Looking from the award system, we can see the transformation of the country's cinema towards professionalization in the spirit of readiness for innovation and integration.
With the theme “Vietnamese Cinema - Sustainable Development and International Integration in the New Era”, the 24th Vietnam Film Festival brings together 144 outstanding works from 42 production units, including feature films, documentaries, scientific films and animated films. Compared to previous seasons, this year the number of participating films has increased, reflecting the vitality, investment level and constant innovation efforts of filmmakers.
The highlight of this year's Film Festival is the feature film race with outstanding works, most of which are films that have made a splash at the box office. This is a rare occasion when almost all of the outstanding films on the market appear at a film festival, creating a vivid picture, showing the enjoyment trends of domestic audiences in recent times.
The film “Red Rain” produced by the People’s Army Cinema won the Golden Lotus in the feature film category, which previously proved its strong appeal to audiences when it achieved impressive revenue, becoming one of the best-selling Vietnamese films in 2025. The film also received important awards, such as: Excellent Special Effects, Excellent Art, Excellent Sound and Excellent Supporting Actor... showing modern production thinking, serious investment and increasingly improved professionalism in the People’s Army Cinema in particular and producers in general. Other films also won excellent awards: “Tunnel: The Sun in the Dark”, Silver Lotus, Excellent Cinematography; “Death Battle in the Sky”, Silver Lotus, Excellent Director; “Sister-in-law”, Silver Lotus, Excellent Screenplay...
This year's documentaries also show a richness in topics, approaches and innovation in production thinking. The Golden Lotus Award was given to two films, "Awakening and Resolving" and "The Keeper of the Heritage Soul". These are all films rich in topicality, reflecting social change, human concerns about fading values or being threatened by the speed of development. In particular, "Awakening and Resolving" by the People's Army Cinema also received the Outstanding Sound Award, clearly demonstrating the achievements in filming techniques, sound recording and effects of the military documentary sector, combined with emotional storytelling.
Originally a genre that is selective for audiences, this year’s science films have made a remarkable breakthrough. The Golden Lotus Award went to “Fine Dust - Danger in the Sky”, reflecting the great concern of the whole society about the environment and public health. The Silver Lotus was awarded to “Cranes to the South”, a work that combines scientific knowledge and artistry. The increasing number and impressive quality of science films shows a new trend in investing in films that popularize knowledge - something that is extremely necessary in a modern society.
This year, animated films made a clear mark. Two works won the Golden Lotus, including “Trang Quynh nhi: Legend of Kim Nguu” and “De Men: Adventure to the swampy village”. The films were built on Vietnamese cultural and legendary materials and expressed using modern animation techniques. The combination of national identity with modern technology shows that domestic animation has initially made its own mark on the path of identification and sustainable development. Notably, for the first time, the Vietnam Film Festival honored the category for the unit distributing the most Vietnamese films. CGV was awarded a certificate of merit when it released 45 Vietnamese films in the period 2023-2025. This change has special significance because the market is only strong when there is a professional distribution system and a long-term commitment to domestic films. This is also a positive signal for production investors.
This year’s festival brought together many strong works, showing that the cinema industry is changing both in terms of artistic quality and audience accessibility. The awards are given based entirely on professional criteria, meeting artistic, content and technical values, without being lenient or preferential because of revenue, commerce or market pressure.
Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan, President of Vietnam Cinema Promotion and Development Association
Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan, President of the Vietnam Cinema Promotion Association, said: This year's film festival brings together many strong works, showing that the cinema industry is changing in both artistic quality and audience accessibility. The awards are given entirely based on professional criteria, meeting artistic, content and technical values, without being lenient or preferential because of revenue, commerce or market pressure. Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan also said: Exploiting, preserving and renewing classic works not only contributes to preserving cultural values, but also creates new creative resources, contributing to shaping the identity and depth of cinema in the integration era. In addition, the combination of human resources, professional capacity, technical innovation and support from mechanisms and policies is a decisive factor for cinema to improve its international integration capacity, opening up prospects for sustainable development for the industry.
The 24th Vietnam Film Festival has outlined a part of the transformation process of the country's cinema, in which the rejuvenation of the filmmaking team, the trend of harmonizing the market and art, the expansion of the space of topics, genres and technical innovations are moving simultaneously, creating new momentum for the national cinema. The young creative force brings fresh energy, contributing to shaping modern storytelling; while the effort to balance artistic values and market requirements shows the increasingly flexible adaptability of production units.
Along with these advantages, challenges also exist. The rejuvenation of the team, if not accompanied by a system of intensive training and experience guidance, can lead to risks in terms of quality and content identity. Meanwhile, the balance between the market and art is still fragile. The strict characteristics of the market sometimes force young filmmakers to follow entertainment trends, leading to the risk of copying formulas and lacking real creativity. Although they have achieved richness in topics and genres, most film units need to set higher requirements in the editing system, script research, production planning to ensure coherence, depth and the ability to effectively exploit each genre. Along with that, in the technical field, it requires long-term infrastructure investment, maintaining high-quality human resources and the ability to continuously update technology, otherwise it will be difficult to be sustainable.
Chairman of the Vietnam Cinema Association Do Lenh Hung Tu commented: From a professional perspective, advantages and challenges are not separate but interact with each other, creating a dynamic mechanism and parallel barriers. Advantages in human resources, technology and market are the foundation for domestic cinema to make a breakthrough, while challenges in training, infrastructure, artistic balance and market play a role as a system of factors to adjust and standardize the development process. Clearly recognizing this relationship will help managers, producers and creators to develop long-term strategies, turn strengths into development drivers, and gradually overcome limitations, in order to improve the quality and competitiveness of Vietnamese cinema in the era of international integration.
Source: https://nhandan.vn/dau-an-cua-dien-anh-nhin-tu-lien-hoan-phim-lan-thu-24-post926130.html
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