9. What do you see as some of your greatest challenges/obstacles
trying to coordinate ViFF?
Funding! We need to have sponsorships in order to run the festival.
Not having enough time is another big obstacle. Everyone on ViFF’s
committees has a day job. ViFF is a passion, more of a hobby than
a job, so things may get slowly resolved. Actually, if we get enough
funding to hire some key staff members, then the time issue won’t
be such a big challenge. Ideally, running ViFF would not just be
one’s hobby but a profession because it takes us about a year to
prepare for ViFF.
The greatest perk I get from working for ViFF is having the chance to help bring OUR stories onto the big screens. Volunteers get a chance to learn more about Vietnamese history, culture, and current events. Working with ViFF also helps volunteers to build personal and professional networks. Then of course, all around, ViFF is one of the most fulfilling extracurricular activities in which a person could invest their time.
10. Who can volunteer for the festival and where
do they sign up?
Anyone can volunteer for ViFF, high school students with parents’
consent are greatly encouraged, too! They’d just go to the website,
www.VietFilmFest.com and email to one of the volunteer coordinators.
11. How supportive is the Vietnamese filmmaking
industry abroad?
I think the Vietnamese filmmaking industry abroad is a “small world,”
where almost everyone knows each other. If you watch all of the films
at ViFF, you will see that some directors take the role of producer/actor/editor/cinematographer
in other films.
Filmmaking is a collaborative effort. You need to build your own network and be able to work with lots of other people. ViFF currently has an email listserve that includes most of the filmmakers from ViFF 2003 and 2005, and soon 2007. ViFF staff and filmmakers distribute casting calls, announcements asking for technical support, call for scripts, film submissions, etc. through this email listserve.
12. Any suggestions where aspiring director/actor/scriptwriters
might send their work/resume?
Victor Vu recently established a company called Rival Entertainment
which does film production and advertising. A few months ago, Victor
distributed a call for scripts. The company’s website is www.Rivalent.com.
Tawny (Thanh Truc) Nguyen, Jimmy Nghiem Pham and their family members
also formed a company called Chanh Phuong Films in Viet Nam, which
produced The Rebel and co-produced Owl and the Sparrow.
Chanh Phuong Phim’s contact: jimmy@cpfilms.com.
13. Would you agree that younger generations of
Vietnamese Americans don’t really care about preserving the culture
and bridging generation gaps, that they don’t actively consume
Vietnamese art/culture?
I think I have a more optimistic view. I can see that there is a
lot of effort made by the younger generation to connect with the
culture and language. There are many centers and religious groups
that teach Vietnamese. Since 1988, I have been in a group called
Lac Hong, which performs and promotes the Vietnamese traditional
music. I see there are a lot of young folks joining this group to
learn dan tranh, dan bau, etc. Vietnamese American filmmakers
of the second generation or generation 1.5 such as Victor Vu (First
Morning), Ham Tran (Journey from the Fall), Charlie
Nguyen (The Rebel), Vu T. Thu Ha (Kieu), Tony Bui
(Three Seasons), Timothy Linh Bui (Green Dragon)
have explored their roots to get the inspirations to create their
work. It reflects in all of their films so far!