Oscar nominee Uno to meet with locals on Saturday

Saigon International Film School will host a discussion on movie making with Japanese American director Michael Toshiyuki Uno, an Oscar nominee, on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. in HCMC’s Binh Thanh District.

The event is open to moviemakers and cinema enthusiasts to learn and share knowledge of film making and directing with the veteran director.

Uno is an instructor at School of Cinema-Television of the University of Southern California and has directed a number of TV dramas and movies.

His movie “The Road to Galveston” (1996) won the silver award in the category for Television-Drama-Television Feature at the San Francisco International Film Festival in 1997 and best actress for Cicely Tyson at the Lone Star Film & Television Awards in 1996.

His movie The Silence (1982), which tells a story about an American soldier’s life during the American War in Vietnam, was nominated for “Best Live Action Short Film” at the 55th Academy Awards in 1983.

He taught many local directors, including Le Thanh Son, Nguyen Manh Ha, Nguyen Minh Cao, Le Bao Trung, Phan Gia Nhat Linh and producer Vu Quynh Ha, scriptwriter Nguyen Thai Ha, and director of photography Nguyen K’Linh.

Those interested in the program should contact SIFS at 15A Hoang Hoa Tham Street in Binh Thanh District, tel: 0168 992 8744 (Ms. To Chau), or email to [email protected].

East Sea inspires local children

Bui Hoang Nam, an 11-year-old student in Ha Noi, looked at the tray of colours with concentration and selected suitable clours for his painting of a tropical coconut island.

He was one of 40 students, aged five to 15 years who put together a collection of paintings inspired by sea and islands.

The event was part of a Culture, Tourism and Environment Day held yesterday at the Vietnam Exhibition Centre for Culture and Arts at 2 Hoa Lu Street to celebrate World Environment Day.

The event was aimed at raising awareness of environmental protection, especially environment at tourist spots, historical sites and cultural festivals.

After the opening ceremony, the students quickly ran to the painting area and chose brushes for themselves. They were eager to paint on a 4m-long work on canvas titled Green Nation, Green Planet.

Nam said in recent weeks, people spoke a lot about the Spratlys and the Paracels, so he painted these islands.

"I haven't been to any island," he said. "The island in my imagination has many coconut trees and birds," he added.

Nam said he was excited to be working on a big canvas with his friends.

"Each one of us has a small area on the canvas. We can paint anything we want, as long as we follow environmental and landscape topics," he said.

"I think when we finish, the painting will look colourful and strange with different pictures," he added.

"Through the painting, I want to express my dream of living on a peaceful and green planet," he stated.

To mark the occasion, more than 100 paintings by children on the theme of environment, culture and tourism, along with those of the sea and islands were exhibited together with pictures from top photographers, including Na Son, Dang Duc Tue and Do Doan Hoang. The exhibition will run for two days. After the launch of the Environment Day, members of the Central Youth Union will join hands to clean the environment at some historical sites in Ha Noi.

Phu Yen eyes UNESCO title

The People's Committee of central Phu Yen province has asked the Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism to recognise two musical instruments, the dan da (lithophone) and ken da (stone horn), as national treasures.

The artefacts, which are 2,500 years old, are stored at the Phu Yen Museum.

The lithophone, which includes eight stone slabs, was found in Tuy An District by farmer Huynh Ngoc Hong in 1990. It is a stone musical instrument with a special Vietnamese musical scale. Players use a stick to hit the stones, each of which produces a different tone.

In 1994, farmer Do Phan found a pair of stone horns in An Tho village, also in Tuy An district.

After appraising the value of the lithophone and the stone horns two years ago, Katherine Mauller Marin, head of UNESCO's Representative Office in Viet Nam, suggested that Phu Yen submit an application for UNESCO's "Memory of the World" heritage category.

Tran Quang Nhat, deputy chairman of Phu Yen People's Committee, said that, to be eligible to apply for UNESCO recognition, the artefacts must be recognised first as national treasures.

After Phu Yen applied for national recognition in August last year, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism asked the province to supply more information about the artefacts.

New stamps highlight cultural heritage

The Ministry of Information and Communications has released a set of stamps featuring traditional ca tru singing recognised as an Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding by UNESCO in 2009.

With an aim to promote the art form, the collection focuses on traditional performances from the feudal periods. The three graphically-designed samples have also been printed with the World Cultural Heritage logo.

Early this year, the National Postage Stamp Council set out to release the first four sets of stamps in 2014 to celebrate the 100th birth anniversary of General Nguyen Chi Thanh, the 60th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu Victory, and feature endangered tree frogs and ca tru singing.

The ca tru collection is the third to be published this year.

TV chef wows at the Windsor Hotel

Famed TV chef Martin Yan impressed audiences recently with his demonstrations of traditional Chinese cooking at Ngan Dinh Restaurant last Saturday and at Cafe Central An Dong at the Windsor Plaza Hotel on Sunday.

The demo was held to celebrate this year's Dragon Boat Festival, which took place on May 5 on the Lunar Calendar. It is a folk festival that has been held for more than 2,000 year, and one of the most important festivals in China as well as Viet Nam.

Eating rice dumplings and holding dragon boat races are traditional parts of the festival.

Chef Yan also celebrated Children Day with local children.

Yan, who is also the culinary ambassador for the Windsor Property Management (WMC) Group Corporation Group, began his groundbreaking Yan Can Cook show in the 1980s. It is broadcast worldwide.

According to WMC, Yan will bring his expertise to Windsor Plaza Hotel and the other WMC Group managed restaurants throughout the year.

Windsor Property Management Group Corporation specialises in the operation and management of hotels, resorts, apartments, commercial and retail properties.

The company operates the five-star Windsor Plaza Hotel, the luxury-serviced Sherwood Residence apartment building, the boutique-serviced apartment Mayfair Suites and two shopping malls, the An Dong Plaza and Lucky Plaza.

Martin Jacobsen trio back in Ha Noi

The Martin Jacobsen trio will return this week with three concerts scheduled on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights at the Metropole Hotel Ha Noi.

The trio, who have their base and find their inspiration in Paris, France, are composed of Danish-born Martin Jacobsen (tenor saxophone) and Vietnamese-French Vinh Le (piano) and Duy Linh Nguyen (acoustic bass).

These three experienced musicians will present some of the favourite tunes: well-known or less well-known jazz standards, the extraordinary songs of Michel Legrand and other French composers, as well as compositions by Jacobsen. The trio will perform some of the tunes, while the other tunes will be performed along with a Vietnamese jazz drummer, thus creating a unique collaboration between the musicians from Paris and the young jazz drummer from Viet Nam.

Last November, they performed in HCM City, Da Nang and Ha Noi for the first time and saw a rising interest for jazz among the young audience.

Miss Goodnight comes to town!

Do you have problems falling asleep at night? Are you single and like to have sweet and melodious dreams? The Phap'bulateurs French theatre group has the solution for you: watch Mademoiselle Bonsoir, a tender and swirling musical comedy, tonight at the L'Espace Theatre, Ha Noi.

A dreamer meets a sly businessman and together they come up with a totally new and ingenious business concept as they realise that many single men have trouble sleeping at night. Demand has not yet met supply, the market is all for them! And this is how Clementine, a young bohemian lady with a golden voice, ends up being recruited as "Mademoiselle Bonsoir" (Miss Goodnight) to sing melodious lullabies to their clients for a fee.

Les Phap'bulateurs is an international group of French-speaking actors driven by their enthusiasm for theatre. They played twice in Ha Noi last year with great success. For those who want to enjoy the ride, find out more at www.phapbulateurs.com

Mademoiselle Bonsoir by Boris Vian will be performed at 8pm tonight and on June 10 at the L'Espace Theatre, 24 Trang Tien, Hoan Kiem, Ha Noi.

Music festival features diverse culture

A two-day music and arts festival, the Melting Pot, will be held at the outdoor bar Saigon Outcast on June 7 and 8.

The event will feature a painting, photo and woodcut prints exhibition, as well as clothes and handmade accessories by expatriate and local artists and organisations. Ice-cream, snacks and many delicacies will also be served.

Live music and dance will be performed by DJs and groups, including Morgan, jazz singer Mariedel, and Dat Phonk. A fashion show hosted by Sinhtolina will also be held.

The event will raise money for Saigon Children's Charity to help disadvantaged Vietnamese children attend school, especially in the music and arts.

The festival will open from 2pm to 10pm each day at 188/1 Nguyen Van Huong Street in District 2.

Expat theatre group hosts arts event

The annual HCM City Visual and Performing Arts Festival "Vox Populi" will take place at McSorley's Ale House bar from June 12-16.

The festival, organised by Saigon Players, a non-profit group of foreigners who enjoy theatre, will include art exhibitions, plays, poetry readings, film screenings, and music and dance shows.

It will highlight Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen's play, An Enemy of the People, adapted from an English translation by American writer Arthur Miller. It will be presented by Saigon Players at 7pm every day.

The film screenings will feature Silkwood directed by Mike Nichols, Philadelphia directed by Jonathan Demme, Inside Job from director Charles Ferguson and To Kill a Mockingbird directed by Robert Mulligan.

The event will start at 7pm at 4 Thao Dien Street in District 2.

Pockemon Crew hop to it in HCM City

The French Institute in Viet Nam will present a hip-hop performance Silence, On Tourne! (Quiet, We're Rolling!) by the Pockemon Crew on June 12 in HCM City.

The Pockemon Crew is one of the most successful hip-hop groups in the world, winning a number of top prizes, including the French Champion, Euro Champion and World Champion.

The group has performed at the National Opera of Lyon since 2003.

The Pockemon Crew's performance, which combines hip-hop with silent films of the 30s and 40s, reminds audiences that the energy of hip-hop, sometimes gentle, sometimes frenzied, derives from the narrative power of old silent movies.

The show begins at 8pm at Ben Thanh Theatre, 6 Mac Dinh Chi St, District 1, in HCM City.

Photo contest marks first publication of Pictorial Magazine

Vietnamese and foreign photographers are encouraged to take part in the 6th photo contest launched by Vietnam News Agency's Pictorial Magazine in co-ordination with Viet Nam Artistic Photographers Association.

The contest titled Viet Nam – Country – People aims at promoting the landscape, country and people through the lens of the amateur and professional photographers.

The photographs featuring Vietnamese heritage, ethnic minority groups, people giving outstanding performances, country's development and in particular Vietnamese islands and seas can be sent to the organisation board located at 79 Ly Thuong Kiet Street, Ha Noi.

Entries may be submitted at the website http://vietnam.vnanet.vn until August 31.

The organising board will award one first, two second and three third prizes, with cash worth VND15 million (US$700), 10 million and 5 million, respectively.

The awarded and selected photos will be published in the Pictorial Magazine. The contest is held to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the first publication of Pictorial Magazine on October 15, 1954.

Photo contest ‘Vietnam – Landscape – People’ launched

A photography contest themed ‘Vietnam – Landscape – People’, was launched on June 3 in Hanoi for professional and amateur photographers across the country.

Entries in the contest, co-organised by the Vietnam Association of Photographic Artists and Vietnam Pictorial, must reflect the beauty of Vietnam’s nature, landscape and heritage, ethnic minority people, or outstanding examples during the current Doi Moi (Renovation) and national construction and defence.

Additionally, the organising board encouraged entries on Vietnam’s sea and islands.

The contest offers an opportunity for amateur and professional photographers to demonstrate their talents and exchange experiences.

Entries may be submitted to the website vietnam.vnanet.vn. The deadline for entries is August 31.

An awards ceremony is expected to be held on October 14.

Locals given cameras to document Ho Dynasty Citadel area

To raise public awareness of heritage preservation, people living in the vicinity of the Ho Dynasty Citadel in the central province of Thanh Hoa have been given cameras to capture their daily lives around the UNESCO-recognized World Heritage site.

The project, starting from June and running until December, uses a method called Photovoice, through which locals will record their daily lives, love of the local heritage and challenges in upholding the value of the site.

The project is part of the “Revitalising World Heritage Site Museums in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam” project of UNESCO and the Japan Funds-in-Trust. Stories recorded in photos will be exhibited when locals finished taking photographs.

Initially, eight households residing in neighboring Vinh Tien and Vinh Long communes will be equipped with cameras and photographic and filmmaking skills to express their own views on daily activities, love and duty to the heritage.

Photovoice is a chance for local residents to raise their voices and tell the public their own stories.

The Ho Dynasty Citadel was Vietnam’s capital under the Ho Dynasty (1398-1407). Located in Vinh Tien and Vinh Long communes in Vinh Loc District, the citadel measures 870mx883m and was built within only three months, between January and March 1397. It is the only citadel built entirely of stone in Vietnam and remained almost intact through the nation’s often turbulent history.

The ancient building is famous for being strategically located and easily defended. The citadel is protected by a mountain range to the north, while the Ma River runs to its west and the Buoi River to its south, creating a huge natural moat. It was recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on June 27, 2011.

Do Manh Cuong debuts Autumn-Winter collection

After his Spring-Summer 2014 collection “Sea of Memory,” popular local designer Do Manh Cuong is preparing for an art show where he will launch his Autumn-Winter collection “The twins” on November 25 in HCMC, reports VietnamPlus.

Inspired by the perfect resemblance of the twins, the designer has created outfits with the same concept for his customers who are best friends, colleagues and couples. He will look for models in Hanoi, Danang, HCMC and Can Tho this month to present his collection.

The chosen people will be instructed to walk like professionals. The organizers will sponsor all the expenses of air tickets and accommodations for those who pass the auditions to stay in HCMC to practice for the show.

This Autumn-Winter show also attracts a new generation of models who meet international standards like Huyen Trang, Hoang Thuy, Le Thuy, Le Thanh Thao, Thuy Trang, Kha My Van, Lam Thu Hang, Minh Trieu, Oanh Di, Dieu Huyen, Vo Canh, Ky Han, and Quang Hung.