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After two weeks of celebrating Vietnamese storytelling, Viet Film Fest 2024 (Vff) proudly announces the successful conclusion of its largest edition to date, drawing record-breaking attendance and ticket sales! Presented by The Vietnamese American Arts and Letters Association (Vaala), Viet Film Fest features a wide selection of Vietnamese and Vietnamese diasporic films, having nearly 39 shorts and 11 feature films. With over 4,000 attendees, the success of the festival could not have been possible without the support of our dedicated audience and incredible team.

Viet Film Fest, held virtually from October 5 to 20 and in-person at The Frida Cinema in Downtown Santa Ana from October 11 to 13, featured a diverse lineup of films by both local and international filmmakers. The program spanned stories from Canada, France, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam to those rooted in Orange County, reflecting the vibrancy of the Vietnamese culture and diasporic community. Highlights from this year’s festival included a special...

The Vietnamese American Arts and Letters Association (Vaala) is excited to announce the highly anticipated return of Viet Film Fest 2024, the largest international Vietnamese film festival in the diaspora. This year’s festival, with designs inspired by the surrounding Californian landscape, promises to be a must-visit destination festival. Celebrating over 20 years of Vietnamese cinema, Viet Film Fest 2024 will take place virtually on your home screens from October 5 to 20, and with a three-day in-person festival on October 11,12, and 13.

With its first screening in 2003 at University of California, Irvine, Viet Film Fest was created by Ysa Le and Tram Le to fill the void of underrepresented films centering around the Vietnamese experience. Now running successfully for over two decades, the festival has attracted thousands of national and international attention for its stunning showcase of shorts and features submitted from many corners of the world, including Australia, Cambodia, Canada, France, Germany, Israel, Japan,...

The New York Asian Film Festival (Nyaff) has revealed the features that will compete for this year’s Uncaged Award and that Hong Kong actor Nicholas Tse will receive the Screen International Star Asia Award.

The eight-strong competition for best feature film at the festival, running July 12-28, will include the North American premiere of Thai hit How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies, directed by Pat Boonnitipat.

The film, which ranks as this year’s biggest film at the Thai box office to date, is a family drama that stars popular Thai singer Putthipong Assaratanakul (aka Billkin) as a...

Filipino director Sheron Dayoc’s The Gospel Of The Beast won the top Golden Star Award for best Southeast Asian film at the first Ho Chi Minh City International Film Festival (Hiff) in Vietnam, which also saw several titles dropped from the final programme due to censorship by local authorities.

The Gospel Of The Beast marks the first feature in seven years from Dayoc and tells the story of a teenage boy who accidentally kills his classmate and runs away with an older man he barely knows, forming a unique father-son relationship. It premiered at Tokyo in October.

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The Far East Film Festival (Feff) in Italy’s Udine has unveiled the full line-up for its 26th edition, which will honour Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou with an honorary award and world premiere restored versions of his Raise The Red Lantern and To Live.

Running April 24 to May 2, the festival will open with a double bill: Chinese box office hit Yolo and South Korean action-comedy Citizen Of A Kind.

Yolo dominated this year’s Lunar New Year releases, grossing $484m in China, and is directed by Jia Ling, who stars as an unemployed woman in her 30s whose life is...

The 40th edition of Sundance Film Festival kicks off today, and notably, queer and Himalaya-themed films take over the Asian/Asian diaspora slate of the mountain festival. In previous years, Sundance has been a frontier for Asian diaspora films. Last year alone saw a full slate of Asian diaspora films, with “Past Lives” (Celine Song), “Shortcomings” (Randall Park), “The Persian Version” (Maryam Keshavarz), and more, among others – there are considerably less Asian American films in the primary competition. This year, in the US Dramatic Competition, only one film, “Didi (弟弟)” by Sean Wang stands out amid the crowd.

Films about the Himalayas have taken center-stage in the World Cinema Competitions, however, with three titles this year: “Girls will be Girls” (Shuchi Talati), “Agent of Happiness” (Arun Bhattarai), and “Nocturnes” (Anirban Dutta). Queer Asian diaspora cinema is front and center this year as well, with “Layla” (Amrou Al-Khadi) and “Desire Lines...

For four decades, Sundance has maintained a reputation as one of the most important film festivals in America for independent filmmakers from around the globe. To commemorate its 40th anniversary in 2024 and the enormity (and reciprocity) of that cultural footprint, festival leadership set a series of restoration screenings to highlight many of the most memorable films programmed throughout its history.

“When you look at the way the independent film movement has evolved and changed over the years, from the maturation of an industry and the opportunities that artists have found, to the way that an audience has been built around the work, you see a festival that has evolved alongside it,” says John Nein, senior programmer and director of strategic initiatives.

This year’s festival takes place Jan. 18-28, in person in Park City and Salt Lake City, with a selection of titles available online nationwide from Jan. 25-28. The...

Anniversary screenings include Park City hits Napoleon Dynamite, Mississippi Masala, The Babadook.

Sundance Film Festival has unveiled the 53 shorts as well as the eight films celebrating the festival’s 40th edition – a list which includes Park City hits Napoleon Dynamite, Mississippi Masala, and The Babadook.

The 40th edition celebration screenings and events are set for the second half of the festival from January 23-26, 2024, with a slate of retrospective programming that will bring alumni artists together for conversations and gatherings.

Sundance Film festival runs January 18-28, 2024, in person in Park City and Salt Lake City, with a selection of titles...

“Basurero” marks the directorial debut of Filipino-American filmmaker Eileen Cabiling, who also penned the original short screenplay. Manila/Los Angeles-based Cabiling is a Screenwriting Fellow graduate of the prestigious American Film Institute who has worked as a writer for Disney and as a story development producer. Born to immigrant Filipino parents in the U.S., Cabiling is drawn to the subject matter by a desire to explore the psychology of her ancestral home. Currently, she is set to make her feature-length directorial debut with her original screenplay, “Manhid”, starring and produced by Rosales.”

Eileen Cabiling‘s debut film Basurero was previously selected as part of the best of our Submit Your Film initiative, having been received after a successful debut at the 24th Busan International Film Festival. With the film’s continued success on the festival circuit, and new projects on the horizon, we got a chance to speak with...

What better way to share your love on Valentine's Day than with Deadpool.. and a chimichanga. Artist Tony Bui created these exclusive Deadpool-inspired valentines to help make sure that all your Valentine's Day dreams come true! Deadpool is in theaters February 12, 2016. From Jaws to Raiders of the Lost Ark, check out more film-inspired valentines that are guaranteed to make your February 14 rock!

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To help get movie fans into the Halloween spirit, we put three spook-tacular artists under our spell and had them create some ghoulish greetings for the trick or treat season. So check out these devilishly delightful original images created exclusively for Fandango by a most talented trio of artists. Artist Tony Bui created this adorable scene featuring Winnie Sanderson from Hocus Pocus, Wednesday Addams from The Addams Family, Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas, Freddy...

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Originally slated to debut December 19, the release of Crackle’s original movie The Throwaways was put on hold because of the massive hack attack on parent Sony Pictures Entertainment. Now the cyber-attack film, executive produced by Jeremy Renner, has been re-dated and will start streaming January 30. Director Tony Bui’s pic stars Sam Huntington as a notorious hacker who uses his smarts to track down another cyber-attacker. Katie McGrath, Christian Hillborg, Jack Kesy, Kevin Dillon and James Caan also star in the film written by Michael Arlen Ross and Don Handfield. Renner and Don Handfield executive produce. You can watch the trailer above.

Sony Pictures Television unit Crackle has set a December 19 release on its platform for its original cyber thriller The Throwaways featuring Jeremy Renner as executive producer.

Sam Huntington, Katie McGrath, Christian Hillborg, Jack Kesy, Kevin Dillon and James Caan star in the story of a hacker who recruits a team and is tasked by the CIA to take down a cyber terrorist.

Tony Bui directs from a screenplay by Michael Ross. Renner and Don Handfield are on board as executive producers via their company The Combine along with Timothy Linh Bui.

The Throwaways is set in Bulgarian capital Sofia and was completed in October.

Directv Cinema has begun its exclusive VOD window on Atom Egoyan’s thriller The Captive through December 11, prior to theatrical release the following day via A24. The exclusivity component is pursuant to the partners’ ongoing agreement. Ryan Reynolds stars in the abduction thriller.

‘Whiplash’: Sundance Film Festival Awards’ rare double winner (photo: Miles Teller in ‘Whiplash’) Directed by Damien Chazelle — and acquired for domestic distribution by Sony Pictures Classics — Whiplash won the 2014 Sundance Film Festival U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award. The story of a young, ambitious 19-year-old drummer (played by 26-year-old Miles Teller) under the tutelage of a ruthless teacher (J.K. Simmons), Whiplash also features Melissa Benoist, Paul Reiser, Austin Stowell, Nate Lang, Chris Mulkey, and Damon Gupton. Whiplash‘s double Sundance Film Festival win is quite rare. Previous such instances in Sundance’s three-decade history include Tony Bui’s Three Seasons in 1999, Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland’s Quinceañera in 2006, Lee Daniels’ Precious in 2009, and Ryan Coogler’s Fruitvale Station last year. Of these, Precious is — somewhat surprisingly — the only Sundance double winner to have succeeded both at the domestic box office and during awards season,...

The Sundance Institute has announced fourteen projects for its 30th director and screenwriting labs. To be held at the Sundance Resort in Utah from May 30-June 30, 2011, the lucky lab participants are listed below, along with details of their selves and their feature projects. Here’s the official word from the Institute:

Sundance Institute today announced the 14 projects selected for its annual June Directors and Screenwriters Labs, taking place at the Sundance Resort in Utah May 30 – June 30, 2011. Under the leadership of Michelle Satter, Director of the Sundance Feature Film Program, and the artistic direction of Gyula Gazdag, the projects selected for this year’s program include emerging filmmakers and projects from the United States, Israel, Romania, Mexico, the Philippines and Algeria. Sundance Institute is marking the 30thanniversary of its first Directors Lab, led by Robert Redford and Satter in 1981.

Over the course of the Directors Lab, Fellows work with an accomplished group of Creative Advisors,...

The Sundance Institute has announced fourteen projects for its 30th director and screenwriting labs. To be held at the Sundance Resort in Utah from May 30-June 30, 2011, the lucky lab participants are listed below, along with details of their selves and their feature projects. Here’s the official word from the Institute:

Sundance Institute today announced the 14 projects selected for its annual June Directors and Screenwriters Labs, taking place at the Sundance Resort in Utah May 30 – June 30, 2011. Under the leadership of Michelle Satter, Director of the Sundance Feature Film Program, and the artistic direction of Gyula Gazdag, the projects selected for this year’s program include emerging filmmakers and projects from the United States, Israel, Romania, Mexico, the Philippines and Algeria. Sundance Institute is marking the 30thanniversary of its first Directors Lab, led by Robert Redford and Satter in 1981.

Over the course of the Directors Lab, Fellows work with an accomplished group of Creative Advisors,...

We normally wouldn’t pay much heed to a moody indie film about characters struggling through emotional tumult. But when the movie is Powder Blue and it features Jessica Biel as a stripper, we’re all ears and other organs. God knows what to make of this trailer. It sure evokes mood but, hell, color-saturated shots of Biel squirming around showing off little outfits with Forest Whitaker, Ray Lioitta and a Cillian Murphy lookalike gazing off into the horizon thinking deep thoughts to a Sigur Ros soundtrack, well, hell, that’s, like, shooting fish in a barrell. The film is directed by Timothy Linh Bui, who co-wrote the film Three Seasons, directed by his brother Tony Bui. I saw this in 1999 when it came out and I am 85% sure I liked it. How’s that for an endorsement? After the jump, dig the video as leaked to YouTube. You can totally use this video.

Jerry Weintraub Prods. has hired first-time screenwriter Don Handfield to pen the comedy spec Genius. The story is described as a high-concept comedy set in the world of academia. Handfield is a graduate of the IFP Director's Lab, where he developed and shot scenes for another feature script, Hello, My Name Is Jason Scott, which he is set to direct in the fall for Tonic Films, with Tim and Tony Bui producing.

PARK CITY, Utah -- "Three Seasons" is a luminous, delicate and powerful saga of modern-day Saigon. The winner of both the Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival, the film moved audiences throughout the fest and should be a hit on both the festival and select-site circuit for October Films.

A narrative pastiche weaving four separate stories in present-day Vietnam, "Three Seasons" is an eloquent depiction of life in that tumultuous country. Filmmaker Tony Bui, who directed and co-wrote, has painted a provocative picture of the hard life that many Saigon residents face.

Reminiscent of Italian neo-realism, Bui focuses on those who are barely scraping by, including a cyclo driver, a prostitute, a young man who hustles trinkets on the streets and a girl who has been hired to be a personal assistant to a reclusive spiritual master.

Winding between these unconnected, but ultimately inclusive stories, Bui's storytelling is packed with hard city images. Indeed, "Three Seasons" is most eloquent and powerful in its visuals: the kaleidoscope of the scurrying chaos of big-city Saigon is both frightening and dignified.

Unfortunately, the dialogue and writing is often of an expositional nature and occasionally "Three Seasons" is over-arching in making its thematic points. During these junctures, the storytelling takes on a somewhat glossy, "National Geographic" patina.

Overall, "Three Seasons" is an exceptional film, capturing the roiling nature of a country that's torn by its past and gyrating between the old ways and the new. The acting is special as the well-chosen cast members embody their character's everyday essences.

Particularly noteworthy is Ngoc Hiep, whose radiant and fragile nature literally blossoms as she comes to gain strength and uncommon insights in her routine work with a religious master. Don Duong is also noteworthy for his engaging performance as a love-smitten cyclo driver. Harvey Keitel, who also executive produces, is solid as an American G.I. searching for the daughter he left behind during his Vietnam war days.

It's in its technical aspects that "Three Seasons" is most bountiful. Cinematographer Lisa Rinzler deservedly won the festival's Cinematography Award for her masterful lensing, eloquently and touching and conveying the heart and soul of the fractured city. In addition, composer Keith Reamer's full-bodied music, with its dissonant as well as mellifluous tones, also captures the vibrant qualities of Vietnamese life.

THREE SEASONS

A Film by Tony Bui

Producers: Jason Kliot, Joana Vicente, Tony Bui

Screenwriter-director: Tony Bui

Executive producer: Harvey Keitel

Co-executive producer: Charles Rosen

Co-producer: Timothy Linh Bui

Story: Tony Bui, Timothy Linh Bui

Director of photography: Lisa Rinzler

Production designer: Wing Lee

Costume designer: Ghia Ci Fam

Editor: Keith Reamer

Music: Richard Horowitz

Vietnamese songs by: Vy Nhat Tao

Line producer: Trish Hofmann

Casting director: Quan Lelan

Sound: Curtis Choy, Brian Miksis

Color/Stereo

Hai: Don Duong

Kien An Nguyen: Ngoc Hiep

Teacher Dao: Tran Manh Cuong

James Hager: Harvey Keitel

Lan: Zoe Bui

Woody: Nguyen Huu Duco

Truck Driver: Minh Ngoc

Huy: Hoang Phat Trieu

Running time -- 113 minutes

MPAA Rating: PG-13...