ĐÀ NẴNG – With the theme “Asian Bridges”, Đà Nẵng Asian Film Festival (DANAFF) will take place from July 2 to July 6, expecting to attract thousands of attendees to Đà Nẵng. 

Deputy Prime Minister Trần Hồng Hà awarded the Best Film Award of the Asian Film Awards Category to young director Hà Lệ Diễm at the first DANAFF. Photo courtesy of Việt Nam Film Development Association.

DANAFF is presided over by Đà Nẵng People's Committee and co-organised by Đà Nẵng Department of Culture and Sports, Việt Nam Film Development Association (VFDA), and other foreign partners.

The festival aims to support emerging talent in Vietnamese and Asian cinema and to provide the public with new high-calibre cinematographic works from Asian and Vietnamese films, as well as a few international releases.

Ngô Phương Lan, VFDA chairwoman, highlighted the festival as a celebration of the finest in Asian and Vietnamese cinema, as well as a forum to build relationships in the film industry between Vietnam and the Asia-Pacific region.

DANAFF will be attended by Asian and international movie stars, famous Vietnamese filmmakers and artists, international and domestic VIP guests, and young filmmakers whose works are featured.

The in-competition section is divided into two categories; Asian Film Awards, including feature-length films from cinemas in the Asia-Pacific region produced from February 2023 to March 2024, and Vietnam Film Awards, with Vietnamese feature films produced from January 2023 to April 2024.

Other additional awards without prize money are the NETPAC Award for Best Vietnamese Film, decided by the NETPAC Jury, selected in the Vietnamese in-competition films, and the audience’s choice award for the favourite Vietnamese film. 

Especially, for the first time in Việt Nam, DANAFF will award the Film Achievement Award to an excellent filmmaker who has made tireless contributions to Việt Nam’s cinema sector. 

The film festival will have three jury panels including the Asian film jury, the Vietnamese film jury, and the NETPAC jury – each jury includes Vietnamese and internationally renowned experts, actors and filmmakers.

In the Asian In-competition Films Category, the Grand Prize for Best Film will receive 5,000 USD.

Besides activities for in-competition films, the film festival will feature screenings of today's Vietnamese cinema and Đà Nẵng cinema, as well as selected films from celebrated director Đặng Nhật Minh and those of foreign partners.

There are also international seminars, talks, and Talent Incubator workshops.

Last year, the festival took place from May 9 to 13, with the participation of renowned arthouse Korean actress Moon So Ri, Korean director Jang Joon Hwan, Kazakhstan director Adilkhan Yerzhanov, and the Vice President of communications of the Asia-Pacific Region for the Motion Picture Association International, Stephen Jenner. 

The best Asian film was bestowed to the documentary film titled Những Đứa Trẻ Trong Sương (Children of the Mist) by Vietnamese director Hà Lệ Diễm. 

The deadlines for Vietnamese and Asian films to submit to DANAFF are April 30, 2024, and March 15, 2024, respectively. Further information can be found at https://vfda.vn/. – VNS