Dap Canh Giua Khong Trung (Flapping in the Middle of Nowhere), the work of Vietnamese female director, Nguyen Hoang Diep, beat out 7 other foreign debut features to win “Best Film” at the 2014 Venice International Film Festival, reports Vietnam Plus.
Trung’s film, produced by local company, VBlock Media in co-ordination with partners from France, Germany and Norway, tells the story of a girl (played by Nguyen Thuy Anh), who needs money for an abortion after being deserted by her boyfriend. A close transsexual friend directs her to a man (played by Tran Bao Son) who has a special passion for pregnant women.
"Poised in its mise-en-scene, poetic in employing visual panache and precise in capturing details which hint at the harsh realities of inner-city life, Diep's film offers a sensitive, sensual and surprisingly candid representation of sexuality and adolescence in Vietnam," wrote The Hollywood Reporter.
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Director Diep said, "I'm very happy because, together with my crew, we have added a special atmosphere and color to our first full-length movie. We call that the atmosphere of the fifth season – not spring, summer, autumn or winter – but the season of loneliness, filled with feminine emotions."
In addition to taking the top spot, the movie won a cash prize of $100,000.
Local audiences will be able to catch the film at the Hanoi International Film Festival in November.
