UC Irvine to host Vietnamese International Film Festival screenings

EVENT:  The sixth biennial Vietnamese International Film Festival kicks off this week with screenings at UC Irvine. The eight-day program features 69 movies by Vietnamese and Vietnamese diaspora filmmakers from Australia, Cambodia, Canada, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Poland, Singapore, Switzerland, Vietnam and the United States. UC Irvine’s School of Humanities, Department of Asian American Studies and Vietnamese American Oral History Project are sponsors of the festival.

WHEN/WHERE: Screenings and receptions are planned on campus April 7, 13 and 14 in the Humanities Gateway (grid E7, bldg. 611 on campus map) and the Humanities Instructional Building (grid E8, bldg. 610 on campus map). For a complete schedule and more information about the films, visit www.vietfilmfest.com.

INFORMATION: Media planning to attend should contact Laura Rico at 949-824-9055 or lrico@uci.edu. Parking is available for $10 in the Student Center Parking Structure at West Peltason and Pereira drives.

HIGHLIGHTS: 2-4 p.m. April 7: A panel event called “Script, Scene, Screen” will feature actors, directors and producers such as Tran Anh Hung and Kieu Chinh discussing the artistic journey, filmmaking challenges, emerging technologies and shifting film distribution models. It will take place in Humanities Gateway 1030 and may be viewed via live stream at www.vietfilmfest.com.

4-5:30 p.m. April 13: There will be a screening of “Mr. Cao Goes to Washington,” with an appearance by director S. Leo Chiang. The movie is about the first Vietnamese American member of Congress and deals with the Vietnamese American community’s political mobilization after Hurricane Katrina. The film will be shown in Humanities Gateway, Room 1070.

2-5:40 p.m. April 14: An awards reception will include a screening of “Stateless,” a documentary co-produced by UC Irvine alum Mai Phuong Nguyen. The film tells the story of a group of Vietnamese boat people stranded in the Philippines while denied entrance into the United States in the 1980s. The event will be held in Humanities Instructional Building, Room 100.

7:30-9 p.m. April 14: There will be a closing-night screening of “War Witch,” with an appearance by director Kim Nguyen. The movie, about child soldiers in sub-Saharan Africa, was nominated for a 2013 Academy Award as best foreign-language film. It will be shown in Humanities Instructional Building, Room 100.

BACKGROUND: Established in 2003, the Vietnamese International Film Festival is organized every two years by the Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association and Vietnamese Language & Culture. Its mission is to support, celebrate and share the work of filmmakers of Vietnamese descent and films about the Vietnamese people and culture.