By Minh Thu
BÀ RỊA - VŨNG TÀU — The 21st Việt Nam National Film Festival 2019 officially kicked off on Saturday in the coastal province of Bà Rịa – Vũng Tàu celebrating the development of the national cinema industry.
Held every two years, the festival brings cinema lovers valuable experiences and emotions, according to Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Tạ Quang Đông.
Addressing the opening ceremony, he said the festival is organised in the context of global integration in many fields and the influence of Industry 4.0. National cinema is an important sector in the strategy to develop cultural industries.
“The festival will feature 104 films in different categories, reflecting social issues and people’s concerns and emotions,” he said.
“Audiences will engage more actively in the event by directly voting for the favourite feature films to win the People’s Choice award.”
The festival has gradually become the nation’s biggest and most famous film event.
“The event is an opportunity to promote the Vietnamese film industry, honour outstanding cinematographic works with great values and high levels of creativity; to praise artists, producers and publishers for their great works and contributions to the development and integration of the national film industry; to discover and encourage new talents; to seize co-operation opportunities in production and expansion of the film market; and to get better understanding of public tastes,” said Đông.
Vice Chairman of Bà Rịa – Vũng Tàu People’s Committee Trần Văn Tuấn said the film festival is a chance to promote the tourism, culture and economy of Bà Rịa - Vũng Tàu Province.
“With a rich culture, history and revolutionary tradition, Bà Rịa - Vũng Tàu Province has an important position in the development process of the southern region,” he said.
“Thanks to its beautiful beaches and landscape, the province has long been known as an attractive tourist destination, and become a popular location for domestic and foreign filmmakers of movies, music and advertisement videos.”
“This is the first time we have hosted the national film event. It makes us really proud. We hope to bring to audiences wonderful experiences with films.”
The opening ceremony features various songs which are official soundtracks of the films presented at the festival.
Many actors and actresses at different generations also participated in the ceremony. The red carpet honoured People’s Artist Trà Giang, People’s Artist Lan Hương and director Đặng Nhật Minh as well as young actress Kaity Nguyễn and actor Quý Bình who received the Best Actor and Actress awards at the previous film festival.
Director Bùi Bài Bình said he’s always eager to attend the event as it’s a chance for artists to meet and exchange ideas.
“The film festival is a big event that we have been waiting for, it’s a playground for filmmakers, and artworks receive worthy appreciation,” he said.
On the same day, an exhibition entitled Việt Nam’s Sea and Islands through Cinematic Perspective opened in Vũng Tàu city centre promoting beautiful landscapes of the sea and islands of the country. The exhibition displayed more than 200 photos showing the landscape captured in films and documentaries.
The exhibition will run until the end of the film festival then it will be handed to the Provincial People’s Committee for further exhibitions.
The closing and award ceremony will be held on November 27. — VNS