“16:30”, a prize-winning 17-minute film by young local director Tran Dung Thanh Huy, will be screened at the 2013 Cannes Festival, which is set to take place in Cannes, France from May 15 to 26.

The film, which won five awards at the 2012 YxineFF, an online international film fest and independent and nonprofit project, will be part of the festival’s Short Film section thanks to a program called “Voyage À Cannes” (Voyage to Cannes), which was held for the first time in Vietnam to promote local film talents.

The program will also land Huy and his companion, famed local actress Hong Anh, an exclusive talk regarding “16:30” and young directors in general with Jane Campion, chair of the Cannes’ Cinéfondation and Shorts category, and the first female director to win the Cannes’ “Palme d'Or” (Golden Palm) award with the Oscar-winning film “The Piano” in 1993.

“16:30”, the title of which refers to the time when kids who sell lottery tickets begin their arduous working days as lottery companies release results, depicts the street kids’ turbulent world and toilsome daily lives of laborers. The film also won a prize at Vietnam’s 2012 “Canh Dieu Vang” (Golden Kite) award and helped its director graduate with flying colors from the HCMC University of Theater and Motion Pictures.

“Hai, tu, sau” (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) by director Nguyen Hoang Diep was also introduced at the 2012 Cannes’ Short Film Corner.

Another highlight of this year’s “Voyage a Cannes” program is the appearance of a guest speaker, Vietnamese-French director Tran Anh Hung, who just pocketed the Inspiration Award at the Vietnamese International Film Festival, a biennial film festival organized by the non-profit Vietnamese-American Arts & Letters Association (VAALA) and UCLAs VietNamese Language and Culture (VNLC).

On May 9, Hung will give a talk on “Norwegian wood”, a Japanese film directed by himself which is based on renowned Japanese author Haruki Murakami's best-selling novel of the same name.

Hung also directed the 1993 film “L'Odeur de la papaye verte” ( The Scent of Green Papaya), the only Vietnamese film to be shortlisted for the Oscar’s  Best Foreign Language Film nominations, along with pocketing several other accolades.

The “Voyage a Cannes” program also features an auction of items with celebrities’ autographs to raise funds for the YxineFF.