BUZZ BEAT MEDIA

Liza Soberano happily shared that she is part of the jury members at the inaugural Ho Chi Minh International Film Festival in Vietnam, held April 13th.

“So thrilled and honored to have served as a jury member for the first ever Ho Chi Minh International Film Festival. Was such an amazing showcase of talented filmmakers from all over the world!!” Liza said in her Instagram post. 

“Truly so inspired to continue working in an industry that encourages freedom of expression and challenges the way we think. Congratulations to all winners!” she added. 

Liza’s presence as a juror brought invaluable insight and expertise, elevating the festival to new heights. She was joined by esteemed individuals in the cinematic world, including Nguyen Thanh Van (jury president), Luong Dinh Dung, Tom Cross, Samuel Jamier, John Badalu, and Trinh Dinh Le Minh.

Photographer Edrey Paul, makeup artist Mickey See, hair stylist Renz Pangilinan, and stylist Perry Tabora collaborated to create a stunning photoshoot for Liza. 

Ho Chi Minh City International Film Festival in Vietnam is aimed at showcasing both local and international films, promoting cultural exchange, and supporting the development of the film industry in the region.

It featured several world premieres, including Gavin Yap’s Dead Boys’ Club from Malaysia, documentary Doku by Kohei Kawabata, and B4S: Before Sex by three rising Vietnamese directors Tung Leo, Michael Thai and Huynh Anh Duy. The latter is due to open in local cinemas last April 12.

The festival started running last April 6, and ended on April 13, with Wim Wenders’ Oscar-nominated Perfect Days as the closing film. A series of industry events have also been lined up, including workshops, a project market and a script lab.

The festival has Anderson Le as head of programming, Tran Thi Bich Ngoc as head of film projects and Phan Gia Nhat Linh as head of script lab. On the executive board are executive director Pham Minh Toan, deputy executive director Do Hoa, artistic director Nguyen Vinh Son and deputy artistic director Aaron Toronto.

“The Gospel of the Beast,” a film directed by Sheron Dayoc from the Philippines, won the Golden Star Award for Best Southeast Asian Film. 

“Last Shadow at First Light,” a Singapore-Japan collaboration directed by Nicole Midori Woodford, earned several awards in the festival’s Southeast Asia competition. These honors included the Jury Prize, Best Cinematography for Hideho Urata, Best Screenplay for Nicole Midori Woodford, and Best Visual Effects for Laokoon VFX.

“Oasis of Now,” directed by Chee Sum Chia from Malaysia, won awards for Best Director and Best Actress for Vietnam’s Tạ Thị Dịu, who portrays an immigrant in the film. The Singaporean drama “Wonderland” received accolades for Best Actor (Mark Lee) and Best Supporting Actor (Peter Yu), while Rawipa Srisanguan won Best Supporting Actress for her role in Thailand’s “Solids by the Seashore.”

The Indonesian action drama “13 Bombs” received accolades for Best Sound Design (Wahyu Tri Pournomo) and Best Editing (Hendra Adhi Sussanto). The Cambodian drama “Tenement” earned the Best Production Design award for Jean-Sien Kin, while the Japan-Philippines co-production “Blue Imagine” won Best Original Score for Yuji Watanabe.

In the First or Second Film Competition (for films outside Southeast Asia), the top prize went to Mongolia’s Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir for “City of Wind” and Saudi filmmaker Ali Kalthami for “Night Courier.” Best Short Film was awarded to “Leila” by Fariba Haidari, while Valeria Hofmann’s “Alien 0089” took the Jury Prize. “Song Lang” was honored with the Best Ho Chi Minh City Film award.

*Cover Photo/Thumbnail Photo from Instagram/@lizasoberano