A film screening in Kon Von 2 Village, Đắk Rông Commune, Kbang District of Gia Lai Province. — VNA/VNS Photo Hoài Nam

GIA LAI — A mobile cinema team took hundreds of films to show minority peoples living in remote areas in the Tây Nguyên (Central Highlands) region last year.

During the Tết (Lunar New Year) holidays, while everyone else gathered with their families, members of the Đam San Music and Dance Theater based in Gia Lai Province were still diligently taking films to remote villages.

The movies they have shown have helped add colour to the lives of these people.

The latest destination of the team was Kon Von 2, one of the most remote villages in Kbang District in Gia Lai Province.

Situated in a valley and surrounded by the thick Kon Chu Răng forests, the village near Hiếu Commune is home to the disadvantaged Bahnar ethnic group.

Out of the 86 families living here, only 15 have a TV while the Internet is almost a luxury. So the movies the team screens are a precious gift for the people.

Đinh Hồng Thanh Lý, deputy head of the village, said the local economic situation is difficult with 26 of the households being poor and most people unable to afford recreational facilities.

So they always look forward to the arrival of the mobile cinema group so that they could watch movies and also learn about the latest Government policies and laws, Ly said.

One drizzly afternoon in the new year, the village was unusually bustling.

A movie show was getting ready with a 350-inch screen stretched across a large yard in the village centre.

When cheerful spring songs broke out, people began to arrive in large numbers, especially children, and waited for the movie to start.

When there is a screening, the group often has to stay in the village for the night since it ends late

Siu Túy, a team member, said they are warmly welcomed by people in every village they go to.

“This makes us feel happy and love our job.”

Before screening the movie itself, the team plays video clips on traffic safety, fraud warnings and personal and environmental hygiene and protection in ethnic minority languages.

The film archive, comprising classic revolutionary and modern films, is quite large. Most of it are provided by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's Cinema Department.

Kbang District is a former revolutionary base, where people are proud of their traditions and patriotism.

People at a film screening in Kon Von 2 Village in Đắk Rông Commune in Gia Lai Province's Kbang District. — VNA/VNS Photo Hoài Nam

So not surprisingly the villagers are fond of revolutionary movies such as “Đất Nước Đứng Lên” (The Country Stands Up), which eulogises the fight to retain the Bahnar people's lands and villages in the Central Highlands, and a biopic on their Hero Núp.

“The movie leaves a deep impression as people see the image of a familiar hero re-created realistically and vividly,” Đinh Văn Bách, a village elder says.

"Through the film, people also better understand the noble sacrifices of our predecessors to regain independence for their country.

“We are proud of our nation's hero and feel responsible for preserving and promoting the village's revolutionary traditions.

“We are very grateful to the mobile cinema team for bringing this film to the villagers. This is a meaningful and memorable gift for relatives this Tết holiday."

Đinh Thị Vi, cultural and information officer in Đắk Rông Commune, said people come in large numbers for every movie screening, making it an appropriate forum for local authorities to publicise Government policies and learn about people's thoughts and wishes.

Try to serve

Members of the mobile cinema team prepare for a movie screening. — VNA/VNS Photo Hoài Nam

Túy, the screening team member, said: "We go to many places and see that the lives of people living in remote areas is still very difficult and lacking in many things.

“Many hamlets and villages do not have running water. In some places, we have to travel a very long distance to get water for cooking and bathing."

“In some villages, the roads are not good and become muddy during the rainy season, but we still make an effort. Each person's luggage always includes a hammock.”

Most mobile movie screenings are held in remote areas, and so the team has to constantly traverse long distances.

So difficulties, deprivation and being away from their families are normal occurrences for members of the group, he said.

With only six people who are divided into two teams, the team managed nearly 400 screenings in the past year.

Nguyễn Ngọc Long, director of the Đam San Music and Dance Theater, said besides showing popular films, the team is also a pioneering force in disseminating the Party and State’s guidelines and policies, an important activity that helps improve their life, educate them and build a new culture in remote areas. — VNS