that holds the tradition of dragon dancing and how young people keep up the family tradition. It stars actors Lương Thế Thành, Thúy Diễm, Thanh Duy and Kha Ly.

Thành said “It’s the first time I tried on dragon dance. It’s so hard. My colleagues and I have spent many weeks learning the moves.”

Meanwhile, Tình Thắm Duyên Xuân will highlight love and conflict among young people, as well as family love. The film will feature actors Việt Hương, Lê Văn Anh, Ngọc Thảo, Tấn Beo, Hoàng Trinh and Hiếu Hiền.

“The film promises to bring many laughs and a lot of joy to people during the holiday,” Điền said.

The two series will be broadcast on THVL1 during the holiday.

Web drama

Poster of web drama Hẻm Cụt (Dead End Alley). Photo courtesy of the producer

Film producer and actor Trấn Thành's new project to celebrate Tết, a web drama titled Hẻm Cụt (Dead End Ally), has quickly become the most-viewed film during the holiday.

The action-comedy tells funny stories revolving around poor workers living in a dead-end alley.

Its first episode ranked No 1 on trending on YouTube in Việt Nam 18 hours after its release, with 1.5 million views.

It has earned more than 15 million views since its release day on January 17.

Đỗ Minh Thư of Đồng Nai Province said: “The film is exciting and funny. It makes me laugh a lot. Thành never lets me down.”

Hẻm Cụt features actors Trấn Thành, Ngọc Giàu, Việt Anh and Lê Giang.

Thành was the most outstanding film producer in Việt Nam in 2021 while his movie Bố Già (Dad, I’m Sorry) was listed as the country's entry for Best Foreign Language Film category at the Oscars.

The movie, directed by Vũ Ngọc Đãng, broke ticket sale records for Vietnamese films after earning VNĐ400 billion (US$18 million), according to the film’s producer.

It also won second prize at the Silver Lotus Award for Best Feature Film, as well as Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Screenplay at the 22nd Việt Nam Film Festival organised by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in November.

The film was distributed in cinemas in the US and Australia after its premiere in Malaysia and Singapore.

Hẻm Cụt is expected to be released over Tết. VNS