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Varan Vietnam at Ồ Ạt Festival 2026
Ồ Ạt Festival 2026 is pleased to present “Hanoi 2004,” a selection of films curated by film programmer and director Trịnh Đình Lê Minh.
For Ồ Ạt Festival 2026, his film programme seeks to offer a glimpse into contemporary Vietnamese documentary cinema through the journeys of two generations of filmmakers.
At the heart of this programme, “Hanoi 2004” marks the beginning of Varan Vietnam’s twenty-year journey – a journey that has contributed to the training and inspiration of many independent documentary filmmakers in Vietnam. These are debut works in which the cinematic voices of a younger generation of directors first began to take shape.
Together, the two film programmes “Hanoi 2004” and “Hanoi 2024” form a portrait of the Vietnamese capital spanning two decades.
The city is revealed not only through its landscapes and rhythms of urban life, but also through everyday struggles, anxieties, and livelihoods. Running through these films are questions of how individuals – often ordinary people navigating modest lives – remain connected to their families and communities within a changing society. Alongside these concerns are reflections on illness, ageing, loss, and death.
Seen across a distance of twenty years, Hanoi emerges as a community with its own distinct and unmistakable character. It is, in many ways, a vast cinematic stage – filled with people, stories, and subjects of seemingly endless richness and possibility.
FILMS IN THE “HANOI 2004” PROGRAMME
Cha đã về (2004)
Directed by Đoàn Gia Mẫn
Người hàng sứ (2004)
Directed by Nguyễn Trường Giang
Trong phường Thành Công có làng Thành Công (2004)
Directed by Phan Thị Vàng Anh
SCREENING INFORMATION
1 September 2026 | 10:00 AM–11:00 AM
Amanaki Thảo Điền
10 Nguyễn Đăng Giai, An Khánh, Ho Chi Minh City
6 September 2026 | 10:00 AM–11:00 AM
Ồ Ạt Lab
No. 8, Street 53 BTT, Bình Trưng Ward, Ho Chi Minh City
FILMS IN THE “HANOI 2024” PROGRAMME
Gió mùa về (2025)
Directed by Lê Thị Thắm
Người cất mả (2025)
Directed by Nguyễn Ánh
Đâu đó bên bệnh viện (2025)
Directed by Thảo Thảo
SCREENING INFORMATION
1 September 2026 | 12:00 PM–1:00 PM
Amanaki Thảo Điền
10 Nguyễn Đăng Giai, An Khánh, Ho Chi Minh City
6 September 2026 | 12:00 PM–1:00 PM
Ồ Ạt Lab
No. 8, Street 53 BTT, Bình Trưng Ward, Ho Chi Minh City
The screenings will be followed by conversations with participating directors.
REGISTRATION
https://forms.gle/CYpkL6u5TDrWDgEA9
Times
1 & 6 September 2026
Amanaki Thảo Điền (10 Nguyễn Đăng Giai, An Khánh, Ho Chi Minh City)
Ồ Ạt Lab (No. 8, Street 53 BTT, Bình Trưng Ward, Ho Chi Minh City)
Other Events
VIETNAM: HERE & THERE – Revisiting Vietnamese Cinema Through Different Territories of Memory
This year’s program includes several works by members and alumni of Varan Vietnam - films that carry a spirit of observing life, closeness to their subjects, and a deeply personal approach to documentary cinema.
VIETNAM: HERE & THERE – Revisiting Vietnamese Cinema Through Different Territories of Memory
This year’s program includes several works by members and alumni of Varan Vietnam - films that carry a spirit of observing life, closeness to their subjects, and a deeply personal approach to documentary cinema.
FIND OUT
“Dream is a Snail” – When a Vietnamese Dream Reaches Cannes Film Festival 2026
The short film “The Dream is a Snail” by young director Nguyễn Thiên Ân is currently the only Vietnamese film selected among the Top 10 short films competing at the Cannes Film Festival 2026 (Short Film Competition).
“Dream is a Snail” – When a Vietnamese Dream Reaches Cannes Film Festival 2026
The short film “The Dream is a Snail” by young director Nguyễn Thiên Ân is currently the only Vietnamese film selected among the Top 10 short films competing at the Cannes Film Festival 2026 (Short Film Competition).
FIND OUT
“The Unseen Studio” Receives Commendation at Golden Kite Awards 2025
Nguyễn Thiên Ân began his filmmaking journey entirely self-taught, through short fiction films filled with color and imagination. He gradually found his way to real-life stories and the direct cinema approach through documentary work. This transformation did not close off his earlier path but opened a new creative direction: an intriguing interplay between reality and fiction, between observation and construction.
“The Unseen Studio” Receives Commendation at Golden Kite Awards 2025
Nguyễn Thiên Ân began his filmmaking journey entirely self-taught, through short fiction films filled with color and imagination. He gradually found his way to real-life stories and the direct cinema approach through documentary work. This transformation did not close off his earlier path but opened a new creative direction: an intriguing interplay between reality and fiction, between observation and construction.
FIND OUT
A Screening of Three Short Films by Varan Vietnam Trainees at CinEscape
What the three films share is not theme or geography, but approach: patient, close, and unimposing. The people on screen are neither staged nor embellished. They are simply seen, and sometimes, being seen is enough. CinEscape remains a space where films like these can find the audience they deserve.
A Screening of Three Short Films by Varan Vietnam Trainees at CinEscape
What the three films share is not theme or geography, but approach: patient, close, and unimposing. The people on screen are neither staged nor embellished. They are simply seen, and sometimes, being seen is enough. CinEscape remains a space where films like these can find the audience they deserve.
FIND OUT
