Hundreds of films from about three dozen countries and territories will compete and be screened at the 3rd Hanoi International Film Festival (HANIFF) that takes place from Sunday to next Thursday, according to a press release sent to local media on Thursday.

Held by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, the festival will go on in several places in the capital city.

Four hundred and eleven films were submitted to the organizer for the festival but only 130 flicks from 32 countries and territories have been chosen.

Two Vietnamese features and 12 short films will compete for the prizes, and 24 others will be screened during the festival.

Among the Vietnamese entries are critically acclaimed and commercially successful films such as “Than Tuong” (The Talents), “Qua Tim Mau” (Vengeful Heart), and “Dap Canh giua Khong Trung” (Flapping in the Middle of Nowhere), which won a prize at the 2014 Venice International Film Festival and competed at several other international film fests.

The biennial festival will also feature films from countries and territories with robustly developed movie industries, including China, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Germany, France, the U.K., and the U.S.

According to the organizer, this year’s festival has three categories which are full-length movies, short films, and those belonging to the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC).

In the twenty years since it was founded, NETPAC has become established as the leading platform for the discovery and promotion of Asian cinema, according to its website.

Other highlights of the 2014 HANIFF include workshops on the partaking countries’ movie industries, a creation camp, and a project market.

The outstanding projects picked at the project market, which is held for the first time at the festival, will join major international events including the Cannes and Berlin International Film Festivals.

The jury boasts celebrated international filmmakers along with veteran Vietnamese directors and actors.

The winner of the highest award will pocket US$5,000, the organizer said.

The festival’s opening and closing are set to take place at the Huu Nghi Culture Center, at 91 Tran Hung Dao Street in Hoan Kiem District, at 8:00 pm on November 23 and 27, respectively, and will be aired live on television channels VTV1 and VTV4.

Those interested can join the free-admission film screenings by receiving tickets at the cinemas.

Detailed information on the screening schedule and venues is available at www.haniff.vn.

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