Day: February 26, 2024

Hanoi: Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung has issued decisions on the inclusion of traditional performing arts, festivals, scripts and crafts, among others, in the list of national intangible cultural heritage. Among the newly-recognised heritages are Cheo (traditional Vietnamese opera) in the northern province of Phu Tho; Mo Muong, a job and also a performance practised at funerals, religious festivals, and life cycle rituals by the Muong ethnic group in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak; the Cau mua (rain praying) festival of the Thai Trang (White Thai) ethnic community in Muong Sang commune, Moc Chau district, the northern mountainous province of Son La; the forest god worshipping (Yang Bre) of the Ma ethnic group in Gia Nghia city and Dak Glong district, the Central Highlands province of Dak Nong. Others include the Cau Ngu (whale worship) festival in Cam Lam village, Xuan Lien commune, Nghi Xuan district, central Ha Tinh province; Pao Dung folk singing of the Dao ethnic gro up in the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang; the Cau mua (praying for bumper crop) ritual of Pa Then people in Tan Lap commune, Bac Quang district, Ha Giang province; the boat racing festival in Tinh Long commune, Quang Ngai city in the central province of the same name; and the traditional Dom Long Neak Ta festival of the Khmer ethnic group in the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh. Vinh Long, another Mekong Delta province, contributes two to the heritage list, namely Hat boi folk singing and the Van Thanh Temple festival. In the northern mountainous province of Thai Nguyen, Hat vi, another genre of folk singing, of the Tay people in Dinh Hoa district, the art of sewing and embroidering costumes and Nom (ancient ideographic script) of the Dao people in Hop Tiep commune, Dong Hy district, are also recognised on this occasion. Rice flour making in Tan Phu Dong commune and ward 2 in Sa Dec city, the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap; tree bark hammock weaving in Cu Lao Cham, Tan Hiep commune, and bam boo and coconut house making in Cam Thanh commune, both in Hoi An city, the central province of Quang Nam; the craft of weaving of the Thu Lao people in Si Ma Cai district, Lao Cai province; palm sugar making of the Khmer people in Tri Ton district and Tinh Bien town, An Giang province; brocade weaving of the Xtieng people in Binh Phuoc province; and Tuy Loan rice paper making in Hoa Phong commune, Hoa Vang district, Da Nang city, have also won the recognition. Six new heritages are in Hanoi, which are the Thay Pagoda festival in the outskirts district of Quoc Oai, and other festivals in Dan Phuong, Phuc Tho, Gia Lam districts, along with Trach Xa tailoring in Hoa Xa commune, Ung Hoa district, and sticky rice cooking in Phu Thuong ward, Tay Ho district./. Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung has issued decisions on the inclusion of traditional performing arts, festivals, scripts and crafts, among others, in the list of national intangible cultural heritage. Among the newly-recognised heritages are Cheo (traditional Vietnamese opera) in the northern province of Phu Tho; Mo Muong, a job and also a performance practised at funerals, religious festivals, and life cycle rituals by the Muong ethnic group in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak; the Cau mua (rain praying) festival of the Thai Trang (White Thai) ethnic community in Muong Sang commune, Moc Chau district, the northern mountainous province of Son La; the forest god worshipping (Yang Bre) of the Ma ethnic group in Gia Nghia city and Dak Glong district, the Central Highlands province of Dak Nong. Others include the Cau Ngu (whale worship) festival in Cam Lam village, Xuan Lien commune, Nghi Xuan district, central Ha Tinh province; Pao Dung folk singing of the Dao ethnic gro up in the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang; the Cau mua (praying for bumper crop) ritual of Pa Then people in Tan Lap commune, Bac Quang district, Ha Giang province; the boat racing festival in Tinh Long commune, Quang Ngai city in the central province of the same name; and the traditional Dom Long Neak Ta festival of the Khmer ethnic group in the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh. Vinh Long, another Mekong Delta province, contributes two to the heritage list, namely Hat boi folk singing and the Van Thanh Temple festival. In the northern mountainous province of Thai Nguyen, Hat vi, another genre of folk singing, of the Tay people in Dinh Hoa district, the art of sewing and embroidering costumes and Nom (ancient ideographic script) of the Dao people in Hop Tiep commune, Dong Hy district, are also recognised on this occasion. Rice flour making in Tan Phu Dong commune and ward 2 in Sa Dec city, the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap; tree bark hammock weaving in Cu Lao Cham, Tan Hiep commune, and bam boo and coconut house making in Cam Thanh commune, both in Hoi An city, the central province of Quang Nam; the craft of weaving of the Thu Lao people in Si Ma Cai district, Lao Cai province; palm sugar making of the Khmer people in Tri Ton district and Tinh Bien town, An Giang province; brocade weaving of the Xtieng people in Binh Phuoc province; and Tuy Loan rice paper making in Hoa Phong commune, Hoa Vang district, Da Nang city, have also won the recognition. Six new heritages are in Hanoi, which are the Thay Pagoda festival in the outskirts district of Quoc Oai, and other festivals in Dan Phuong, Phuc Tho, Gia Lam districts, along with Trach Xa tailoring in Hoa Xa commune, Ung Hoa district, and sticky rice cooking in Phu Thuong ward, Tay Ho district./. Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung has issued decisions on the inclusion of traditional performing arts, festivals, scripts and crafts, among others, in the list of national intangible cultural heritage. Among the newly-recognised heritages are Cheo (traditional Vietnamese opera) in the northern province of Phu Tho; Mo Muong, a job and also a performance practised at funerals, religious festivals, and life cycle rituals by the Muong ethnic group in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak; the Cau mua (rain praying) festival of the Thai Trang (White Thai) ethnic community in Muong Sang commune, Moc Chau district, the northern mountainous province of Son La; the forest god worshipping (Yang Bre) of the Ma ethnic group in Gia Nghia city and Dak Glong district, the Central Highlands province of Dak Nong. Others include the Cau Ngu (whale worship) festival in Cam Lam village, Xuan Lien commune, Nghi Xuan district, central Ha Tinh province; Pao Dung folk singing of the Dao ethnic gro up in the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang; the Cau mua (praying for bumper crop) ritual of Pa Then people in Tan Lap commune, Bac Quang district, Ha Giang province; the boat racing festival in Tinh Long commune, Quang Ngai city in the central province of the same name; and the traditional Dom Long Neak Ta festival of the Khmer ethnic group in the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh. Vinh Long, another Mekong Delta province, contributes two to the heritage list, namely Hat boi folk singing and the Van Thanh Temple festival. In the northern mountainous province of Thai Nguyen, Hat vi, another genre of folk singing, of the Tay people in Dinh Hoa district, the art of sewing and embroidering costumes and Nom (ancient ideographic script) of the Dao people in Hop Tiep commune, Dong Hy district, are also recognised on this occasion. Rice flour making in Tan Phu Dong commune and ward 2 in Sa Dec city, the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap; tree bark hammock weaving in Cu Lao Cham, Tan Hiep commune, and bam boo and coconut house making in Cam Thanh commune, both in Hoi An city, the central province of Quang Nam; the craft of weaving of the Thu Lao people in Si Ma Cai district, Lao Cai province; palm sugar making of the Khmer people in Tri Ton district and Tinh Bien town, An Giang province; brocade weaving of the Xtieng people in Binh Phuoc province; and Tuy Loan rice paper making in Hoa Phong commune, Hoa Vang district, Da Nang city, have also won the recognition. Six new heritages are in Hanoi, which are the Thay Pagoda festival in the outskirts district of Quoc Oai, and other festivals in Dan Phuong, Phuc Tho, Gia Lam districts, along with Trach Xa tailoring in Hoa Xa commune, Ung Hoa district, and sticky rice cooking in Phu Thuong ward, Tay Ho district./. Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: Deadline.com, a US premier news source covering the business of entertainment, including movies, television, online, digital and related areas, has described Vietnam as one of Asia's fastest-growing cinema markets. In an article entitled 'How Vietnam Has Become One Of Asia's Fastest Growing Markets With New Multiplexes, A Movie-Hungry Audience and Vibrant Local Film Biz' published on February 23, Liz Shackleton wrote that some Vietnamese film-makers shared their views to draw a positive bright outlook for Vietnam's film industry. According to the article, although the previously state-run industry only opened its doors 10-15 years ago, box office was growing at a steady clip of 10% annually before the pandemic, overtaking Thailand, which has a much more developed and longer-established film industry. The Lunar New Year is a key box office period in several Asian territories, but nowhere was it more hotly contested this year than in Vietnam, where several local, Japanese and Hollywood movies were s lugging it over the week-long holidays (February 9-15), it said. Tran Thanh's Mai, a romantic drama that delves into the psychology of its female protagonist, was the clear winner - at the time of writing it was topping the box office with a haul of 400 billion VND (16.4 million USD). Produced by Tran Thanh Town and CJ HK Entertainment, a joint venture between the Republic of Korea's CJ ENM and local outfit HKFilm, the film has the potential to break the record set by Tran Thanh's own The House of No Man, released this time last year, which is Vietnam's highest ever grossing film with 476 billion VND (19.4 million USD). Last year, Vietnam's box office reached 150 million USD, or around 90% of pre-pandemic levels, from a total of 1,100 screens. Not bad for a market that in 2010 only had 90 screens and annual revenue of less than 15 million USD. The growth is due to a few factors, but one of the biggest is the multiplex building programmes undertaken by Korean exhibitors CJ CGV and Lotte Cinema, along with l ocal studios Galaxy Cinema and BHD Star Cineplex, the site said. Recently, Vietnam has also seen the emergence of hip new cinema chains, such as Beta Cinemas and Cinestar, which offer lower ticket prices aimed at students and middle-income cinema-goers. Also driving the market is a lively local production sector that is experimenting with new genres and making a wider range of films - again an achievement considering that private companies were only allowed to start producing in the mid-2000s. The RoK's CJ ENM and Lotte are also active in financing and producing Vietnamese-language movies - CJ with films such as Mai and The House Of No Man and Lotte with titles including Le Van Kiet's 2019 action film Furie and Victor Vu's recent period drama The Last Wife. 'It's a very young audience - we estimate that up to 80% are under the age of 29,' said CJ HK Distribution Supervisor Nguyen Tuan Linh. 'So that age group is dictating the tastes of the market: Local romance, comedy and horror as well as movies from t he RoK, Thailand and Indonesia.' Justin Kim, CJ ENM's Head of International Film Production, added that it's also a demanding and unforgiving audience: 'They're very active on social media, especially TikTok and Instagram, and will react quickly if they think the quality of a movie is not so good.'/. Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi: Deadline.com, a US premier news source covering the business of entertainment, including movies, television, online, digital and related areas, has described Vietnam as one of Asia's fastest-growing cinema markets. In an article entitled 'How Vietnam Has Become One Of Asia's Fastest Growing Markets With New Multiplexes, A Movie-Hungry Audience and Vibrant Local Film Biz' published on February 23, Liz Shackleton wrote that some Vietnamese film-makers shared their views to draw a positive bright outlook for Vietnam's film industry. According to the article, although the previously state-run industry only opened its doors 10-15 years ago, box office was growing at a steady clip of 10% annually before the pandemic, overtaking Thailand, which has a much more developed and longer-established film industry. The Lunar New Year is a key box office period in several Asian territories, but nowhere was it more hotly contested this year than in Vietnam, where several local, Japanese and Hollywood movies were s lugging it over the week-long holidays (February 9-15), it said. Tran Thanh's Mai, a romantic drama that delves into the psychology of its female protagonist, was the clear winner - at the time of writing it was topping the box office with a haul of 400 billion VND (16.4 million USD). Produced by Tran Thanh Town and CJ HK Entertainment, a joint venture between the Republic of Korea's CJ ENM and local outfit HKFilm, the film has the potential to break the record set by Tran Thanh's own The House of No Man, released this time last year, which is Vietnam's highest ever grossing film with 476 billion VND (19.4 million USD). Last year, Vietnam's box office reached 150 million USD, or around 90% of pre-pandemic levels, from a total of 1,100 screens. Not bad for a market that in 2010 only had 90 screens and annual revenue of less than 15 million USD. The growth is due to a few factors, but one of the biggest is the multiplex building programmes undertaken by Korean exhibitors CJ CGV and Lotte Cinema, along with l ocal studios Galaxy Cinema and BHD Star Cineplex, the site said. Recently, Vietnam has also seen the emergence of hip new cinema chains, such as Beta Cinemas and Cinestar, which offer lower ticket prices aimed at students and middle-income cinema-goers. Also driving the market is a lively local production sector that is experimenting with new genres and making a wider range of films - again an achievement considering that private companies were only allowed to start producing in the mid-2000s. The RoK's CJ ENM and Lotte are also active in financing and producing Vietnamese-language movies - CJ with films such as Mai and The House Of No Man and Lotte with titles including Le Van Kiet's 2019 action film Furie and Victor Vu's recent period drama The Last Wife. 'It's a very young audience - we estimate that up to 80% are under the age of 29,' said CJ HK Distribution Supervisor Nguyen Tuan Linh. 'So that age group is dictating the tastes of the market: Local romance, comedy and horror as well as movies from t he RoK, Thailand and Indonesia.' Justin Kim, CJ ENM's Head of International Film Production, added that it's also a demanding and unforgiving audience: 'They're very active on social media, especially TikTok and Instagram, and will react quickly if they think the quality of a movie is not so good.'/. Source: Vietnam News Agency