A poster for Dream is a Snail. — Photo courtesy of the film’s production team.

According to the organisers, the Vietnamese entry is among 10 films selected from 3,184 submissions across 136 countries.

The selection marks a significant international step for the young filmmaker and highlights the growing presence of Vietnamese independent cinema on the global festival circuit. The film will compete for the Short Film Palme d’Or, one of the festival’s most prestigious awards for short-form filmmaking.

Centred on Huy, a struggling background actor, the story follows his increasingly unusual journey after he is hired as a human model for an anti-ageing workshop involving snails. What begins as an absurd assignment gradually develops into a surreal reflection on desire, ambition and the quiet anxieties of young people seeking meaning in modern life.

A scene of Huy in the short film.

Developed under the 2025 CJ Short Film Project, Dream is a Snail was one of five Vietnamese short films selected for production support under the initiative, which aims to nurture emerging filmmakers. The project has become an important platform for young directors to experiment with bold storytelling and bring locally rooted narratives to wider audiences.

For director Nguyễn Thiên Ân, the Cannes selection marks a defining moment in what is emerging as one of the more promising young careers in Vietnamese cinema.

Through Dream is a Snail, the director employs absurdist storytelling and layered symbolism to explore themes of alienation, aspiration and the tension between artistic ideals and commercial reality.

Mentor-director Phan Đăng Di described the film as naturally engaging in its storytelling, balancing humour with satire while raising deeper questions about identity and value in contemporary society.

Beneath its eccentric premise, he noted, the work also serves as an allegory for a younger generation caught between artistic aspiration, commercial pressure and fleeting gratification.

Director Nguyễn Thiên Ân (in red) on the set of Dream is a Snail. — Photo courtesy of the production team.

Visually, the film blends tactile realism with dreamlike imagery, creating a cinematic language that is both intimate and unsettling. Its offbeat tone and layered symbolism have drawn attention for offering a distinctly Vietnamese voice while engaging with universal themes of longing, alienation and self-discovery.

For Việt Nam’s film industry, the Cannes selection represents more than an individual achievement. It reflects the steady rise of a new generation of filmmakers whose work is increasingly confident, unconventional and ready to engage in the broader global conversation on cinema.

The Cannes Film Festival is one of the world’s most prestigious annual film events. First held in 1946 in the seaside town of Cannes in southern France, it celebrates outstanding works and serves as a launching platform for many emerging independent filmmakers.

The 79th Cannes Film Festival will take place in France from May 12 to 23. This year’s edition will be chaired by acclaimed South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook, with French actress Eye Haïdara serving as host, underscoring the festival’s continued embrace of diverse cinematic voices, particularly from Asia. — VNS