First HCMC International Film Festival 2024 opens

Attending the opening ceremony were Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Vietnam Ta Quang Dong; Director of the Cinema Department under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Vi Kien Thanh; Chairman of the HCMC People’s Committee Phan Van Mai; Head of the Propaganda and Education Board of the Municipal Party Committee Phan Nguyen Nhu Khue; Vice Chairman of the HCMC People’s Committee Duong Anh Duc; Vice Chairman of the HCMC People’s Council Huynh Thanh Nhan; Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee in HCMC Ngo Thanh Son; Chairwoman of the HCMC Cinematography Association Duong Cam Thuy.

The event also saw the presence of representatives of diplomatic missions and consulates in HCMC of France, Hungary, India, Thailand, Italia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Russia, Sweden, and the US, and leaders of the municipal departments, local and foreign artists.

In his opening speech to the film fest, Mr. Duong Anh Duc, Vice Chairman of the HCMC People's Committee emphasized that the city’s movie industry with many outstanding cinematic works and the filmmakers, directors, and actors who have made their names known nationwide, has significantly contributed to the Vietnamese movie industry over the past 70 years. The southern metropolis is also considered a large market for film production and distribution in the country.

The HCMC People's Committee approved a project to develop the city’s cultural industry until 2030. In which the film industry is identified as one of the eight key cultural industries, with an average growth rate of about 12 percent per year, reaching over VND5,000 billion. The municipal authorities hope to attract international investment into the film industry and other cultural industries of the city through activities of the HIFF, contributing to the economic, cultural, and social development of the southern economic hub.

HIFF 2024 is one of the activities of HCMC’s strategic programs developing the film industry, improving the quality and reputation of the city’s movie area, and promoting images, culture, and tourism of the southern metropolis to international friends as an attractive destination for investment, developing HCMC into a film city to join the UNESCO Creative Cities Network, he added.

At the opening ceremony, the organization board also announced the list of judges for the various film categories in the competition, including People's Artists Dao Ba Son and Nguyen Thanh Van, actress Hong Anh, directors Le Thanh Son, Nguyen Vo Nghiem Minh, Trinh Dinh Le Minh, Luong Dinh Dung, and Bui Kim Quy,

There is also the Principal of the HCMC University of Theater and Cinema Pham Huy Quang; People's Artist Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy, deputy director of the Department of Culture and Sorts of the city; Deputy Head of the Propaganda and Education Board of the Municipal Party Committee Nguyen Tho Truyen; Associate Professor Dr. Tran Luan Kim; journalist and critic Ngo Ngoc Ngu Long; Meritorious Artists Tran My Ha and Nham Minh Hien, along with international filmmakers.

The HCMC International Film Festival 2024 will be organized for the first time on April 6- 13, 2024.

There will be a wide range of sideline activities with the participation of international artists and visitors, including a gala film screening; training courses conducted by directors, actors, producers, and experts who have a lot of experience in the movie industry; music and fashion performances; a food fair; a film industry exhibition introducing the history and development of the movie industry of HCMC, Vietnam and the world, famous producers, directors, and movie stars in Nguyen Hue Walking Street; seminars on the importance of funding for film development, film center, film commission and other issues of the movie industry of the world, Vietnam, and HCMC.

HIFF 2024 will be a bridge to connect filmmakers, actors, and audiences at home and abroad to exchange and seek cooperation opportunities. The event is expected to be a chance to introduce Vietnamese high-quality and creative pictures, affirming the position and prestige of Vietnamese cinema in general and HCMC on the map of world cinema.