Pham Hung 'wanders' with movies

Nearly 20 years ago, Pham Hung opened his own workshop in Hiep Binh Chanh (HCMC) to paint and serve as a production and procurement center for film sets. At first glance, this place looks like a "ta pi lu" workshop, because sometimes it looks like a carpentry workshop, when workers take off their shirts at noon to saw and chisel tables, chairs, and cabinets; sometimes it looks like a painting studio with all kinds of canvases, colors, and easels scattered about; sometimes it becomes an industrial space with meticulous, polished items. But finally, I gradually imagined Hung's work at that time. It turned out that he created props for the separate sets of the TV series for which he worked as a designer.

Painter Pham Hung on a trip to choose a scene

Photo: Provided by Artist Pham Hung

2011 was the year Pham Hung really started his career when he worked with directors Nguyen Duong, Phuong Dien, Duong Nam Quan... Many years later, Pham Hung worked hard in film studios in many different places to design film sets. A series of TV series named Pham Hung as a set designer such as Giac mo tinh yeu, Suong khoi dong hoang, Em uoc cung bay, Co Tham ve lang, Cau vong xanh...

From TV to Cinema

Not only trying his hand at television dramas, Pham Hung has also stepped into the role of a film designer. He has worked with many directors such as Bao Nhan, Nam Cito, Tran Buu Loc, Nguyen Huynh, etc. Films such as The Heiress, Mother's Happiness, The Old Girl V - Royal Lives, The Girl from the Past, My Father is a Playboy, Prosperity, Returning Home for Tet, Ghosts Entering the Palace, etc. seem to have inspired his creativity, making him come up with unique and novel design ideas and making the scenes in the film more vivid.

Background of the movie The Old Maid V - Royal Lives

Photo: Provided by Artist Pham Hung

In 2021, at the Vietnam Film Festival held in Hue , Pham Hung won the award for outstanding art designer for the film Gai gia lam chieu V - Nhung cuoi doi hoang gia . Pham Hung said that this was a film that caused him many obstacles and challenges when the two large scenes of the film had to be constructed in a special relic complex in Hue, where nails, hammers, and shovels could not be used. The work at that time required him and his colleagues to calculate every small detail, as well as produce very precise props for installation, with no room for error because almost all the items in the palace were classified as national treasures, so moving the items out and bringing the film crew's items in to set up the scene was a big problem. After all, the scene that the design team created here contributed to creating a truly luxurious and regal atmosphere for the film. The film also won the Jury Award at the film festival.

The setting in the movie Possessed

Photo: Provided by Artist Pham Hung

Recently, the blockbuster horror film Ghost in the Palace also caused Pham Hung to encounter difficult situations that he will never forget. He said that the film was mainly filmed at night. The big scenes such as the funeral in the middle of the night forest, making rain, and the gloomy and cold weather in Bao Loc all inspired him to conquer difficulties.

Listening to Pham Hung tell his story, one can imagine the patience and meticulousness of the graphic designer in each different film. Because each film requires a different investment, a different way of thinking, no film is the same as another. That quiet creativity is the foundation that brings so many vivid, cinematic images to the screen. Behind the halo is the sweat of many people.

Artist Pham Hung (left) on set

Photo: Provided by Artist Pham Hung

And then, like a career, that man still tirelessly wanders from remote forests to cities, from the south to the north, to find suitable scenes for the film, and as he said "the more difficult it is, the more he likes to do it".

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/pham-hung-lang-bat-ky-ho-cung-phim-anh-185250503204457976.htm