Film about child marriage in Vietnam unexpectedly entered the Top 15 Oscars in 2023
Vietnamese documentary "Children of the Mist" is in the top 15 documentaries with a chance to be officially nominated at this year's Oscars.
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A scene from the documentary "Children of the Mist". Photo: Variety |
On December 21 (US time), the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the shortlist of 10 categories, including "Best Documentary", including both English and non-English language films.
The biggest surprise was when the Vietnamese documentary "Children of the Mist" unexpectedly made it into the top 15 nominations.
In the shortlist of Oscar nominations announced on the morning of December 22, the film competes with works such as "All That Breathes" (UK), "All the Beauty and the Bloodshed" (US), "Bad Axe" (US), "Descendant" (US), "Fire of Love" (US - Canada), "Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen", "a Journey, a Song" (US - Canada), "Hidden Letters" (China)...
According to the Hollywood Reporter, the films will continue to be voted on from January 12 to 17, 2023, before the final nomination list is announced on January 24.
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Poster of the movie "Cthildren of the Mist" in the Top 15 Oscar 2023. Photo: Varan Vietnam |
"Children of the Mist" (directed by Ha Le Diem) revolves around child marriage in the mountainous region of Northern Vietnam. The film tells the story of a 14-year-old girl named Di, a Hmong girl. One spring day, Di is chosen to be the wife of a boy of the same age as her, Vang. Di tries to resist the traditional arrangement.
Her mother is conflicted between respecting tradition and protecting her child's happiness. While her grandmother and father give Di the right to make her own decisions. The work won "Best International Film" at the Docaviv Film Festival and "Best Director" at the Amsterdam Documentary Film Festival in 2021.
The documentary "Children of the Mist" received a lot of attention from film news sites even before its name was announced on the Oscar nomination shortlist.
The film section of the prestigious news newspaper The Guardian (UK) commented that this is a documentary that gives a realistic and emotional perspective on bad customs such as child marriage and wife kidnapping that still exist in some remote areas in Vietnam.
