The writer 'stands before the sea' on days when the 'sea shines'.

Writer Nguyen Manh Tuan, originally from the forestry industry, has a well-known work about the sea: the film script 'Bright Sea' and the novel 'Standing Before the Sea'.

Writer Nguyen Manh Tuan was born in 1945. At the age of 17, he joined the August Youth Volunteer Brigade and was assigned to the Doc Do Mechanized Reforestation Station in Dong Trieu, Quang Ninh . There, he began his writing career and officially debuted in the literary world with his short story "Night of Frost," which won third prize in a writing competition organized by the Vietnam Writers Association and the General Department of Forestry in 1968.

The writer Nguyen Manh Tuan as depicted in a drawing by artist Nguyen Thi Hien.

From 1970, writer Nguyen Manh Tuan transferred to the Hanoi Forestry and Automobile Company and served in logistics support for the Southern battlefield in the Huong Son area, Ha Tinh province. At the end of 1975, he joined the Southern Press and Publishing Department and officially pursued a professional writing career.

Over six decades of writing, author Nguyen Manh Tuan has amassed an impressive body of work, including 9 collections of short stories, 12 novels, 17 screenplays for feature films, 23 screenplays for television series, 2 stage plays, and 2 sets of 11 children's books. Among these, the screenplay for the film "Bright Sea" and the novel "Standing Before the Sea" hold a particularly special place. Why? Because these two works about the sea, though different in genre, are intimately connected. Sharing the same theme and story, the screenplay for "Bright Sea" and the novel "Standing Before the Sea" express themselves through two distinct artistic languages. Not only did the screenplay for "Bright Sea" cause a stir in public opinion at the time, but it also marked Nguyen Manh Tuan's foray into the field of cinema, while the novel "Standing Before the Sea" is the work with the highest number of printed copies by Nguyen Manh Tuan.

When "Bright Sea" and "Standing Before the Sea" appeared, many suspected that writer Nguyen Manh Tuan was using someone else's name. The reason seemed plausible: Nguyen Manh Tuan had experience in forestry, but what did he know about fishing to write about it? What was the truth? In late 1978, through an introduction by poet Hoai Vu, Nguyen Vo Danh, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Fisheries Department, invited writer Nguyen Manh Tuan to write a film script about the fishing profession.

Initially, the plan was to focus solely on the Chien Thang Fishing Enterprise in Ho Chi Minh City. However, after a month of on-site investigation, writer Nguyen Manh Tuan told the Director of the Chien Thang Fishing Enterprise, Mr. Nguyen Hong Can (later the Deputy Minister of Fisheries), that the unit's story lacked sufficient material for a film. They both agreed on a solution: to further investigate the operations of the Vung Tau - Con Dao Fishing Enterprise, a highly praised model of the fishing economy .

After personally driving his motorbike to meet with officials and employees of the Vung Tau - Con Dao Fishing Enterprise, writer Nguyen Manh Tuan concluded: This model might work temporarily, but in the long run, continuing to replace rules and regulations with empiricism will inevitably lead to failure. The organizational and management methods are only applicable to fleets of about 10 boats; any larger fleet will cause problems and collapse… The Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Fisheries Department, Nguyen Vo Danh, and other city leaders were also somewhat hesitant and consulted various opinions, but by the end of 1979, they were still determined to make a film about the fishing industry after the country's reunification.

Writer Nguyen Manh Tuan spent a month completing the screenplay for the film "Bright Sea". Because it was his first film script, he didn't anticipate that a 100-minute film would only require 90-100 pages, but instead wrote 150 pages. In early 1981, writer Nguyen Manh Tuan handed the screenplay for "Bright Sea" to director Nguyen Ngoc Hien, who directed it with a cast of popular actors including Thuong Tin, Bich Lien, Kim Chi, Hong Van, Mai Thanh, etc. During the nine months that "Bright Sea" was being made, writer Nguyen Manh Tuan also used the screenplay material to complete his novel "Standing Before the Sea".

The film "Bright Sea" was screened for evaluation. The then Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee, Mr. Vo Van Kiet, along with researcher Tran Bach Dang, praised the content but expressed some concern that certain images directly related to the Vung Tau - Con Dao fishing enterprise might cause unfavorable controversy. Indeed, when "Bright Sea" sold out in theaters, some public opinion from the Vung Tau - Con Dao special zone reacted, accusing the film of deliberately slandering a model economic enterprise that the whole country was emulating.

While the hype surrounding the film "Bright Sea" was still raging, the novel "Standing Before the Sea," published by the Literature and Arts Publishing House, sold out its first print run of 10,000 copies in a week. The synergy with the film "Bright Sea" led to continuous reprints of the novel, reaching a total circulation of 150,000 copies. Cultural life in the southern provinces in 1982 was truly vibrant thanks to the film "Bright Sea" and the novel "Standing Before the Sea."

Author Nguyen Manh Tuan signs books for fans of his work from the time of "Standing Before the Sea". Photo: TH.

While the film "Bright Sea" only reached urban audiences, the novel "Standing Before the Sea" permeated everywhere. Readers in many rural areas also enthusiastically discussed the novel "Standing Before the Sea." Before 1975, the theme of the sea was mainly reflected in poetry and short stories. The only notable examples were the epic novel "The Sea Gate" by writer Nguyen Hong (1918-1982), consisting of four volumes: "Roaring Waves," "The Storm Has Arrived," "The Dark Period," and "When the Child Is Born," and the two-volume novel "Sea Storm" by writer Chu Van (1922-1994). Therefore, the direct and intense method of reflection in the novel "Standing Before the Sea" carries a completely new and relevant effect.

In 1985, the Vietnam Feature Film Studio commissioned director Tran Phuong to remake the screenplay for the film "Bright Sea," but used the title of the novel "Standing Before the Sea" for the film, starring People's Artist Tra Giang. Writer Nguyen Manh Tuan revealed: "It was the opportunity to write the screenplay for 'Bright Sea' 45 years ago that gave me the confidence to become a screenwriter. Mr. Nam Ve, the director of the Vung Tau - Con Dao Fishing Enterprise, who later became the director of the Kien Giang Fisheries Department, actively supported me in writing the 10-episode television series 'Fishery Law' for director Tran Vinh in 2006. My writing career coincidentally went from forestry to fishing, like a destined connection."

Source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/nha-van-dung-truoc-bien-nhung-ngay-bien-sang-d814618.html