Saturday, November 6, 2010

Vietnamese writer wins literary prize

Childhood dream: Writer Nguyen Nhat Anh signs books for his fans. — File Photo

Childhood dream: Writer Nguyen Nhat Anh signs books for his fans. — File Photo

HA NOI — Nguyen Nhat Anh is among eight writers from the region to win recognition at the Southeast Asian Writers Awards 2010.

The award ceremony was held yesterday in Bangkok to honour leading poets and writers in the ASEAN region.

The ten countries which comprise the ASEAN region are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam.

The author won a prize for his Give Me a Ticket Back to Childhood which was written in 2008.

"I wrote the story not only for children, but for people who used to be children," Anh said.

Anh is a Vietnamese author well-known for his engaging stories for both teenagers and adults. He also works as a teacher, a poet and a reporter.

His works are enormous, including approximately 24 short stories, two giant novel series and poetry collections.

He is regarded as one of the most successful writers for teenagers.

The story Give Me a Ticket Back to Childhood was a best-seller at the 5th HCM City book fair, with over 15,000 copies sold within 10 days.

His most well-known series Kinh Van Hoa, (Kaleidoscope) which contains 45 volumes about three teenagers and the stories around their friendship and school life, has recently been transformed into four drama series of the same name.

The series became a major success and received extravagant acclaim from both readers and critics. In 1995, he was voted the most popular writer for the last 20 years (1975-1995) and the most talented individual through a poll held by Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

In 1990, he received A-class Literature for Youth Prize for Chu Be Rac Roi (The troubled boy).

The Southeast Asian Writers Awards was established in 1979. About 13 Vietnamese authors have been awarded since 1996. — VNS

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US, VN filmmakers share experiences

HCM CITY — Local filmmakers and their American counterparts met at a cultural exchange programme yesterday held by the US Consulate General in HCM City to share experiences about documentary film-making.

Cinematography expert, Diane Carson, and two film directors, Carl Deal and Tia Lessin, have been in Viet Nam as part of the American Documentary Showcase.

The showcase is one of several cultural exchange programmes of the US Consulate General to promote mutual understanding between the countries.

The programme selects the best or most powerful documentaries in the US to screen in other countries.

The main goals of the showcase are to provide a glimpse into American culture, highlight the role of documentary and foster mutual understanding, Patricia Norland, the consulate's Public Affairs Officer, said.

The showcase delegations and various films are currently touring the world, including American embassies and consulates in Ecuador, the Czech Republic, Poland, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Belarus, Turkey, Indonesia, Jordan, Israel, Afghanistan, Pakistan and others.

A documentary about life after the Katrina hurricane in the US was shown during the programme.

Diane Carson, former head of the US-based University Film&Video Association, said documentaries had always been popular in the US, but had become more common in the last 20-30 years.

Although the Katrina film criticised the US Government, the US Department of State decided to screen it around the world.

The film has been shown in 300 cities and 500 schools in the US, and broadcast by two TV networks in the country. The powerful documentary was awarded 10 prizes in 2008.

The film shows how 3,000 people lost their lives and millions lost their homes in the city of New Orleans after the devastating storm.

Deal, the film's director, said the situation was somewhat similar to the aftermath of severe storms that often hit Viet Nam.

The story is a redemptive tale of self-described street hustlers who become heroes, two unforgettable people who survive the storm and then seize a chance for a new beginning.

The film opens the day before the storm makes landfall when a 24-year-old aspiring rap artist Kimberly Rivers Roberts turns her new video camera on herself and her 9th Ward neighbours trapped in the city.

The Showcase, funded by the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs of the US Department of State, is designed to promote American documentaries and filmmakers at international overseas venues. — VNS

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Miss Earth contestants prepare to show talent

HA NOI — Pageant contestants will compete at the Miss Earth talent show at Diamond Palace in HCM City next Tuesday.

About 20 of the 90 contestants are registered to show off their talents at the competition. Viet Nam's representative Luu Thi Diem Huong will compete at the show. She will perform folk dances that are inspired by traditional steps from the north, south and central regions of the country.

The talent show will be broadcast live on VBC and SCTV6 channels. An auction will be held at the event to raise funds for flood victims in the central region of the country.

This is the first time the Miss Earth contest will be held outside of the Philippines. The final round will take place at Vinpearl Land resort in Nha Trang city on December 4.

Germany's leading youth choir to perform in Ha Noi

HA NOI — The German Youth Choir from Wernigerode will be performing at Ha Noi's Youth Theatre next Wednesday and Thursday as part of celebrations to mark German Year in Viet Nam 2010.

The 35-member group, aged from 15-18, will be conducted by Peter Habermann.

The choir will sing classical and modern German pieces, in addition to well-known contemporary songs from around the world.

Since its foundation in 1951, the Wernigerode broadcasting's choir has recorded more than 30 CDs and has been awarded the title Best German Choir.

Free tickets for the performance are available at the Goethe Institute, 56-58 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street, Ha Noi from Thursday.

French gypsy jazz band comes to HCM City

HCM CITY — French gypsy jazz guitar band Le Nouveau Trio Gitan will perform in HCM City next Monday.

Christian Escoude, Jean-Baptiste Laya, and Hugo Lippi will play contemporary music but with a distinct gypsy-music touch.

The band was established in 2004 by Escoude, 63, whose father, an ethnic Roma and a guitarist, had a passion for the music of gypsy jazz inventor Django Reinhardt that he passed on to his son along with a guitar at the age of 10.

The concert, organised by the French consulate in HCM City, will be held at the HCM City Opera House in District 1.

Tickets costing VND200,000, VND150,000, and VND100,000 are available at the venue. — VNS

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Friday, November 5, 2010

Martial arts documentary wins Italian award

Quang Ngai Province’s Radio – Television on Thursday announced that its sport documentary named Doi vo or Martial Arts Life won the Guirlande D’Honneur 2010 award in the sports individual category at the 2010 Sport Movies and TV competition in Milan, Italy, reports Thanh Nien newspaper.

 Doi vo is a touching documentary about a dedicated martial arts teacher named Ngo Bong, born in Nghia Dien Commune, Tu Nghia  District, Quang Ngai Province who devoted his life to the growth of Hung Ke Quyen (Bravery Cock Fighting Style) a once-famous traditional fighting style originating from Binh Dinh Province.

There were 150 documentaries screening from 50 countries that were judged with 13 winners including feature films, documentaries, cartoons, television programs and advertising films. Some of the winning documentaries came from China, Russia, Uzbekistan and Hungary.

The boxer, Mike Tyson, was awarded with the most prestigious honor recognizing his contributions to boxing and his role in the feature film, “The Hangover”.

All the winning films will be screened from November 15 to 18 in Doha (Qatar), the Federation International Cinema Television Sports (FICTS) said.

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Contest invites one minute films on climate change

For the second year, the British Council is partnering with the global campaign 1 Minute to Save the World, a competition for filmmakers.

Young film-makers from around the world can take part in the international film competition by entering one minute films on regional climate change by December 17. The films will be shown on the internet, at targeted political screenings and film festivals worldwide.

Winning films will be screened in front of world leaders at the COP16, an international summit on climate change and be part of an on-line campaign going out to millions of viewers. Winners also have a chance on receiving £5000 as well as film making equipment.

“Youth Visions” is for the best film by a filmmaker under the age of 25, including a written proposal of how the prize money would be spent. “Best Film” is for any one minute film on climate change entered by a filmmaker of any age. “Best Youth Film” is for any one minute Film on climate change entered by a filmmaker 18 years of age or under (If you are submitting a film to this category and are under 18, please remember that a parent or guardian must submit your film for you). 

For more information about the competition, visit http://www.1minutetosavetheworld.com/.

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Megamind

“Megamind” is a new animation on the eternal battle of good versus evil by DreamWorks.

Megamind (Will Ferrell) and Metro Man (Brad Pitt) are both jettisoned into space as babies when their respective planets are in crisis. Where they land on Earth determines their different destinies - Metro Man is lucky to be adopted by a good family, while Megamind is raised by undesirables in a prison. Megamind grows up to be a brilliant but bungling super-villain. Time after time he is foiled by his nemesis Metro Man - making Megamind the most unsuccessful evil genius the world had ever known.  Over the years, he suffers colossal failures in his quest to take over Metro City from Metro Man but one day Megamind actually defeats the caped superhero in the throes of one of his botched evil plans.  Then the fate of Metro City is threatened when a new villain arrives and chaos runs rampant, leaving everyone to wonder:  Can the world’s biggest mind actually be the one to save the day?  

The PG film debuts on Friday at MegaStar cinemas.

Hoan Hy Chay, the new vegetarian restaurant in town

Diners enjoy fresh vegetarian food at Hoan Hy Chay Restaurant in HCMC’s District 3 - Photo: Kieu Giang
Why eat at the most expensive restaurants when for much less you can dine on the mouthwatering nutritious vegetarian food that is a Vietnamese specialty. A new face amongst the HCMC vegetarian restaurants is Hoan Hy Chay in HCMC’s District 3 with healthy cuisine at cheap prices.

The quiet alley off Nam Ky Khoi Nghia Street, Hoan Hy Chay is an ideal place for diners to escape the noise and find some refreshing quiet in a space of lotus leaf light shades, aloe wood furniture and instrumental music.

The vegetarian restaurant has two floors to serve up to 100 customers. Its menu features 70 vegetarian dishes ranging from the simple to the sophisticated including banh uot cuon (steam thin rice pancake roll), cuon diep (vegetable rolls), dau hu com (fried tofu with green rice), bong bi chien xu, com xu xi (rice with dried seaweed) and lau kho qua (bitter melon hot pot) among others. While waiting for your meal to cooked by the talented vegetarian cooks, diners can try the tea made from fresh tea leaves or nuoc sam made from herbs.

The vegetarian dishes are priced at between VND6,000 and VND150,000.

Cung Hong Kim Thoa, owner of the vegetarian restaurant, said, “A highlight of Hoan Hy Chay is all the food is made from fresh homemade ingredients. None of the ingredients are frozen –everything is fresh for the true flavor. The restaurant doesn’t try to present faux-meat in the shape of shrimps and chickens like other vegetarian restaurants do. To us, eating vegetarian food also means Zen.”

Hoan Hy Chay is home to tens of orphans who serve as cooks and waiters. For its grand opening, Hoan Hy Chay vegetarian restaurant offers 10% discount until November 31.

Hoan Hy Chay, 290/23 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia Street in HCMC’s District 3 opens from 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tel: 3526 8528.

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