Vietnam Film Festival 2025:

From hundred-billion-dollar feature films that storm the box office, to documentaries and animated films with rare genres, they promise to create a memorable and breakthrough season for Vietnamese cinema.

A scene from "Mai" - a film competing at the 2025 Vietnam Film Festival.

Exciting and colorful race track

The 24th Vietnam Film Festival - 2025 takes place from November 21 to 25 in Ho Chi Minh City, marking the 55th anniversary of the award, and is of great significance in the context of the locality being recognized by the United Nations Educational , Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as a Creative City in the field of cinema - the first cinema city in Southeast Asia.

At any Vietnamese Film Festival, the most important thing is the entries. Because this is where the movement of Vietnamese cinema is evaluated. If a few years ago, films from private units held an almost absolute dominance, the "picture" in 2025 witnessed a dramatic change. The State-ordered film series with a series of projects about war and history with large-scale investment, created a significant counterbalance on the race to the Golden Lotus Award with many unpredictable movements.

Among the 16 feature films that are considered to have the potential to enter important nominations, the most notable point is the "landing" of 11 films with revenue of hundreds of billions - an unprecedented number. They are “Mai” (over 551 billion VND), “The Four Guardians” (over 332 billion VND), “Fight to the Death in the Sky” (nearly 252 billion VND), “Detective Kien: The Headless Case” (249 billion VND), “The Ancestral House” (over 242 billion VND), “The Billion Dollar Kiss” (over 211 billion VND), “Tunnel: The Sun in the Dark” (172 billion VND), “Take Me Away” (over 160 billion VND), “Sister-in-law” (over 113 billion VND), “Getting Rich with Ghosts: The Diamond War” (101 billion VND) and especially “Red Rain” - the film that holds the record for the highest box office revenue of all time for a Vietnamese film with 714 billion VND and is still “selling out” every time it is shown.

Meanwhile, the remaining 5 films “Cong Tu Bac Lieu ”, “Kinh Kinh Hoa: Ban han con ma”, “Vang trang thoi tu”, “Thanh am cross dai duong” and “Ba gia di bui” - belong to the group that did not create much box office effect or have not had the opportunity to be released in theaters. This contrast shows that this year’s festival tends to lean towards works that have passed the audience’s test, instead of relying solely on academic artistic value.

The documentary has a surprise from “Brilliant Horizon” - an extended film from the live concert of the same name by singer Ha Anh Tuan. This is the only independent documentary on the list of entries in this category. With a modern approach, interspersed with music and origin stories, the work creates a different “breeze”.

In the field of animation, two prominent representatives are “De Men: Adventure to the Swamp Village” - the Vietnamese animation with the highest revenue in history (over 21 billion VND) and “Trang Quynh Nhi: The Legend of the Taurus” - both are rare theatrical films. Both have contributed to bringing Vietnamese animation closer to the general audience…

Improve quality to integrate

The spirit of the Vietnam Film Festival 2025 is affirmed through the slogan: "Vietnamese Cinema - Sustainable development and international integration in the new era".

Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ta Quang Dong said that the 24th Vietnam Film Festival recorded 203 entries - the largest number in the history of more than half a century of the Vietnam Film Festival. Not only overwhelming in quantity, the quality of the films was also recognized "at a new height". The selection criteria this time focused on films with content that captured the breath of the times, the direction and comprehensive development that the country is aiming for. Sustainable development and integration are important highlights in the theme of the 24th Vietnam Film Festival.

Regarding the competing films, Deputy Minister Ta Quang Dong said that revenue is only part of the judging criteria. The jury evaluates the works based on the content that reflects the breath of the times, the ability to grasp the movements of society and the humanistic philosophy that the work conveys. The goal of Vietnamese cinema is not only growth, but also towards an industry with identity, lasting creativity, and the ability to integrate internationally. High-quality works are the strongest proof of the position of Vietnamese cinema in the region.

Director Phong Tran believes that the strong breakthrough of historical and war films is proof of a new generation of filmmakers ready to conquer difficult subject areas.

Director Dang Thai Huyen of the film “Red Rain” shared that making a revolutionary war film is extremely difficult. According to the female director, the film does not necessarily have to show scenes of bombs or fierce terrain. The important thing is that in “Red Rain”, we see the “core” of the Vietnamese people, which is resilience and sacrifice for the country. The actors also hope that through the work, they can touch the audience’s emotions, conveying the pride of being Vietnamese.

From another perspective, Ho Chi Minh City’s recognition as a City of Cinema by UNESCO raises great expectations for its production infrastructure and creative environment. This festival is not only an event to honor successful works, but also an opportunity to look back at the picture of cinema in the context of global integration, where Vietnamese filmmakers need to step further and more strongly.

Amidst the fierce competition that promises many surprises, the lasting impression of the 24th Vietnam Film Festival is the effort to shape the face of Vietnamese cinema in a new era with diversity and towards international standards.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/lien-hoan-phim-viet-nam-2025-mua-giai-but-pha-cua-dien-anh-nuoc-nha-724341.html