Viet Nam News
HCM CITY — A famous novel by the late author Doan Gioi, winner of the State Awards for Literature and Arts in 2001, has been adapted into a movie and will be filmed this summer.
Dat Rung Phuong Nam (Southern Land) is an epic in praise of southerners, their history, culture and lifestyle. It is based on the book of the same name, Dat Rung Phuong Nam, one of Gioi’s favourite books.
The producer HK Film, one of HCM City’s leading private film companies, has invited director Nguyen Cao Minh to join the production.
Meritorious Artist, film director and scriptwriter Nguyen Vinh Son will also work on the screenplay.
In 1997, Son directed the 11-part TV series, Dat Phuong Nam (Song of the South), which is based on Gioi’s book.
The film won the first prize for Best TV Series at the 1997 National Film Festival presented by the Viet Nam Cinematography Association.
The association awarded Son the Mai Vang (Golden Apricot) prize for best director, launched by the HCM City-based Nguoi Lao Dong (Labourer) newspaper a year later.
The film was subtitled in English and has been exported on DVD to the US, Australia, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore since 2000.
It is still rebroadcast on Ho Chi Minh City Television and provincial TV stations.
“We decided to invest both money and human resources on our new version, Dat Rung Phuong Nam, to meet the demand of Gioi’s fans, who are all ages and backgrounds,” said Nguyen Trinh Hoan, owner of HK Film.
“We’ve worked with talented directors Cao and Son to make our film high quality in images, sound and light effects,” Hoan told local media at the film launching ceremony held recently.
Casting will begin in the city and southern provinces this week. Its post-production is expected to be completed late this year.
The film will be in cinemas in 2019.
Southern land
Gioi was born into a landlord family in Chau Thanh District of My Tho Province (now Tien Giang) in 1925. His family donated their properties to Viet Minh guerrillas after the August Revolution in 1945.
He wrote Dat Rung Phuong Nam in June 1957 when he was 32. One month later, it was released by the newly opened Kim Dong Publishing House in Ha Noi.
The 255-page book is about the adventures of a boy named Nam, who loses his family in a battle and lives in the southwestern region under the French colonists.
He learns new things and experiences with the help of many poor farmers and children, and travels around the region and witnesses the sufferings of farmers during the war.
He joins the Viet Minh guerrillas to fight against the French troops.
Dat Rung Phuong Nam encourages people to love nature and discover the country and people. It has been printed in dozens of languages, such as English, Russian, Chinese, Spanish and Polish.
Its chapter titled Song Nuoc Ca Mau (Rivers of Ca Mau) has been used in textbooks for sixth-grade students.
“Dat Rung Phuong Nam’s 20 chapters capture the imaginations of readers, both young and old. It is one of the country’s favourite books,” said the film’s scriptwriter Son.
“The book provides readers, particularly children, with new ideas about nature, animals, rivers, plants and people of the south,” he added. — VNS