Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan, who has made many contributions to bringing Vietnamese cinema to the world.

Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan is a prestigious name in the world of film criticism, theory and Vietnamese literature and art. She has made many contributions in the professional field, State management and is currently helping the country's cinema take new steps forward at the international level as the President of the Vietnam Cinema Promotion and Development Association.

Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan at the 2025 Da Nang Asian Film Festival awards ceremony.

Ngo Phuong Lan was born into a family with a tradition of cinema and painting. Her father is painter-People's Artist Ngo Manh Lan and her mother is film actress-People's Artist Ngoc Lan, her sisters are also painters and journalists. Ngo Phuong Lan's life partner is journalist Dinh Trong Tuan, former Editor-in-Chief of Cinema World Magazine for many years and her son is the excellent young film director Dinh Tuan Vu, who has received many film awards at domestic and international film festivals.

Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan received very basic training in cinema. In 1980, she studied at the Faculty of Literature, Hanoi University. In 1982, Ngo Phuong Lan was sent to study at the Faculty of Film Theory and Criticism at the National Film University of the former Soviet Union and graduated in 1988. In 2005, she successfully defended her thesis and received a PhD in History of Culture and Arts.

Also in this year, she completed and published the book "Modernity and Nationality in Vietnamese Cinema" which won the Golden Kite Award for her theoretical research on cinema. In 2007, the book was selected and edited by the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC) with Galangpress and published internationally in English under the name "Modernity and Nationality in Vietnamese Cinema", and was also the first book published by NETPAC.

During her career, Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan served as Deputy Director of the Department of International Cooperation (2010-2011), Director of the Department of Cinema (2011-2018) of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and concurrently Director of the Hanoi International Film Festival (HANIFF) from 2012 to 2018...

She is currently Vice President of the 5th Central Council for Theory and Criticism of Literature and Arts, President of the Vietnam Association for the Promotion and Development of Cinema; Director of the Da Nang Asian Film Festival (DANAFF) and a member of the Executive Committee of the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC).

Under the leadership of Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan, the Vietnam Cinema Promotion and Development Association has made many contributions to introducing Vietnamese cinema works to the world.

Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan was awarded the State Prize for Literature and Arts in 2017, and received the Asia-Pacific Copyright Contribution Award at CineAsia in 2022. Besides being a prestigious film critic and theorist, Ngo Phuong Lan can be seen as a visionary and dedicated manager in building the Vietnamese film industry in recent times, bringing the country's cinema to a worthy position on the regional and world film map.

In 2019, after finishing her term at the Department of Cinema - Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan founded the Vietnam Cinema Promotion and Development Association (VFDA), operating with the aim of gathering, uniting, and promoting the creative capacity of Vietnamese organizations and citizens to produce high-quality films; being a forum to connect and support foreign film producers to make films in Vietnam; contributing to promoting the traditions, image of the country, people, and cultural identity of Vietnam through films and developing the Vietnamese cinema brand in the period of international integration.

Over the past 5 years, with the tireless efforts and solidarity of the VFDA Executive Board and all members, VFDA has achieved many good results, from organizing major film events to promoting international film cooperation, associated with promoting the image of Vietnam, contributing to tourism development. Some notable highlights in the first term of VFDA are the founding and coordination with the People's Committee of Da Nang City to successfully organize the Da Nang Asian Film Festival - the first and only continental film event in Vietnam.

In addition, VFDA has successfully developed and piloted the Production Attraction Index (PAI); organized a series of quality seminars and professional talks attracting the participation of domestic and international experts, filmmakers, and artists; and actively promoted Vietnamese cinema to the world at a number of major events such as the Busan International Film Festival and the Tokyo International Film Festival.

Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan and actress Ninh Duong Lan Ngoc at the ACFM 2024 Film Fair in Busan (Korea).

Dr. Dinh Thi Mai, Deputy Head of the Central Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Commission, highly appreciated the important achievements that the Vietnam Film Promotion and Development Association (VFDA) has achieved in recent years, making significant contributions to the development of cinema and culture of the country.

The development of the Vietnamese film industry depends not only on macro policies but also on the active contributions of political, social, professional organizations, or social and professional organizations such as the Vietnam Cinema Promotion and Development Association. I believe that, with the sense of responsibility and enthusiasm of Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan, who has led the Association for over 5 years, and the Association's Executive Board and members, the Association will have many successes, continuing to play a pivotal role in the construction of a strong and sustainable development of the Vietnamese film industry in building an advanced Vietnamese culture imbued with national identity.

Dr. Dinh Thi Mai, Deputy Head of the Central Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Commission.

Assessing the contributions of VFDA, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ta Quang Dong also said: “The Vietnam Cinema Promotion Association has demonstrated the role of a dynamic and creative social-professional organization, operating strongly and achieving many successful results, creating a solid foundation to gradually affirm its position and reputation”.

In recognition of the Association's contributions, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism awarded a Certificate of Merit to VFDA and Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan, President of VFDA, for her achievements in organizing and promoting the Vietnamese cinema brand in the period 2019-2024.

Most recently, Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan was awarded the Officier Order of Arts and Literature (officer) during the State visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to Vietnam last May.

At the award ceremony, Ms. Rachida Dati - Minister of Culture of France stated: The Order of Arts and Letters is one of the noble awards of the French Republic, to honor individuals with outstanding contributions to the field of culture and arts. It is a recognition for "an extraordinary journey, the journey of a woman with boundless dedication to cinema, with influence far beyond the borders of Vietnam. Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan is also a living symbol of the strong bond between the two countries".

Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan at the award ceremony of the Officier Medal of Literature and Arts
of the French Republic (Photo: vietnamplus).

At the recent 3rd Da Nang Asian Film Festival in 2025 (DANAFF 3), with the tireless efforts, dynamism and excellent organizational ability of the initiator, who is also the Head of the Festival Organizing Committee, Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan, the festival was a great success, honoring and promoting the precious heritage of Vietnamese and continental cinema through two key programs: "Half a century of Vietnamese war films" since the country's reunification and focusing on Korean cinema - experiences and lessons in development.

According to Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan, in addition to the number of international films premiering at DANAFF this year exceeding expectations and the depth of content, a success of the festival is the series of activities on "cultivating film talent" and "project incubator" introducing and connecting Asian and Vietnamese art film projects, marking the strategic development of DANAFF in developing talent, encouraging creative stories, and building a sustainable bridge between young filmmakers and the international film community.

The 2025 Da Nang Asian Film Festival is a bridge connecting Vietnamese cinema with international friends.

Through this festival, the Vietnam Association for the Promotion of Cinematography and the People's Committee of Da Nang City signed a memorandum of understanding in 2024 to jointly organize DANAFF from 2025 to 2031, continuing to open bridges for Vietnamese cinema to reach out to the world. Ms. Audrey Azoulay - Director General of UNESCO commented: "This film festival shows the international community's recognition of Vietnamese cinema, as well as that of the entire region. In particular, Da Nang is becoming a place where ideas and creativity intersect, where culture generates culture".

The 2025 Da Nang Asian Film Festival has ended with the image of honoring star artists on the red carpet, but there is a silent star that still radiates a sparkling light, Dr. Ngo Phuong Lan, an excellent organizer, who has continuously contributed to the development of Vietnamese and continental cinema.

CHAU LA VIET

Source: https://nhandan.vn/tien-si-ngo-phuong-lan-nguoi-co-nhieu-dong-gop-dua-dien-anh-viet-nam-ra-the-gioi-post896186.html