As the 70th annual Cannes Film Festival gets under way, Vietnam is hoping to generate interest among filmmakers and production companies from around the world in its push to become a major movie-making destination.
According to VnExpress, this is the first time the country’s Cinema Department will officially attend the famed French film festival. Vietnam’s planned activities at the festival include a special event titled “Vietnam Night”, which will feature both food and films from the country.
Members of the Cinema Department will also set up a booth at the film festival, VietnamNet reports, where they will screen Vietnamese films such as Vo Ba (The Third Wife), Vi (Taste), Con Culi Khong Biet Khoc (Sloth Monkey Never Cries) and Dao Cua Dan Ngu Cu (The Way Station), which earned a prize at the ASEAN International Film Festival earlier this year.
Several billboards featuring Vietnamese destinations such as Ha Long Bay, Son Doong Cave and Ninh Binh’s Trang An will also hang in front of the Majestic Barriere Hotel, a venue known for hosting international film stars during the festival.
Vietnam’s latest push for attention from the international film community comes on the heels of Kong: Skull Island, the big-budget Hollywood blockbuster released in March. Since then, local authorities have appointed the film’s director, Jordan Vogt-Roberts, an official tourism ambassador for the country and retained several of the film’s sets as tourism attractions.
The Cannes Film Festival opened on May 17 and will run until May 28.
[Photo via VnExpress]
