Vietnamese film wins top prize at Cannes Directors’ Fortnight
Hay Thuc Tinh va San Sang (Stay Awake, Be Ready) directed by Pham Thien An won the Illy Short Film Award at Quinzaine des Réalisateurs (Directors' Fortnight), an independent section held in parallel to the Cannes Film Festival, on May 23.
Phạm Thien An (left) with his Illy Short Film Award from Quinzaine des Réalisateurs (Directors' Fortnight), an independent section held in parallel to the Cannes Film Festival. (Photo: courtesy of CGV)
Hanoi (VNA) - Hay Thuc Tinh va San Sang (Stay Awake,Be Ready) directed by Pham Thien An won the Illy Short Film Award at Quinzainedes Réalisateurs (Directors' Fortnight), an independent section held inparallel to the Cannes Film Festival, on May 23.
“The prize is my motivation tocarry out a project for my first feature film, and is an opening Hay Thuc Tinh va San Sang,” An said.
He presented his project toindustry professionals at Focus CoPro, an event hosted by the Cannes Short FilmCorner on May 21 which included six first-feature projects from othercountries.
Hay Thuc Tinh va San Sang was screened at Directors’ Fortnight onMay 23 and 24, receiving a warm welcome from international filmmakers andaudiences.
The 14-minute film is about amotorcycle accident in front of a street food stall which unveils a secretstory involving three young men. It also is a reflection of social issues.
The film won top prize at the2018 CJ Short Film Making Project, one of the top short film contests in Vietnam.
Film producer and actress Hong Anh,An’s mentor at the contest, said: “I’m proud of An’s achievement at the CannesFilm Festival”, noting his characteristic skills that are needed to be a gooddirector.
An was born in 1989 in theCentral Highlands province of Lam Dong, and graduated in Information Technologyfrom Ho Chi Minh City-based Lotus University.
Later, he became interested infilm and won a number of film awards in Vietnam, including the 48 Hours FilmProject in HCM City in 2014.
In 2015, he moved to the US andcontinued working as a freelance filmmaker.
His short film, Cam Lang (The Mute), was screened as aWorld Premiere at the Palm Springs International Shortfest in the US in 2018.It also competed in 15 international short film festivals, including Winterthurin Switzerland, Tampere in Finland, Encounters in the UK, and Aspen in theUS.-VNA
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‘Hay Thuc Tinh va San Sang’ (Stay Awake, Be Ready) by Pham Thien An will premiere in the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs (Directors' Fortnight), an independent section held in parallel with the Cannes Film Festival in France in May.
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Phạm Thien An (left) with his Illy Short Film Award from Quinzaine des Réalisateurs (Directors' Fortnight), an independent section held in parallel to the Cannes Film Festival. (Photo: courtesy of CGV) 
