Young star Kaity Nguyễn (left), winner of the Golden Lotus prize for best actress at the 20th Vietnamese Film Festival in Đà Nẵng in 2017, performs in the hit Hồn Papa, Da Con Gái (Daddy Issues), a drama-comedy by Vietnamese-American producer Charlie Nguyễn and Japanese director Ken Ochiai. The film earned more than VNĐ70 billion (US$3 million) and will be released in Japan next week. Photo courtesy of the producer

HCM CITY  Vietnamese blockbuster Hồn Papa Da Con Gái (Daddy Issues), a production by Japanese director Ken Ochiai, will be in cinemas in Japan next week after its release in South Korea in September.

The 90-minute comedy was a hit and earned more than VNĐ70 billion (US$3 million) in ticket sales in Việt Nam last year.

It is based on Papa to Musume no Nanokakan, a novel by author Takahisa Igarashi.

Its producer, Vietnamese-American Charlie Nguyễn, invited comedian Thái Hòa and young star Kaity Nguyễn, winner of the Golden Lotus prize for best actress at the 20th Vietnamese Film Festival in Đà Nẵng in 2017.

Veteran comic artists Hồng Vân and Thành Lộc, who each have more than 20 years in the industry, are also featured in the film.     

The movie is about Hải (played by Hòa) and Châu (played by Kaity) as father and daughter whose bodies are switched because of a mysterious and magical curse.

Kaity made its debut in Em Chưa 18 (Jailbait), a drama-comedy which raked in VNĐ13 billion ($570,000) in its first three days of release and earned VNĐ170 billion ($7.5 million) with 2.5 million tickets sold in the first three weeks.

It became the highest-grossing film in the country of all time, overcoming Hollywood blockbusters Kong: Skull Island and Fast and Furious 8.   

The movie also won Kaity the Best Actress award at 20th National Film Festival by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. 

In her second film, Hồn Papa, Da Con Gái, Kaity, who studied in the US before returning to HCM City for her career, has developed her art in a professional way. With the film’s success, she was added to the list of young stars.    

“Passion for work is not enough for young women to overcome difficulties in this industry. You should be dynamic and energetic, and be prepared for failure at any time,” said 19-year-old Kaity, who has nearly 665,000 fans on her Facebook fanpage.

Hồn Papa, Da Con Gái will be in cinemas in Tokyo and Osaka on November 17. VNS