The unique path of independent Vietnamese filmmakers

Young filmmakers face many difficulties and challenges in the process of making independent films, but for them it is also a journey to build their personal voice.

Young Vietnamese filmmakers shared their challenging yet interesting journey of filmmaking in a panel discussion for film lovers in Hanoi. Discussing the process of making independent film projects with limited resources, the filmmakers all said it was a long journey, with many factors having to be balanced for a film to go from a vague idea to the cinema.

Build and search

Pham Ngoc Lan, director of the feature film “Culi Never Cries” (Cu li khong bao gio) told of the difficulties that arose during the production process that made him decide to adjust and produce the film as a black and white film. The film later won the award for best debut feature film at the 74th Berlin Film Festival.

“At first, I didn’t have a specific idea, so I wrote and developed it as I went. I searched for and maintained a ‘common atmosphere’ for the film project. As for the style of expression and adjustments that came from everyone’s opinions, I also discussed quite freely and tried to calculate carefully to suit the conditions and budget of the work.”

In Coolie Never Cries, after receiving the ashes of her long-lost husband in Germany, a woman returns to her homeland of Vietnam, bringing a coolie with her. The woman’s young niece is preparing for her wedding. The film interweaves the characters’ stories as they rediscover the past and open up the future.

Pham Ngoc Lan said that when it comes to making a film and thinking about the audience, each project will have its own "rules", factors about actors and characters. "From my perspective, that means respecting the audience, by being honest with yourself as a filmmaker."

Producer/director from Ho Chi Minh City Nguyen Luong Hang talks about her recent short film, “Supermarket Affairs.” A mother and daughter are Vietnamese immigrants in the United States. While shopping at an Asian supermarket/market to prepare for their husband/father’s death anniversary, the mother and daughter meet a handsome stranger, and this leads to complex conflicts in this family.

The film has been screened at the Osaka, Palm Springs and Nashville Asian Film Festivals and other festivals and has won several awards. Nguyen Luong Hang also took on the role of producer for Dear Mother, I'm Going (2019) directed by Trinh Dinh Le Minh.

Hang said the inspiration for the film was accumulated over time from her personal life, her relationship with her mother, and her experiences living and working in the US. With a tragicomedy feel, this is not only a story about different generations, but also a story about Vietnamese people, immigrants, and Vietnamese people abroad.

According to Hang, when working in an international environment, factors such as cultural differences will affect the way filmmakers choose to express themselves. She also sometimes has to make adjustments in her film projects, in order to bring the story to the audience in the best way. “But we also have to set boundaries about what belongs to the filmmaker's own voice.”

Have to convince yourself

For director Trinh Dinh Le Minh of Dear Mom, I'm Going, the process of building film projects is the process of finding the connecting thread between ideas, between filmmakers and producers, projects... And to pursue any project, it is also necessary to “need to convince a lot of people”.

“This is even more important for commercial films or film adaptations. Not only Vietnamese filmmakers but also foreign filmmakers will have difficulty balancing the elements together, and we will have to try to operate with those different desires.”

Trinh Dinh Le Minh's third feature film, adapted from the work of writer Nguyen Nhat Anh, Once Upon a Time There Was a Love Story, will be released in November 2024.

Image of the movie "Once upon a time there was a love story".

“I understand the spirit of the original work, and the point of view in the film is that of the director. For the audience, I try to open the doors for them to come to my film.”

Ha Le Diem, director of the documentary “Children of the Mist” about the journey of growing up of a Hmong girl named Di, said she also experienced confusion and bewilderment while pursuing her film. There was a time when the producer thought the film would not be completed, so she wrote a “letter of encouragement” to convince them to continue with the project.

“I have also made and abandoned many things, met and abandoned many things. It is a process that requires you to rely on yourself, sometimes no one can help you. I think the first thing is to convince yourself why you have to make that film, why you have to tell that story.”

The film premiered at the 2021 Amsterdam International Documentary Film Festival and was shortlisted for Best Documentary at the 95th Academy Awards. Ha Le Diem is currently working on her second film, “The Road to the North,” set in the Northwest region of Vietnam.

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