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Raising Việt Nam’s value through cultural diplomacy
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| The Vietnamese film Cha Cõng Con (Father and Son), directed by Lương Đình Dũng, won the Best Cinematography award at the 17th Milano International Film Festival (MIFF). — Photo from facebook of Lương Đình Dũng |
Viet Nam News
HÀ NỘI — The Vietnamese film Cha cõng con (Father and Son) has won the Best Cinematography award at the 17th Milano International Film Festival (MIFF).
The MIFF, taking place in Milan from May 10 to June 10, selects features, documentaries and short films nominated by the cultural non-profit Leonardo Da Vinci Film Society. The Best Film award will be announced in late May.
“Ten years ago, I came to Tokyo, Japan to receive the Best Film award at the 29th Tokyo Video Festival for my 13-minute film The Boat Man. I was surprised, excited. I kept the award’s envelope till today and as a reminder of my starting point on a long road,” wrote director Lương Đình Dũng on Facebook on Monday.
“This year, [the success of] Father and Son is a another step towards the aspiration of a film maker. The success of Father and Son today is small but it creates inspriration for me to continue to make an effort. The dream of bringing Việt Nam film to the world may be hard, but there will be a path to it,” he wrote.
The movie, directed by Lương Đình Dũng, also won Best Foreign Feature and Special Jury Award for Outstanding Cinematography at the 26th Arizona International Film Festival last month in Arizona, which drew 96 films from 20 countries.
Previously, Father and Son received the Indie Spirit Best Storyline award at the 15th Boston International Film Festival in April, which saw the participation of over 3,200 movies from around the world.
The main character in the movie is a little boy named Cá. He lives with his blind father, who has spent his entire life by the river. Cá’s world revolves around the river and everything associated with it, including the animals, flowers and the wooden fish his father carved for him.
Cá dreams of touching the clouds and of visiting the fancy fairy tale lands described by his father. However, Cá suffers from an incurable disease and cannot wait for the day his father has enough money to take him to the doctor.
The script for the film was inspired by Dũng’s own experiences when he wrote Father and Son in 1995. — VNS
