From Viet Film Fest
From April 10-13, 2014 VietFilm Fest is taking Orange County, California by storm.
From April 10-13, 2014 VietFilm Fest (formerly the Vietnamese international Film Festival-ViFF) is taking Orange County, California by storm. Turning the corner of a biennial film festival founded in 2003 by the Vietnamese American Arts and Letters Association (VAALA) to support Vietnamese cinematic story-telling, Viet Film Fest is becoming an annual event. The festival is also moving closer to the heart of the Vietnamese community—the UltraLuxeCinemas at Anaheim Gardenwalk. Tickets are now available online at ultrastarmovies.com.
This year Viet Film Fest has selected 29 films, including 8 features and 21 short films, from countries all over the world such as Vietnam, Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, Japan, the United States, and (for the first time) Korea. The festival opens with Ham Tran’s How to Fight in 6-Inch Heels (Âm Mưu Giày Gót Nhọn), a captivating romantic comedy that travels across the high-fashion worlds of New York and Saigon. Additionally, the Grand-Jury Trống Đồng Award will be given to Thien Do’s comedy, Funny Money (Tiền Chùa), the director’s first feature-length film that satirically explores materialism in the modern world.
This year’s Spotlight night brings to the silver screen a rare film resurfaced from the 1970s, Norio Osada’s Number 10 Blues/Goodbye Saigon. The Japanese-produced film stars beloved actress/singer Thanh Lan and features the evocative landscapes of South Vietnam before the end of the war. The festival will close with veteran director Charlie Nguyen’s Little Teo (Tèo Em), a road comedy that topped box office charts in Vietnam. This brief glimpse into Viet Film Fest indicates a maturation and diversification of Vietnamese cinema around the world.
Viet Film Fest will be launching an online Viet Film Fest Channel to stream past selections and continue to serve as a vehicle for sharing stories more widely. Continuing the tradition of connecting communities through film, Viet Film Fest will once again offer select screenings for Community Day at the Bowers Museum free of charge to students and seniors on April 11. These screenings will include the final film project of emerging young film-makers of Youth in Motion, a VAALA film lab program that inspires youth to tell stories, find their voices, and share their visions through film. For complete festival information, please visit VietFilmFest.com.
Dates and Venues at a Glance:
APRIL 10-13:
UltraLuxe Cinemas at Anaheim Gardenwalk
321 West Katella Avenue
Anaheim, CA 92802
APRIL 11 only:
Bowers Museum
2002 North Main Street
Santa Ana, CA 92706
*Free admission to seniors 60+ years old and students with valid ID
