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This is the 7th consecutive time that EUNIC, the Association of European Cultural Institutes and Embassies in Hanoi, in collaboration with the Central Documentary and Scientific Film Studio, has selected and introduced documentaries from Europe and Southeast Asia.
Promoting dialogue between Vietnamese and European documentary cinema
During the festival, each Vietnamese film will be screened alongside films from Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, Israel, Poland, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. In addition, there will be a special screening of films by Southeast Asian filmmakers:
Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Indonesia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam (in Hanoi on June 13, in Ho Chi Minh City on June 14 and 18).
The exciting screening schedule promises to bring diverse experiences, helping audiences to be exposed to different cultures. The wide range of documentary films, regardless of Western or Eastern style, all share one common feature: a passion for understanding the world through images. The selected films, many of which have won awards at international film festivals, with their honest views of the world will bring new insights into daily life, social changes as well as cultural values of the participating countries.
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Opening Film: Germany's "Homeland Melody"
German filmmaker Arne Birkenstock’s opening film is an emotional documentary in which Kiwi horn player Hayden Chisholm meets musicians and singers, old and young, traditional and modern, eccentric and extremely serious. They all share a passion for music, which is also the embodiment of the noble love that Germans have for their homeland. Director Arne Birkenstock will be on hand to introduce the award-winning film and lead a workshop during the festival (10-13 June).
Eight European countries and Israel will bring films telling the stories of their countries.
Swedish director Anna Odell's Class Reunion takes viewers to a grim reunion of people who were in the same class. Based largely on Odell's own experiences of being bullied in school, the semi-autobiographical documentary reveals the complexities of power and exclusion. French film Multinational Class explores the plight of 11- to 15-year-old immigrant children from Serbia, Brazil, Tunisia, China, and Senegal in an integration class where they learn French together. Israeli director Shirly Berkovitzis's The Good Child is the astonishing story of a 22-year-old Israeli man who secretly saves up money for a sex change in Thailand. Berkovitzis will also be on hand to present this compelling documentary. In his stunning directorial debut,
Denmark's Saskia Bisp takes us to places where gender is not a given; Imperfect Boundaries is a subtle, humorous and thought-provoking film about the courage it takes to completely reinvent oneself. Poland's Oscar-nominated 2014 film Our Curse follows the lives of parents struggling to come to terms with their newborn son Leo's rare medical condition. Spain's Cartography chronicles a young filmmaker's journey to India in search of a new "map" for life. Austria's Grand Museum is a curious, witty and humorous look behind the scenes of a world-renowned cultural institution, the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
A Swiss contribution, the film To Live Without Moving Is Not to Live tells the story of Switzerland's unsung hero, Alexander Yersin (1863-1943), who saved Europe from the bubonic plague.
Ten Vietnamese movies
As the official partner and host in Hanoi, the Central Documentary and Scientific Film Studio is responsible for selecting ten Vietnamese documentaries to participate in the festival. This year, the selection will focus on films that have been invited to international festivals and have been highly appreciated by experts. The films cover a variety of topics related to the country's history, culture and society. Hometown explores rural issues and the cultural and material life of farmers in the market economy, while Red River 12 Sections focuses on describing the cultural and spiritual life of Vietnamese people from the upper to the lower reaches of the Red River. The concerns and problems of farmers are also highlighted in Multidimensional Poverty in Dong Mam, a film that provides a panoramic view of sustainable poverty reduction in Vietnam, whereby with the help of the community, farmers must rise up by their own strength and will. Left with Time tells the diaries and letters of Northern soldiers fighting in the Southern battlefield during the war against the US to save the country. A drop of water in the middle of the ocean is a documentary about the life and career of General Vo Nguyen Giap - the legendary general, the eldest brother of the Vietnam People's Army. With the story of a lowland teacher assigned to teach in the mountains, Sowing letters in the clouds highlights the hard life of highland students.
Truong Sa Vietnam gives the audience an overview of the formation of the archipelago.
Truong Sa in the history of the country's development, at the same time affirming the sacred sovereignty as well as the determination to build and protect the sea and islands - an inseparable part of the Fatherland. My Son - Heritage Land talks about the history of the formation and development of Cham culture in the flow of Vietnamese culture. The sound of the violin in My Lai talks about the massacre in My Lai as a prayer for the victims of the My Lai massacre.
Introducing young filmmakers from Southeast Asia
In addition to Vietnamese and European films, there will be a special screening of films by young filmmakers from Southeast Asian countries: Beauty and Rhythm from Cambodia, Day by Day by Nguyen Thi Thanh Mai and When I Lay Dying by Nguyen Phuong Anh from Vietnam, Roots from Indonesia, Ida's Choice (Ida's Choice) from Malaysia, Lady of the Rivers and Lakes from Myanmar, Echoes of the Hills from Thailand and When 14 Minutes is a Lifetime from Laos. Several filmmakers will also come to Vietnam at the invitation of the Goethe-Institut to present their films and discuss them with the audience. In addition, French filmmaker Frédéric Violeau and Indonesian filmmaker Amelia Hapsari will be present at the screening on May 13 in Hanoi and on May 14 in Ho Chi Minh City to introduce the two documentary networks: Lumière du Monde – EurasiaDoc and DocNet SEA “Dare to Dream”.
Workshops with directors Arne Birkenstock and Shirley Berkewitz
During the documentary film festival, there will also be two workshops organized by the Goethe Institute and the Embassy of Israel in collaboration with Hoa Sen University:
From 09 – 13 June there will be a practical script development workshop with German filmmaker Arne Birkenstock, in collaboration with Hanoi DOCLAB. Hanoi DOCLAB is a documentary film center located in the Goethe-Institut area. By providing equipment, organizing workshops and screenings, Hanoi DOCLAB hopes to support young documentary filmmakers in Hanoi.
On June 12 in Ho Chi Minh City, there will be a workshop with Israeli filmmaker Shirley Berkowitz for students of Hoa Sen University, where she will introduce the production process of her film The Good Child.
Free admission.
