Five excellent short film projects will receive funding of VND200m (USD8,000) each from the CJ Cultural Foundation Korea and CJ CGV Vietnam during the first CJ Short Film Project which is being held from June 15 to November 16 in Vietnam.

Interviewing a contestant

Over 250 projects with various themes from young filmmakers were sent to the organisers, with 11 making the presentation round. 

Director Pham Ngoc Lan, who have attended many international film festivals and well-known for Mot Thanh Pho Khac (Another City) project, also participated. Lan's latest film is titled An Empty Land and talk about two events that took place 10 years apart: a family searching for a father's grave in a village's graveyard and the conservation between a rich guy and his girlfriend on the golf course.

Director Chu Anh Nguyen who found success with Ca Don Be or The Suckermouth Catfish continued to explore the world of lonely women with the new project Toi Dua Em or I'll Go With You. Three other winning directors are Pham Thien An, Nguyen Le Trung Hai and Duong Dieu Linh.

Director Pham Dang Di of the judging panel said, "I hope these projects will do well at top film festivals because the directors have a clear vision and detailed production plans."

70% of the participants are studying or working in the film industry. The rest are from other sectors such as mass media, architecture or advertising design. The youngest is born in 1999 but all are passionate about filmmaking.

The second phase of the project will start from August 1. Five winning directors will be mentored by the members of the judging panel to successfully make their films. They may also be funded and helped to compete at prestige festivals.

The five winning projects will be made and released by CGV Vietnam on the final nights. Veteran and young filmmakers from South Korea will also come to Vietnam to attend the night.

Laodong/Dtinew