Several Viet Kieu (overseas Vietnamese) directors have returned to Vietnam to make films over recent years. Their homecomings, whether successful or not, breathe freshness and novelty to the country’s local film industry.

Unlike those who founded the Viet Kieu film sector, today’s batch of Vietnamese-origin directors, most of who come from the US, where they have had some experience with Hollywood, integrate better as they target local audiences rather than merely to screen films abroad.

Charlie Nguyen, who was previously known as director of comic skits among overseas Vietnamese communities and a few films such as “Hung Vuong the 18th” and “Chances Are” produced in the US, made his directing debut in his home country with “Dong mau anh hung” (The Rebel) in 2006.

The film, which won notable critical acclaim and breathed novelty into the local insipid film industry back then, took Nguyen more than 10 years to write the script and two years to travel throughout the country for shooting. He even spent almost US$2 million from his family into the film and has debts till now.

The film immediately catapulted him and his younger brother Johnny Tri Nguyen and Dustin Nguyen into stardom.

Victor Vu, whose first film “Spirits” couldn’t get through censorship in Vietnam in 2004, officially marked his homecoming with “Chuyen tinh xa xu” (Passport to Love) five years later. The film struck a strong impression on local audiences for its unique taste.

Meanwhile, though Nguyen Duc Minh’s “Touch”, which hit US screens in 2011 and local screens one year later, didn’t yield high box office revenues, it won considerable critical acclaim. Minh is about to shoot his next film “Ky nu mau va tinh yeu xanh”.

Charlie Nguyen, Victor Vu and Dustin Nguyen said that though they had had lots of opportunities with foreign investors, they still make and distribute films in Vietnam. Some of their films are broadcast in other countries on a limited scale or distributed on DVDs after screening in Vietnam.

Challenges ahead

These overseas Vietnamese directors are also faced with countless challenges making films in their home country.

After the success of his heavily-invested “Dong mau anh hung”, Charlie Nguyen went on to make such comedies as box office record comedies “De mai tinh” (Fool for Love), “Long ruoi” (Big Boss) and “Cuoi ngay keo lo” (Love Puzzles). Though these films earned exceptionally high revenues, they failed to earn critical acclaim.  

“Bui doi Cho Lon” (Gangsters of the Cho Lon melting pot), a martial arts, action-packed flick, with which Charlie Nguyen expected to mark his comeback, was banned from screening for featuring many gory, violent fighting and killing scenes.

In 2010, Victor Vu was also faced with the plagiarism accusation regarding the astoundingly striking resemblances between his film “Giao lo dinh menh” (Inferno) and Hollywood flick “Shattered”. Vu was so depressed that he refused to pick up the seven awards for his two films “Bi mat tham do” (Scandal) and heavily-invested “Thien menh anh hung” (Blood Letter) at the 2012 Golden Kite award.

At 50, Dustin Nguyen made his first film called “Lua Phat” (Once upon a time in Vietnam), which he took it to the 2013 Cannes Festival and expected to be a blockbuster. However, the film failed to do so.

Despite the challenges ahead, more overseas Vietnamese film directors are returning home. Victor Vu is shooting his new film titled “Qua tim mau” (The bloody heart), which is adapted from a hit ghost play, after he finished “Co dau dai chien 2” (Bride war 2).

Thien Do’s “Tien chua” and Ham Tran “Am muu giay got nhon” (How to fight in six inch heels) are also waiting to hit local screens. Tran Cong Thanh (Ethan Tran) is shooting his first film “Luu manh dau bep” (The dishonest chef). Nguyen Vo Nghiem Minh, whose “Mua len trau” (The Buffalo Boy) won several international awards, is now busy with his new film project “Nuoc” (Water). Tran Anh Hung, who is famous with “The Scent of Green Papaya”, “I Come With the Rain” and “Norwegian Wood”, adapted from  a famed novel by Japanese author Haruki Murakami, also expressed his wish to make a new film in Vietnam.