For the first time in the history of film festivals in Vietnam, there was a separate discussion about the creative style of director, People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh, with profound and respectful opinions, emotions from researchers, filmmakers, artists, actors... for him. The discussion was called "Creative style of director Dang Nhat Minh", within the framework of the 2024 Da Nang Asian Film Festival.
Director and People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh was born in 1938 in Hue, the son of Professor and Doctor Dang Van Ngu, a master of parasitology research in Vietnam. His mother was Ton Nu Thi Cung, daughter of Minister of Justice and Governor of Nghe An Ton That Dan under the reign of King Khai Dinh.
Director and People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh has a creative career spanning more than half a century, achieving many outstanding achievements at film festivals in Vietnam and internationally. His first feature film was "Sea Stars" (1973), but not many people knew about it. He became famous with the feature film "Town in Your Hands" about the visible and invisible ruins in life and souls after the war on the northern border (1983, Golden Lotus Award, Vietnam Film Festival).
The film that made Dang Nhat Minh famous at home and abroad was “Bao gio cho den thang 10” (1984, Golden Lotus Award at the Vietnam Film Festival, Special Jury Prize at the Hawaii International Film Festival, Top 18 best Asian films of all time according to CNN).
Dang Nhat Minh's writing style is clearly revealed in its subtlety, depth, touching the audience, in the Vietnamese identity in connecting the fate of women with the fate of the country, the human soul with the national spirit. The film that won the most international awards is Thuong nho dong que (1995), the Director's Award at the Vietnam Film Festival and many awards at international film festivals: NETPAC Award at the Rotterdam Film Festival, Gold Montgolfiere Award at the Nantes Three Continents Film Festival, Audience at the Nantes, Fribourg, Versoul Film Festivals, KODAK Award at the Asia- Pacific Film Festival, ACCT Award at the Namur Film Festival...).
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Director, People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh in the arms of artists and filmmakers... |
Dang Nhat Minh's works are very rich with many films on the themes of leaders and revolutionary wars such as "Hanoi in winter 1946" (1997), "Don't burn" (2009). In the film he made when Vietnam entered the renovation period "Girl on the river" (1987), his filmmaking style had some differences.
Dang Nhat Minh also has a connection with the theme of Hanoi. In addition to the film “Hanoi Winter 1946”, he made “Return” (1994), “Guava Season” (2000), and “Jasmine” (2022).
In 2007, director and People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh was awarded the Ho Chi Minh Prize for Literature and Arts by the State. Previously, in 1999, he received the "Grand Prize for Culture" from Nikkei (Japan) for his film works. And, in 2022, he received the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters from the French Ministry of Culture.
For Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan, President of the Vietnam Cinema Promotion Association, Director of the 2024 Da Nang Asian Film Festival, director and People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh is a typical director of Vietnamese cinema. “In Vietnam, there are not many seminars and discussions about director Dang Nhat Minh, while there are many internationally. That is why we decided to hold a series of events about him, the most typical of which is the awarding of the Cinema Achievement Award. I think that is really necessary when the works of director and People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh become a valuable heritage of Vietnam, and bring that heritage back to life.”
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| Director, People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh and artists, filmmakers, film managers... |
Sharing about the director, People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh, Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen The Ky, Chairman of the Central Council for Theory and Criticism of Literature and Art, said that he is a special person, as both father and son were awarded the Ho Chi Minh Prize.
Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen The Ky assessed that People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh is one of the few Vietnamese filmmakers with his own style, his works have a personal voice, the human condition in his films carries general issues. His films are very Vietnamese, especially about women with small status. But when his films are released to the world, they have common elements, following the world trend of talking about small statuses.
Talking about the literary and cinematic qualities of the director, People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh, Associate Professor Dr. Pham Xuan Thach said that this is the person who helped shape his cultural personality since childhood, and he himself has written many articles about his works. Preserving his cinematic heritage is also a way for that heritage to develop.
According to Associate Professor Dr. Pham Xuan Thach, the film works of director and People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh have two parallel worlds, including the world of language and the world of images. His system of the language world is the type of image that says a lot. "The images in his films are very beautiful but stoic, a very different type of stoic. His system of the image world is the image of language, meaning that every image has meaning, different from beautiful images" - Associate Professor Dr. Pham Xuan Thach said.
As for language, Associate Professor Dr. Pham Xuan Thach believes that in the films of director and People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh, words are given the most important responsibility, and sometimes they are the words that guide everything. He talks about a very touching scene in the film "Missing the Countryside", when Nham has just dismantled the brick kiln and gone out to visit the fields, a young boy but has to take on the responsibility of a grown man, overseeing a big job.
"At that time, the image of the cinematographer, People's Artist Nguyen Huu Tuan, the acting of Ta Ngoc Bao, and the direction of the director, People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh made that scene excellent" - Associate Professor, Dr. Pham Xuan Thach commented.
Associate Professor, Dr. Pham Xuan Thach also believes that the films of director, People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh are topical, from "The Town in Your Hands", "The Girl on the River"..., the stories that happen in the films are all topical, mentioned in the daily press at that time. He found a way with the very limited and outdated tools of his time to make films. It is in that context that filmmakers like him have done things that today's cinema cannot do. "I believe that Dang Nhat Minh is a man of his own time" - Associate Professor, Dr. Pham Xuan Thach said.
Without commenting on the filmmaking style of director and People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh, Ms. Le Thi Ha, Director of the Vietnam Film Institute, said that in recent years, the Institute has received many requests to provide film series by director and People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh from both domestic and international organizations and individuals. Because of the high demand, most of his films are translated into English and stored in bilingual format, to provide to many international film festivals and film weeks, etc.
Ms. Le Thi Ha also said that the Institute received a lot of feedback about the film by director, People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh, including many responses from young audiences. Many viewers commented that after watching his film, they felt a surge of love for the country.
With such unique values, the films of director and People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh are truly a heritage, as Associate Professor Dr. Pham Xuan Thach said, which needs to be preserved so that the heritage can sow the seeds for the development of new films. And that heritage needs a more worthy position, so that audiences of many generations can easily access, use, enjoy and explore.
This is the first time I have attended a conference about my films, I am very moved. The stories of my films are always associated with society in a certain period, and only happen in Vietnam. Therefore, anyone who is interested in society and people can find and watch my films. That is a characteristic but also a limitation because it does not meet all the needs of the audience. My films do not have many twists and turns, but the story must be told in a way that makes the audience moved and have their own thoughts. “From being moved to thinking” are two states that I always think about when making films, that is why I often write my own scripts. What I have done for Vietnamese cinema is very small.
Director, People's Artist Dang Nhat Minh
Source: https://nhandan.vn/phong-cach-lam-phim-chuan-muc-va-doc-dao-cua-dao-dien-nsnd-dang-nhat-minh-post818151.html
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