Not only does it stop at introducing ideas, presentations play an important role in turning ideas and projects into films. (Illustration: Contributor/Vietnam+)
This is an opportunity for filmmakers to learn, build relationships, connect with the right people at the right time, and bring the film from paper to life.
Equip skills, refine "rough gems"
In its first edition, the “Project Incubator” was a 5-day intensive learning space from June 30 to July 4. The program selected 14 most potential projects in 2 categories.
The Art-house Film Project category includes 7 projects from Taiwan, China, Bangladesh, Korea, Czech-Vietnam, Vietnam, and Thailand. The Genre Film Project category also includes 7 projects but is only for Vietnam.
During this time, representatives of 14 projects will have 4 days of MasterClass - short-term classes with experts, before pitching for the award on the 5th day.
Some experts who will participate in this year's "Project Incubator" include Christian Jeune - Director of Film Selection, Vice President of the Cannes Film Festival; Mr. Kim Min Young - Producer of the film "Grave Digger"; Ms. Isabelle Glachant - Producer of the film "Shanghai Dream" - Winner of the Jury Prize of the 2005 Cannes Film Festival; Mr. Leonardo Haddad - Distributor behind the series of Hollywood blockbusters such as "Resident Evil," "Silent Hill"... |
Here, filmmakers are trained in many skills, one of the most important of which is presenting ideas. The task for the authors is to tell a good story, convincing the experts/jury to award prizes.
As someone with a lot of experience in making art films and finding funding from investment funds, director Bui Thac Chuyen (film “Tunnel”) commented that this is an important and necessary skill throughout a filmmaking career. “You not only need these skills in the project but also need to convince investors, actors, and people you want to collaborate with in the future,” he commented.
Also in the “Project Incubator” model, experts will question and answer and criticize filmmakers to find the most outstanding projects. According to producer Tran Thi Bich Ngoc (who is also in charge of the program), this is a valuable opportunity for every filmmaker.
“Each expert has a different ‘scale’. They may ask questions like Why are you pursuing this project? Why don’t you tell the story in another way?... Even though the questions may be contradictory, they all help the filmmaker dig deeper and understand clearly what he wants for the project,” said producer Tran Thi Bich Ngoc.
The invited experts are internationally experienced, bringing knowledge about production, distribution, financial structure, current markets... With their experience, they will help filmmakers "separate the bad from the good," refine the project to find the most suitable path.
The filmmaker’s personality or determination can also be a plus in the eyes of the judges. In 2014, at a similar model of the program “Autumn Meeting,” director Tran Dung Thanh Huy overcame his opponents to win the Producers’ Choice award, thanks to his determination to make the project “Thang Rom” (later the movie “Rom”) by all means. Five years later, the film was completed and released in theaters, earning 64.5 billion VND, becoming a record for independent films in Vietnam.
Asian project cluster with two projects carried out by Vietnamese/Vietnamese origin: “Young Theory Club” (red poster, left cover) and “In Between Worlds” (long poster, right cover).
Commenting on the “Project Incubator,” director Ha Le Diem said that this model helps independent filmmakers a lot compared to having to ask for foreign funds and compete with international projects, especially when those funds can prioritize domestic or regional projects.
Winning and the story after
There will be two winners in each “Project Incubator” category. The winner of the Art Film category will receive a prize of 8,000 euros from the French National Cinema Center (CNC) and 3 months of support from Mylab - a mentoring and incubator program for independent projects in Southeast Asia. The winner of the All Genres category will receive a prize of 5,000 USD from the Motion Picture Association of America (MPA).
Ms. Tran Thi Bich Ngoc said that this amount is not much compared to the total project budget, and is not enough to help the filmmaker in the stage of finding locations, finding actors... but the reputation of these brands will be a plus point in the project's profile.
“CNC is one of the largest film funds in the world . With the CNC ‘seal’, the project is like a guarantee of potential and worth paying attention to. It is almost a shortcut to other film festivals,” Ms. Tran Thi Bich Ngoc analyzed.
The film “Glorious Ashes” produced by her, when it was still a project for funding, won a CNC award worth 6,000 euros. From here, the film had more advantages when applying to other funds and film festivals, most notably a sum of 150,000 euros, used to produce the film.
Coming to DANAFF, Vietnamese filmmakers also have the opportunity to network or connect, create relationships at project markets - places that attract international experts, investors, and producers. Even if they do not win awards, director-producer relationships can still "blossom" in future projects.
At the same time, filmmaking is always very competitive and fierce. Director Bui Thac Chuyen advises young filmmakers that if they choose to pursue filmmaking, they must accept a constant struggle.
“We must always make our projects the best, most attractive, convincing and feasible. Even after a successful project, the following projects must continue to be better, constantly surpassing ourselves.
There are projects that win first prizes in competitions, but never become films because this is just the beginning. If you are complacent, you will not be able to continue. Think that this is just the beginning, prepare yourself mentally and with great resources to go to the end in the strongest way,” he said.
Vietnam currently has three international film festivals, including the Hanoi International Film Festival (HANIFF), the Da Nang Asian Film Festival (DANAFF) and the Ho Chi Minh City Film Festival (HIFF). HANIFF is the oldest, held since 2010 and has a parallel project market model. However, the program is held every 2 years, lacking the necessary continuity of an international standard project market. HIFF has a project market, but this film festival was only held once in 2024 and is currently on hold, it is unknown when it will be held for the second time. The DANAFF Project Incubator model is receiving high expectations from domestic experts, due to its combination with the "Autumn Meeting" program - which has extensive experience in organizing classes and fostering independent film projects. Several directors with international achievements will participate in this year's DANAFF "Project Incubator", such as director Yanqi Chen, whose debut film won a grand prize at the Fribourg International Film Festival (Switzerland); Thai directors Itt Patiparn and Kalil Pittsuwan at the Busan International Film Festival with the film "Solids by the Seashore"; experienced director Chung Chi Cong with the films "Nham mat thay mua he" (Close your eyes to see summer), "Toi sang roi ra goi di thoi" (When the sky is bright, go to sleep) which were released in Vietnamese theaters... |
According to VNA
Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/co-hoi-quy-cho-nguoi-lam-phim-viet-tai-lien-hoa-phim-chau-a-da-nang-251900.htm
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