Big Father, Small Father and Other Stories will be introduced by French Memento Films, while Fortissimo Films will screen footage from the unfinished Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass at its production office during the festival.
Big Father, Small Father and Other Stories by Phan Dang Di tells the story of young people trying to scrape together a living on the streets of Sai Gon.
This is director Di's second movie after Bi, or Don't Be Afraid. Big Father, Small Father and Other Stories was funded by the World Cinema Fund in 2008. It won two prizes at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival.
It is one of three Asian films competing for the top prize at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival, alongside Gone with the Bullets by Wen Jiang of China and Taxi by Jafar Panahi of Iran.
A scene from Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass by Victor Vu
The movie Yellow Flowers on the Grass Green is the latest by Victor Vu, based on the novel I See Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass by best-selling author Nguyen Nhat Anh. The State commissioned the film, produced by Viet Nam's Galaxy Media & Entertainment and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's Cinematography Department.
"There is a whole new wave of cinema emanating from Viet Nam that captures the energy, dynamism, introspective story-telling, and cinematic/technical sophistication of that society, which is in transition," Fortissimo Films Chairman Michael J. Werner said in an interview with ScreenDaily. "Victor encapsulates all of those trends and with this project he is working to create a film that will surely capture the hearts and minds of cinema-goers around the globe."
I See Yellow Flowers on Green Grass is Anh's newest story. It received the ASEAN Literary Award.
Set in mid-1980s rural Viet Nam, the film follows two young brothers who share everything, but compete for the affections of the same girl. The nostalgic drama reveals the realities of living in Viet Nam in that era, before the country's current economic boom.
Most of the film was shot in the fast landscapes of the central province of Phu Yen, but some parts were filmed in HCM City.
Vu is one of Viet Nam's most commercially successful filmmakers, with films such as Vengeful Heart, Battle of the Brides and Scandal.
"I feel enthusiastic about the project," Vu said. "It is a return to my cinema origins, and reminds me of old stories in my family. The film project also brings me back to my days as a student."
The company is planning to release Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass in Viet Nam at the end of August.
Fortissimo Films is one of the world's leading international film, television and video production houses.
