Art & Entertainment News 6/4 Dostoyevsky story hits the big screen Vietnamese-American director Le Van Kiet's latest film Diu Dang (Gentle) has been released recently in HCM City. It is based on the 1876 short story A Gentle Creature written by the great Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky about the relationship between a pawnbroker and a girl who frequents his shop. The story was inspired by a news report Dostoyevsky read about the suicide of a seamstress, which kept haunting him for a long time. Kiet's film depicts the tragic love story of Thien (played by Vietnamese-American actor Dustin Nguyen) and his wife Linh (played by Nguyen Thanh Tu). Its cinematographer is Emmanuel Machuel, who has filmed 35 films including La captive du desert, Paris Manhattan and Sex is Comedy. Interestingly, his father was one of the producers of Une femme douce, a French version of A Gentle Creature, in 1969 starring Dominique Sanda and Guy Frangin. He spent days working with Kiet to change the short story's Russian milieu to Vietnamese. Kiet, who has a degree in moviemaking from the University of California, the US, last made the thriller Ngoi Nha Trong Hem (House in the Alley) starring Ngo Thanh Van and Tran Bao Son. The film won for Van the best actress award at the Vietnamese International Film Festival held in Los Angeles in 2013 despite great competition. It was distributed in both Viet Nam and the US. Vung Tau hosts 2015 Int’l Kite Festival Around 150 artisans from 22 countries and territories throughout the world will participate in the International Kite Festival 2015 which is planned to be taken place in the southern coastal city of Vung Tau, Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province from April 21-27. Various cultural activities including a kite exhibition, introduction of delegates, class of designing and making kite, art kite, flute kite, and free kite performances will be organized during the event. Culture, sports and tourism events are expected to attract the large number of domestic and international visitors to the city during the Festival. It is a chance for insiders to exchange experiences in development of kite art and promote Ba Ria – Vung Tau’s tourism potentials to international friends. A taste of Halong Carnival   From April 26 to May 2, 2015, Halong Plaza hotel (at 8 Halong road, Bai Chay, Halong city, Quang Ninh province) hosts special Carnival Dinner Buffet at its Four Seasons restaurant to celebrate Halong Carnival 2015. It’s a perfect venue to enjoy exquisite party, sit back, relax and indulge in an unforgettable culinary journey of food extravaganza, prepared by their renowned chef. Blending the very finest of Eastern and Western cuisine, Four Seasons restaurant offers you to savor a subtle combination of International specialties and traditional Vietnamese dishes with a selection of fresh seafood and beef, grilled or BBQ, an array of fresh salads, and decadent desserts. Carnival dinner buffet costs only VND420,000++ ($21++) per person with an attractive discount of 10 per cent for group of five guests and 20 per cent for group of 10 guests. Emir of Dubai memoir released in Vietnam The Vietnamese version of “My vision”, a memoir of emir of Dubai Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, was launched in Vietnam on April 3 by First News and The Gioi (World) Publishing House. Twenty years’ experience along with the vision for the development of Dubai of Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum is reflected in the book, which is valuable for developing countries. Whenever Dubai is mentioned, one will certainly think of skyscrapers, prosperity and ideal tourist destinations, which is also discussed in the book. Oil revenue accounts for only 5% of Dubai’s total and the rest comes from tourism and real estate. Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum is the Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). U.S. music artists care for local unlucky kids The 11-member Pink Martini orchestral band from the U.S. on April 2 visited and donated gifts to underprivileged kids of HCMC-based NGO Poussieres de Vie at Phu Tho Stadium in District 11. The band’s visit to Vietnam is aimed at raising funds for education and healthcare activities to help needy children of Poussieres de Vie in HCMC and the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum through a gig at Gem Center and another at Ben Thanh Theater on April 2-3. Vietnam is a leg of the band’s Asia tour that also takes in Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai, and Seoul. Lead vocalist/composer China Forbes, the sole female member of the band, told the Daily that the meeting with these children with the arrangement by Poussieres de Vie and Nike, one of the NGO’s donors, is just overwhelming. “We don’t get to do things like this everyday. We’re so happy and we hope the charity auction tonight will be a huge success. It’s such an emotional day for us.” Forbes also shared that the band wished to perform a Vietnamese song with a local singer. However, due to the busy schedule the band will try their best to perform a Vietnamese song by themselves at Ben Thanh Theater tonight and Forbes is practicing this piece which hasn’t been unveiled yet. The band is planning to have their new album in one or two years after their eighth one Dream a Little Dream revealed last March. Pink Martini, which was founded by Thomas Lauderdale in 1994 in Portland, Oregon, performs music from all over the world – crossing genres of classical, jazz and old-fashioned pop. Lauderdale and Forbes’ first song “Sympathique” became an overnight sensation in France, was nominated for “Song of the Year” at France’s Victoires de la Musique Awards, and to this day remains a mantra (“Je ne veux pas travailler” or “I don’t want to work”) for striking French workers. The band has performed throughout Europe, Asia, Greece, Turkey, the Middle East, Northern Africa, Australia, New Zealand, South America and North America. Le Monde newspaper publishes book about President HCM France’s Le Monde newspaper has published a book about President Ho Chi Minh, a figure that won national independence for Vietnam. This is the 11th book in the 20-volumn historical collection about people who changed the world. The 104-page book gathered articles written by several authors on the Le Monde newspaper about President Ho Chi Minh’s role in Vietnam’s history. The book is categorized into 3 historical periods. From 1945-1946, the articles mentioned President Ho Chi Minh reading the Declaration of Independence on Sept 2, 1945 at Ba Dinh square, negotiations with France on a peace treaty for Vietnam, and the bombing in Hai Phong city in 1946. The chapter from 1946-1954 focused on Vietnam’s Dien Bien Phu victory and the role of President Ho Chi Minh. The last chapter from 1954-1975 covered socialist construction in northern Vietnam, the struggle against the American army to liberate southern Vietnam for national reunification, and the Paris negotiations and Accord. Although President Ho Chi Minh died before the national reunification, his thoughts about national independence and unification had been upheld. The book shows a fact that for Vietnamese and foreign people, President Ho Chi Minh is the symbol of national liberation, independence, and freedom. Hundreds defy heat to join International Pillow Fight Day The scorching sun in Ho Chi Minh City on the afternoon of April 4 did not keep around a hundred of people away from slugging it out on the 2015 International Pillow Fight Day. The pillow fighters, including both local residents and expats, eagerly participated in the fourth annual event in the District 1-based 23/9 Park. The event, where participation was free, was held by Wake Up Saigon, to response to the International Pillow Fight Day, which is organized in more than 120 worldwide cities every April. The event organizer, Julian Ajello, said he hoped to bring the funs of the pillow-fighting day he used to enjoy in his hometown in the U.S. to where he has now been living for over five years. “I found that there was a language and cultural barrier and I want to bring a little fun stuff idea from home, so I got together some friends to organize this International Pillow Fight Day which is an actual event that is going on around the world every year,” Ajello told Tuoi Tre News at the event. “The idea is basically to integrate westerners with the Vietnamese people. I mean when you start hitting people with pillows no one is shy about talking or about their English or their Vietnamese anymore and they get along very well,” he added. Lasting in half an hour from 1:15pm, the event was filled with sweat and laughter from participants, many of whom said they would come back next year. Participants of all ages were requested to bring soft pillows without zippers, tassels, or metal. Fighters must remove their glasses and get rid of their cameras, before the fight. They were also required to swing lightly and avoid hitting people without pillows. Some even donned pajamas to enjoy their “bed time” or wore superman mask to give them “superpower,” as George Berczely, one of the pillow fighters, explained. “I and my son came here to have fun with some other people on weekend,” Berczely added. “It’s great to make the city a fun place to be. Next year I will be here with a bigger pillow.” “It’s really fun,” George’s little son added. Ajello admitted that this year saw a smaller number of participants than last year, apparently due to the burning heat and because many foreigners have left the country. But he is mulling a bigger event in 2016, and wants to bring it to other big Vietnamese cities such as Hanoi and Danang. Belgium helps Vietnam preserve documentary films The project on restoring and preserving documentary films kept at the National Documentary and Scientific Film Production Studio will be continued with the assistance from the Belgium’s Wallonie - Bruxelles Delegation. Began in April, 2014, the project has restored more than 4,000 film rolls, in which 3,000 rolls with over 800,000 film metres have been upgraded with the Vietnam Film Institute’s support. In the coming phase 2, the project plans to focus on building specialised facilities in service of the preservation and restoration of films in need. According to Pham Thi Tuyet, Director of the Studio, over the past six decades, the Studio has collected and kept 12,000 celluloid films and more than 3,000 video tapes. Art performance in response to National Tourism Year held Nearly 300 artists from northern central provinces and central Quang Nam and Binh Phuoc provinces participated in a traditional performance on April 4 in response to the National Tourism Year 2015 held in the central province of Thanh Hoa. The event featured folk songs and dances with traditional musical tools as well as folk games of participating localities. The event aims to introduce the traditional values in close link with daily life of local residents in the nation building and development, thus contributing to preserving and promoting them. The Opening Week for the National Tourism Year-Thanh Hoa 2015 is being held in Thanh Hoa from April 3 to 10, and marked by 10 events, which include a requiem for war martyrs; the 50th anniversary of the Ham Rong Victory; the announcement for the Ma River tour; and the Festival of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Vietnam recognised by UNESCO, have been planned. According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, during the National Tourism Year in Thanh Hoa, more than 20 events are held in 15 provinces and cities that have been labelled as World Heritage Sites in the country. They include the fifth anniversary of the Thang Long Royal Citadel in Hanoi being honoured as a World Cultural Heritage, along with the Co Loa Temple festival (Hanoi), the Ha Long Carnival 2015, the Yen Tu Festival (in Quang Ninh province), the Hung Temple Festival (Phu Tho province); the Vinh Nghiem Pagoda Festival (Bac Giang province); and the festival of Sen Village (Nghe An province). Other events also include the Hue Traditional Crafts Festival (Hue), the "Quang Nam– Heritage Journey" (Quang Nam province); and the Central Highlands Gongs Festival (Gia Lai province). Vingroup invests VND 30billion to rebuild Tan An temple Tan An temple located in Cai Khe of Ninh Kieu district of the mekong delta province of Can Tho, called as one of the oldest temples in the mekong delta region was rebuilt on April 4. Tan An temple covers an area of 6,245 square meters and is invested over VND 30billion funded by Vingroup. The investor said the temple will be completed within 6 months. The title of Tan An temple was named by Tu Duc King in 1876 and it was the first time which Can Tho was known on administrative map. Month of local films celebrates national holidays A month of Vietnamese films will be held across the country, marking national holidays from April 20 to May. The event aims to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the South's Liberation Day (April 30), Labor Day (May 1), and Uncle Ho's 125th birth anniversary (May 19, 1890). Movies include Nhung Dua Con Cua Lang (Children of the Village), Nhin Ra Bien Ca (Looking towards Sea), Duopng xuyen rung (Journey across the forest), Tieng khen (The sound of Khen- a musical instrument used by the Mong ethnic minority), Dinh cao chien thang (The peak of victory). The film week aims to honor glorious history and combats, promote patriotism and national pride in building and protecting the country. The event is organized by the National Cinema Department in cooperation with local film studios. Nghe An starts work on Yen Thanh Truc Lam Zen Monastery A foundation stone for the Yen Thanh Truc Lam Zen Monastery was laid at a ceremony on April 4 in the central province of Nghe An. It marked the commencement of construction on the Buddhist temple within the Ru Gam Cultural, Spiritual and Ecological Complex, located in Xuan Thanh commune in Yen Thanh district, an area previously home to an important military base under the Tran Dynasty. In addition to the Zen monastery, a giant statue of Buddha measuring 41 metres in height will also be erected on top of Ru Gam Mountain to pray for national peace. Speaking at the ceremony, General Pham Van Tra, a former defence minister, said the Yen Thanh Zen Monastery will become a symbol of humanity, encouraging the people to think and act in a rightful way. The Truc Lam Zen School was founded by King Tran Nhan Tong (1258-1308) and has been recently revived by Zen master Thich Thanh Tu. Festival honours Central Higlands folk singing The sixth Vietnam folk singing festival of the Central Higlands region officially kicked off in Thang Loi district, Kon Tum province on April 3, drawing the participation of 54 artists from various generations. Artists, from Dak Nong, Dak Lak, Gia Lai, Kon Tum and Lam Dong provinces, delighted audiences with unique folk songs, dances and performances using traditional musical instruments during the two-day event. The performances feature the abundant cultural and spiritual life of ethnic minority people including Bahnar, K’Ho, M’nong and E De. The most outstanding performances will be selected to enter the final round of the Vietnam National Folk Singing Festival which is scheduled for May 14 in the central province of Nghe An. The biennial festival aims to preserve and promote folk songs, dances and musical instruments instilled in images of the Central Higlands. It offers an opportunity for cultural professionals to discover and promote new mediums, especially for the younger generations, in performing traditional folk songs, dances and musical instruments. The event is also expected to contribute to reinforcing and strengthening the alliance of great national unity in the Central Higlands region. Source: VNS/ND/SGGP/VNA