HÀ NỘI — Beautiful sights of Russia during four seasons promise to charm Vietnamese audiences when the serial Tình Khúc Bạch Dương (Love Stories in the Land of Birch) is broadcast.

The show is a story about the love and friendship of young people who were sent to study in Russia in the 1980s. The film truthfully portrays the life of Vietnamese people living in Russia, which was full of difficulties but still beautiful and romantic.

This is a big project from Việt Nam Television Film Studio (VFC), according to Đỗ Thanh Hải, director of the studio.

“We originally had the idea for the film in 2010, and it’s taken seven years for the project to officially begin,” he said.

“It’s a big project for the VFC so it took a long time to prepare. We had to find suitable places to shoot the film because it’s a story of 30 years ago.”

“We invested a lot of money in this project to find locations and bring the film crew and equipment to Russia many times to capture the beauty of the country in all four seasons.”

The film was shot in various cities including Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Krasnodar, Klin and Tula. There were also some scenes shot in Paris and places in Việt Nam such as Hà Nội, Nha Trang, Hòa Bình, Vĩnh Phúc and Ninh Bình.

“We use modern equipment and technology to make the film. It promises to be an extraordinary experience for viewers.”

“The film is not only a memoir of love stories with ups and downs, it also reminds Vietnamese people about the past, when thousands of students were sent to study in Russia.”

“Việt Nam and Russia have a strong partnership and faithful friendship, so I am sure that many people will be moved to see the lives of Vietnamese people in Russia reflected through the film.”

Hải said the film is based on a novel written by a group of Vietnamese people who studied in Russia 30 years ago. A group of screenwriters of the VFC edited the novel to make the script.

The film is made by Vũ Trường Khoa and Nguyễn Mai Hiền, two directors of the VFC who made the hits Living with Mother-in-law and The Arbitrator, respectively.

Valentin Laptev, third secretary of the Russian Embassy in Việt Nam, said he was delighted to learn the VFC was making a film about the life of Vietnamese people in Russia.

“Audiences will see the beauty of Russian nature and people,” he said.

“Vietnamese and Russian have a long-standing friendship, I expect that more films about this subject will be produced to enhance the mutual understanding and cultural exchange.”

The film stars veteran actors and actresses such as Thanh Mai and Chi Bảo, as well as young stars like Huỳnh Anh, Bình An and Nhã Phương.

The film also gathered many Russian extras and filmmakers. 

The 35-episode serial will be aired on VTV1 channel, every Thursday and Friday, from January 25. — VNS