On April 21, 2025, on the online channel system (facebook and youtube) of Ho Chi Minh City Tourism, the short film 50 FLASHES was officially released. This is a special Ho Chi Minh City tourism promotion film sent to the public by the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the South and National Reunification.
For the first time, a city in Vietnam has pioneered the production of a cinematic tourism promotion film, combining elements of adventure, thrill, mystery and fantasy, bringing a completely new perspective, a journey to awaken the cultural depths, architecture, cuisine, landscape and people of Ho Chi Minh City through the lens of cinema.
The interesting point in the script of 50 FLASHES lies in the bold and creative storytelling. The film revolves around the main character, a foreign tourist on a journey to explore Ho Chi Minh City. He enters an antique shop and is given an antique camera that once belonged to a wartime reporter. He accidentally touches the shutter button of the antique camera, and is drawn into a magical journey through space and time, passing through many iconic locations of the city. On that special journey, the main character not only admires the beautiful landscape, but also directly experiences cultural slices, historical imprints and typical lifestyle of Ho Chi Minh City - from the past to the present, from ancient buildings to contemporary spaces.
A unique journey through time, leading viewers through different dimensions of space and time, through the cultural, historical and architectural symbols of Ho Chi Minh City. The perspective of a "stranger" makes things that seem familiar become new, vivid and emotional. With the combination of fantasy, adventure, risk and emotional depth, each destination appears not only as a beautiful scene, but also as a part of the living soul of the city - where the story, identity and spirit of Ho Chi Minh City are preserved through each cinematic frame.
The journey of more than 60 days from idea to reality - an arduous journey. The crew and actors had to move around continuously to film, and act with animals. With dozens of complex scenes, moving equipment encountered many difficulties, and a tight filming schedule to compete with unpredictable weather conditions, the film 50 FLASHES encapsulated the efforts of a crew of hundreds of people.
50 FLASHES not only honors the familiar symbols that have made a mark on Ho Chi Minh City for half a century, but also opens up new perspectives and special stories that have never been told. The film takes the audience on an adventure through 50 tourist symbols, from famous architectural works to small alleys imbued with the breath of time. Not just a city to visit, Ho Chi Minh City is a city to explore, to feel, to find things that resonate with the soul of each visitor. This is the message that the film conveys - that no matter who you are, where you come from, you can find your own story, an emotion, a unique beat that blends into the vibrant breath of this city.
The film crew chose to film at iconic tourist sites of the City such as the Cu Chi Tunnels Historical Site, Can Gio Mangrove Forest, Ho Chi Minh City Post Office, Ho Chi Minh City Fine Arts Museum - buildings that preserve the city's historical depth, or at Ben Thanh Market, Bui Vien Street... carrying the breath, modern beat and vitality of a city rich in cultural colors; along with the application of modern techniques and technology to recreate the scene of Ben Nha Rong on the day Uncle Ho left to find a way to save the country in a realistic way, touching the emotions and hearts of the audience.
To create 50 FLASHES, for the first time, talents in the fields of cinema and art joined hands in a project to promote tourism in Ho Chi Minh City. A team that brings together ideas, scripts and images - each with their own strengths, but with the same mission of telling the story of Ho Chi Minh City in the most vivid and authentic way.
Scriptwriter & Production Director Le Hai Yen The person behind the success of the Ho Chi Minh City River Festival 2023 and 2024, this time she has brought all her passion for the city into a special tourism film project. For her, this is not simply a promotional film, but also an emotional invitation, so that the audience can not only see Ho Chi Minh City but also feel this city in an unprecedented way.
Production director Le Hai Yen shared about the concept film of 50 FLASHES: "50 FLASHES is not just a film, but a journey - where each frame is a story, each scene is a part of the soul of the City. There are stories brought to the screen for the first time, places and events that were previously only mentioned in books and newspapers. In this film, the audience will see a multi-identity, multi-color Ho Chi Minh City, with countless interesting things to be proud of. For international visitors, I believe that they will want to come and discover for themselves the special experiences that our main character has gone through, to feel more clearly the constant movement of this city".
With a rare combination of cinema, music, art and technology, the film is expected to inspire pride in every city resident, while inspiring domestic and foreign tourists to embark on a journey to discover a new, vibrant and attractive Ho Chi Minh City.
