Cinematic marks
Talking about the 3rd Da Nang Asian Film Festival, poet and critic Nguyen Phong Viet used a short word: “Thanh Giong”. At its 3rd year, the 3rd Da Nang Asian Film Festival has proven its position and prestige through its scale, quality and organization methods, which have grown and become more attractive each year.
This year's festival marked by the presence of top Asian cinema works in many categories of competition and screening. More than 100 films were screened in the programs of Asian Film Competition, Vietnamese Film Competition, Panorama of Asian Cinema and Korean Cinema Spotlight, many of which were made by veteran and leading Asian directors, typically a series of Korean films following the historical flow from the first years of Korean cinema's development. This is a record number of films in the last three film festivals.
People's Artist Nhu Quynh, who has attended many editions of the Da Nang Asian Film Festival, commented: “I clearly see the growth of the Film Festival, as this year there are many films in various topics, screening categories and competitions. This year's program is grand, creating excitement and joy for both the people and artists, filmmakers, and professionals participating in the Film Festival. Personally, I was very moved when reviewing the selected war films, and saw the enthusiastic reception from the audience. The memories of films from the previous century are remembered and highly appreciated by the Organizing Committee and the audience.”
This year’s Da Nang Asian Film Festival also marked the presence of many famous international guests of Asian cinema. No other international film festival in Vietnam has had the presence of three former directors of two of Asia’s largest film festivals, Tokyo and Busan, at the same time. They are Mr. Shozo Ichiyama, Director of the Tokyo International Film Festival, Mr. Kim Dongho, founder of the Busan International Film Festival, and Mr. Park Park Kwang-su, current Director and founding member of the Busan International Film Festival.
Along with the famous Korean films in the Korean Cinema Spotlight program, Da Nang audiences also welcomed the presence of three famous stars Moon So Ri, Park Sung Woong, and Ji Seung Hyun along with Korean idol Idol Nation. In addition, the Film Festival also had the participation of many other Asian artists such as Philippine TV star Richar.R Faulkerso Jr., Indian actor Shantanu Maheshwari ...
This year’s Da Nang Asian Film Festival also has a new feature, which according to poet and critic Nguyen Phong Viet, is that for the first time there is an award for the field of Critical Theory, creating a perspective from the perspective of critics and journalists, not just purely professional ones like other categories. DANAFF 3 is also the only international film festival to have this category in its programs.
This award is very meaningful in creating opportunities to find new talents, new filmmakers, new producers, those who can bring new winds, unique stories to Asian cinema and world cinema in general.
In addition, according to poet and critic Nguyen Phong Viet, the Criticism Theory Award is also very meaningful in opening up another perspective from the audience, an important factor in deciding the success or failure as well as the revenue of a film in the market.
That shows that the Film Festival Organizing Committee is very creative and open compared to other film festivals in Vietnam so far.
“Compared to the world, our Film Festival is still very young, but the Organizing Committee is making every effort with solid steps to affirm that up to now, DANAFF is the most well-known and talked about film festival in Vietnam. This is a film festival that is developing rapidly, strongly, but still very solidly, without skipping any steps. In the near future, DANAFF will soon be on the map of famous international film festivals in the world. At that time, we will welcome many famous artists, filmmakers, talented crews, from very developed cinema industries. I hope that this will happen soon, not in 3 or 5 years” – critic Nguyen Phong Viet shared.
Impressions to international friends
The Da Nang Asian Film Festival welcomed the presence of Ms. Audrey Azoulay - Director General of UNESCO for the first time and made a strong impression on her. “This third edition of the festival has expanded both in terms of duration and depth of content. Not only contributing to promoting international recognition for Vietnamese cinema, DANAFF III is also a space to introduce new voices from the whole region - from China to Kyrgyzstan, Japan, India and especially Korea”, commented the Director General of UNESCO.
Immediately after the event ended, she also sent a congratulatory letter to Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan - Director of the Film Festival, expressing: “DANAFF III is a testament to the power of connecting people from all backgrounds… UNESCO has long advocated for the protection and promotion of cultural diversity, and I would like to acknowledge the excellent representation of Asia’s diverse film industry in the Festival’s program. In doing so, the Festival not only gives voice to diverse communities, but also empowers new talent, nurtures creativity and promotes interculturality.”
Ms. Martine Thérouanne – Executive Director of Vesoul Asian Film Festival, one of the leading prestigious festivals in Europe specializing in evaluating and promoting independent cinema from Asia, and one of the five members of the Asian Competition Jury at DANAFF III – shared and commented frankly in an interview with Asian Movie Pulse – July 2025: “DANAFF is only three years old, so it can be said that this is a very young film festival. However, what impressed me most was the extremely warm welcome – not only for me but for all the guests. Besides that, there is a very clear spirit in promoting Vietnamese cinema. I see that the growth rate of DANAFF is very fast, both in terms of the number of films introduced and the way seminars and workshops are organized. I think that DANAFF will quickly position itself as one of the major film festivals in Asia”.
Director of the Korean Film Archive Kim Hong Joon commented: “As someone who has contributed to the development of film festivals in Korea, I see great potential in DANAFF and I am willing to support it to the best of my ability.”
Director Jang Joon-hwan, Head of the Jury of the Asian Film Competition of the Da Nang Asian Film Festival, said that this year, many international films chose DANAFF as their premiere venue. This means that DANAFF is developing very quickly and has attracted the attention of Asian filmmakers.
Not only highly appreciating the rapid and steady development of the Film Festival, actors, filmmakers, and international guests also gave good comments to the host city of Da Nang.
“Beautiful scenery, friendly people, delicious food” are common comments of many international artists about Da Nang. Actress Moon So Ri said that the people and audiences of Da Nang are very lovely, have endless joy and love for cinema, and the food is very tasty and delicious.
Actors Park Sungwoon and Ji Seung Hyun both love eating bun cha in Da Nang, and expressed their impression of the admiration that audiences in this coastal city have for artists. "They remember my old movies, call my name and cheer. I'm very touched," said Park Sungwoon.
Positive reviews from international media
The DANAFF III event received attention and positive reviews from international media, especially from major news agencies such as Xinhua (China), Korea Herald, Yonhap News, Hankook Ilbo and Nate News (Korea).
Xinhua news agency reported on June 29 that DANAFF III opened in Da Nang city under the slogan “Bridging Asia”, gathering 14 competing works from China, South Korea, India, Iran, Malaysia and many other Asia-Pacific countries. Two Chinese films – “Black Dog” and “Like a Rolling Stone” – were selected to compete and screen in local theaters.
The Korea Herald (July 1) commented that DANAFF III brings together powerful stories and artistic innovations from Vietnamese and Asia-Pacific filmmakers, “bringing new perspectives and celebrating cultural diversity.”
The newspaper also quoted the Director of the Korean Film Archive, Mr. Kim Hong Joon: “I am really impressed by the youthful spirit here – it reminds me of the early days of the Bucheon Horror Film Festival. As someone who has contributed to the development of film festivals in Korea, I see great potential in DANAFF and I am willing to support it to the best of my ability.”
Meanwhile, Yonhap News (July 1) reported that DANAFF 2025 marked the first time Korea participated as a guest country, through the key program “Focus on Korean Cinema”, screening 14 representative works from the 1960s to the present. Many leading Korean directors and artists such as Moon So-ri, Park Sung-woong… directly came to interact with Vietnamese audiences.
Yonhap News also quoted the sharing of the Korean Ambassador to Vietnam - Mr. Choi Young-sam: "I hope that through this Film Festival, the people of Vietnam and Korea will understand and sympathize with each other's stories and emotions, thereby getting closer together."
Nate newspaper (July 1) highly appreciated the cultural connection role of the event: “DANAFF is a typical example demonstrating Vietnam’s determination to strengthen cultural and artistic cooperation with Korea and Asian countries,” and noted that the appearance of leading Korean directors and actors such as Jang Joon-hwan, Moon So-ri, Kim Dong-ho and Park Kwang-su at the event is a testament to the attraction and potential for extensive cooperation.
Positive comments from experts and international press are an affirmation of the right direction and professional organization efforts of DANAFF - a Film Festival that is increasingly affirming its position on the Asian cinema map.
Source: https://nhandan.vn/danaff-iii-nhung-dau-an-cua-mot-lien-han-phim-tre-nhung-phat-trien-vuot-bac-post895685.html
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