The Da Nang Asian Film Festival (DANAFF) is slated to take place in the city from May 9-13.

Logo of the forthcoming Da Nang Asian Film Festival

The festival is jointly organised by the Viet Nam Film Development Association (VFDA), the Da Nang People's Committee along with other domestic and foreign partners.

Among the foreign partners participating in the organisation of DANAFF is the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC), a renowned organisation dedicated to promoting and supporting Asian cinema globally.

The festival aims to encourage the new Vietnamese and Asian cinema talents and introduce to the public the new, high-value works in content and art of Asian and Vietnamese films and selected films of world cinema. It is expected to be held annually in the following years.

In addition, it aims to become a prestigious and professional international cinema event, and promote international cooperation of cinema and spread the image of Da Nang as a cultured and creative city in Viet Nam.

The five-day event will include various major events, including the opening and closing ceremonies, the screenings of in-competition films, the screenings of the films by famous partners and guests of world cinema, the ‘Talent Incubator’ workshop, and a sightseeing tour.

Particularly, the ‘Talent Incubator’ workshop will include the basic acting class instructed by lecturer Lydia Park from South Korea and the advanced acting class instructed by lecturer Tsuyoshi Sugiyama from Japan.

Director Phan Dang Di, an independent filmmaker who has won many awards at the International Film Festivals and the founder of Autumn Meeting, will lead the workshop.

The castings to select students to participate in the workshop will be conducted in March 2023 in Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang.

The in-competition section is divided into two categories: Asian Film Awards, including feature-length films from cinemas in the Asia-Pacific region produced from January 2021 - January 2023, and Vietnamese Film Awards, seeing the competition among eight to ten Vietnamese feature films produced from January 2021 - January 2023.

The Asian Film Awards will be decided by the Asian Film Jury, while the Vietnamese Film Jury will select winners of the Vietnamese Film Awards.

The awards of both categories will consist of a grand prize for best film valued at US$5,000 (equivalent to VND115 million), a special jury prize of US$3,000 (VND69 million), an US$2,000 (VND46 million) award for best director, the US$2,000 best actor award, the US$2,000 best actress award, and the US$2,000 best screenplay award.

Two additional awards without prize money will be the NETPAC Award for Best Vietnamese Film, decided by the NETPAC Jury, selected in the Vietnamese Film Competition and the audience’s choice award for the favourite Vietnamese film.

DANAFF will be attended by Asian and international movie stars, famous Vietnamese filmmakers and artists, international and domestic VIP guests and young filmmakers whose works are featured.

The event is calling for submissions until February 28, 2023. Please find the entry form and the regulations at www.danaff.vn or www.vfda.vn/danaff/.

Reporting by baochinhphu.vn - Translating by M.DUNG