Director Nguyen Phan Quang Binh: Bringing young audiences closer to the spirit of their ancestors

For the first time, Vietnamese cinema will have a historical film that exploits Vietnamese historical and cultural elements, directed by Nguyen Phan Quang Binh. The project, which he has been nurturing for nearly a decade, will begin filming this November.

It is known that the film project Ho linh trang si: Bi am mo vuong Dinh , was an idea that you nurtured for 10 years, and this is a historical film genre, rarely made by Vietnamese filmmakers. Do you feel this is a risk and what motivated you?

The first inspiration came from an afternoon boat trip to Trang An. At that time, we happened to hear from the boatman about an extremely mysterious and tragic folk legend about the tomb of Dinh Tien Hoang De. I realized that Vietnamese history is a cultural treasure that needs to be exploited in the most respectful way. As a filmmaker, I also have the desire to make new genres that are seriously invested and imbued with Vietnamese culture.

The 10 years of nurturing the idea is a long journey, stemming from a passion for national history and a desire to bring an attractive legendary story, imbued with Vietnamese identity, to the big screen. Choosing the legendary genre is indeed a challenge, because the number of Vietnamese films in this genre is still quite modest. However, I do not see this as a mere adventure but as an opportunity to explore and exploit the untapped potential of Vietnamese cinema.

Director Nguyen Phan Quang Binh on his trip to find a setting for a legendary film

So what makes you confident about this challenge?

I believe that our country's history has countless fascinating stories, heroic characters and interesting mysteries. Guardian Spirit - The Mystery of King Dinh's Tomb is just one of them. We have spent a lot of time and effort researching historical and cultural documents, as well as building a tight, attractive script, combining historical elements with magical, mysterious, and thrilling action elements; however, it is connected by a simple and touching love story.

In addition, we are also aware of the difficulties in production, special effects and historical context restoration. However, with the determination of the whole crew, the support of historical and cultural experts, and especially the belief in the story we want to tell, I believe that we can overcome these challenges and bring the audience a quality and emotional film.

Director Nguyen Phan Quang Binh with musician Quoc Trung, director of photography K'Linh, Johnny Tri Nguyen at the introduction of the film project "Ho linh trang si - Bi am mausoleum of King Dinh"

Vietnamese historical - mythical - costume dramas have long been very selective of audiences because there have been a few films made before but the quality was not as expected. So with this project, how do you attract audiences?

Vietnamese historical, mythical or costume films have not really created a big echo in the hearts of audiences. There are many reasons, but I think it is the lessons learned from previous projects that have helped us better understand the key elements to make a film of this genre. With Ho linh trang si - Bi am mo vuong Dinh , we are fortunate to have the companionship of experienced filmmakers such as Johnny Tri Nguyen, director of photography K'Linh, musician Quoc Trung, the support of famous historians and young people researching ancient costumes, weapons, history, top special effects departments, art design, and costumes. All have the same aspiration to try their best to create a high-quality film product, worthy of the heroic historical stories of the nation.

Creating a compelling story on screen that contains historical elements is one thing, but isn't there more to convincing and touching the audience's emotions?

I believe that Vietnamese audiences always respect and love the history and culture of the nation. If we bring a story that is told in an attractive way, with beautiful images and genuine emotions, the audience will be ready to accept and support it.

We are not sure about the level of success, but we are confident that with careful preparation, enthusiasm and a fresh approach, Guardian Spirit - The Mystery of King Dinh's Tomb will bring a different and memorable cinematic experience to the audience, contributing to changing the prejudice about the genre of Vietnamese historical - mythical - ancient films.

The character of General Huu played by actor Johnny Tri Nguyen in the movie " Guardian of the brave soldier - The mystery of King Dinh's tomb"

Film crew provided

In this project of yours, how are Vietnamese historical and cultural elements expressed?

The film is set in the Dinh Dynasty, a period of important historical significance in the process of building and defending the nation. We incorporate into the film typical cultural features such as rituals, folk beliefs, mascots, costumes, and architecture with strong Vietnamese imprints. These elements not only serve as a background for the story but also contribute to expressing the unique cultural identity of the nation. For example, the image of the heroic guardian spirits is based on legends and beliefs about guardian gods in Vietnamese folk culture.

Often, films with cultural and historical identities will create controversy because historical elements are considered too fictional or incorrect. So how do you convey history in a legendary film?

It is important to emphasize that Ho linh trang si - Bi am toc king Dinh is not a historical documentary. We have used creativity and fiction to make the story more attractive and dramatic. The legendary element is an important part, helping us exploit the mysterious and unsolved aspects of history, while bringing new experiences to the audience. I hope that the harmonious combination of well-founded historical elements and unique fictional creations will create a film that is both attractive and imbued with Vietnamese identity.

The character of Queen Duong Van Nga played by actress Do Hai Yen in the movie: " Guardian of the brave warrior - The mystery of King Dinh's tomb"

Film crew provided

Actually, choosing to make a historical genre is a wise move because even though it is based on historical events and has historical characters, the historical genre will definitely lean more towards fiction. This will reduce the controversy and pressure that has been common for Vietnamese historical filmmakers for a long time?

Our purpose in choosing the legendary genre is not to avoid controversy, but to unleash creativity. History requires absolute accuracy, heavy on documents and proven events. This greatly limits the storytelling ability of cinema. Legend takes the core spirit and tragic context of history as the foundation, then interweaves elements of adventure, fantasy and fiction to create an engaging cinematic story. We see this as a way to bring the audience, especially young audiences, closer to the values ​​and spirit of our ancestors through an entertaining prism.

It is true that choosing legends gives us more creative space, but the pressure does not decrease. Instead of pressure on historical accuracy, we have to face pressure on creative and artistic quality, how to make the fictional element not unreasonable and convey the Vietnamese spirit. Most importantly, even though it is a legend genre, we still have to maintain the spirit of respecting the history and culture of the nation. However, this is a very short period and there are too few historical and cultural documents, so we also have to borrow from previous periods the motifs and culture of different ethnic groups of Vietnam as a basis for creativity.

When making a film genre like this project, what difficulties and pressures did you and your crew encounter in choosing the setting, costumes, and restoring the set?

Finding sites that still retain their ancient features or can be renovated to suit the Dinh Dynasty context is a difficult task. We had to survey many sites across the country, considering historical factors, aesthetics and practical production capabilities.

Costumes and props are key elements in recreating the character portraits and social life of a historical period. We had to carefully research the style, material, and color of the costumes, as well as the typical living and fighting items of the Dinh Dynasty (although we could find very few). Finding the right source of materials and finding skilled artisans to make them also required a lot of time and effort. The pressure here was to ensure historical accuracy while still being beautiful, consistent with cinematic aesthetics, and meeting the actors' performance requirements.

With the story of King Dinh's tomb, the main setting focuses on Hoa Lu land and the mysterious spaces around. The design team has worked hard for more than 3 months to build the scene in Ninh Binh and with the help of the province and businesses here, we are sure to bring many beautiful scenes for the audience to admire.

Director Nguyen Phan Quang Binh and his colleagues

Vietnamese filmmakers are exploiting many Vietnamese cultural elements. In your opinion, does this create saturation?

I do not think that the fact that Vietnamese filmmakers increasingly exploit Vietnamese cultural elements will lead to saturation. On the contrary, I think this is a positive signal and opens up many opportunities for sustainable development for the country's cinema.

Vietnam has a rich and diverse history and culture with countless stories, customs, beliefs and unique arts. Each region and each historical period has its own unique characteristics. We have only exploited a very small part of this treasure.

 

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/dao-dien-nguyen-phan-quang-binh-dua-khan-gia-tre-den-gan-khi-phach-cha-ong-18525111522004802.htm