Director Hirokazu Kore-eda speaks with Vietnamese media on the afternoon of April 10th - Photo: TTD
Hirokazu Kore-eda called Kim Dong Ho his benefactor, who introduced him to many opportunities in his career.
He also honestly shared his appreciation for the Ho Chi Minh City International Film Festival and Vietnam, saying that he knew it was a country "with delicious food," and that accepting an invitation to a film festival anywhere was also an opportunity to visit that country.
With affection for Tran Anh Hung
Regarding Vietnamese cinema, director Kore-eda said he hasn't seen many films and hasn't had much exposure to it.
However, he held the French-Vietnamese filmmaker Tran Anh Hung in high regard because they had shared over 30 years of careers. Kore-eda had fond memories of having a meal together in London with Tran Anh Hung.
Kore-eda and Tran Anh Hung have both achieved accolades at the Cannes Film Festival - Photo: Getty
At the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, he said he was delighted that Tran Anh Hung won the Best Director award for the film The Taste of Things , and that his film Monster won the Best Screenplay award for Ko-ji Yakusho.
Kore-eda humbly explained that he usually writes the scripts for his own films, but Monster had a complex structure that he couldn't write, and he was fortunate to work with a talented screenwriter.
Kore-eda hasn't seen any Vietnamese films. However, he believes Vietnam shares some similarities with South Korea, and South Korea also has a very developed film industry. Therefore, if Vietnam has good films, he would very much like to see them.
We need to nurture new talents.
When HIFF takes place, many people expect the event to give a boost to the development of the local film industry, thereby contributing to economic growth.
From the perspective of a master filmmaker with 30 years of experience and numerous valuable contributions to Japanese and world cinema, director Kore-eda shares:
"If a film industry is produced locally, that locality can develop."
Kore-eda offered a candid perspective on organizing a successful film festival: don't focus too much on celebrities, nurture young talents instead - Photo: TTD
However, that is a derivative result of filmmaking, and absolutely cannot be the purpose of cinematic creation. If that is taken as the purpose of cinematic creation, I do not consider it a healthy way of thinking."
In order for a young film festival like HIFF to build its brand and make an impression in the region, he said:
"Even in Japan, there aren't many effective international film festivals. This time, the Busan Film Festival invited Mr. Kim Dong Ho, a co-founder of the Busan Film Festival, as honorary chairman. This is very significant. If possible, inviting more reputable figures to participate would help enhance the festival's prestige."
A panoramic view of the conversation between director Kore-eda and representatives from several media outlets in Ho Chi Minh City on the afternoon of April 10th - Photo: MI LY
But he also noted that a film festival shouldn't focus on inviting celebrities to build a brand, but rather on nurturing new talent.
"Film festivals should discover and nurture directorial talents to introduce and recognize them. If a talented director is discovered, the following year they should be encouraged and supported, and the audience should work together to develop and support the film festival, instead of just trying to invite many famous people," he said.
For cinema to flourish, don't interfere with creativity.
Despite being an auteur filmmaker renowned across the globe, Kore-eda admitted to encountering difficulties while filming in Tokyo, Japan.
Specifically, when filmmakers wanted to shoot scenes at police stations, schools, streets, public places, etc., Tokyo would not allow filming.
Director Kore-eda on the set of a film - Photo: Japan Times
Therefore, according to him, if a city wants to develop into a "film city," it must create a ready-made "menu," meaning that wherever a filming location is desired, that location must be prepared for filming.
He said, "For filmmaking to flourish, the city should only provide logistical support, not dictate the content of the creators' films."
"Interfering with the film's content would ruin the work. Let the director create the content."
In Vietnam, there are loyal audiences who love Kore-eda's films such as Nobody Knows, Still Walking, After the Storm, Like Father, Like Son, and Shoplifters (winner of the Palme d'Or at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival).
Kore-eda expressed his joy and gratitude for the empathy he received from Vietnamese audiences, noting that Vietnam has a particular interest in films with family themes. He hopes his films will be screened more frequently in Vietnam, alongside Broker and Monster, which were released in 2022 and this year, respectively.
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