Deputy Director of the HCMC Department of Culture and Sports Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy speaks at the press conference. (Photo: SGGP)

The film fest will have five main categories and a special competition for movies about HCMC.

There will be a wide range of sideline activities, such as 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 at Nguyen Hue Walking Street.

There are also seminars, workshops, and training courses that will be held to offer an opportunity to film producers, actors, critics, and audiences to exchange movie themes, trends, challenges, and experiences in the film industry. It will be also a chance for students and teachers of movie schools to learn about skills of scriptwriting, directing, acting, cinematography, editing, and marketing.

One of the highlights of the festival is the cine show featuring a series of music and fashion shows in movies to honor cinematic works of Vietnam and the world as well as outstanding achievements of the fashion industry of HCMC and Vietnam.

The film fest is expected to attract hundreds of thousands of audiences and local and international 200 filmmakers, directors, and artists.

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, Deputy Director of the HCMC Department of Culture and Sports Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy said at the press conference.

HIFF 2024 is also 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, she added.

The film fest is accompanied by the Vietnam Cinema Department under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, HCMC Cinema Association, HCMC Television, HCMC Music Center, Vietnam Festival Joint Stock Company (Vietfest), and local and foreign experts.

The opening ceremony is scheduled to take place at HCMC Opera House and Lam Son Park on Le Loi Street in District 1 on April 6.

The first HIFF 2024 will be presented to international markets at the Busan International Film Festival which will take place from October 4 -13, 2023 in Busan, Korea.

Source: SGGP