HÀ NỘI — Director Nguyễn Hoàng Điệp will present her second film, 1982, at the Busan International Film Festival in South Korea to compete in the Vision-Asia section from October 6 to 15.

1982 is a story about a bankrupt filmmaker searching for her missing mother while uncovering long-buried family secrets. 

The film is a return for Điệp, whose first feature film in 2014, Đập Cánh Giữa Không Trung (Flapping In The Middle of Nowhere), was screened at domestic and international film festivals and won several prizes.

Awards included the 2014 Venice International Film Critic’s Week in Italy, Best Director at the 16th International Film Festival Bratislava in Slovakia, the Jury’s Special Mention at the Festival of the Three Continents in Nantes, France and a Special Prize at the third Hà Nội International Film Festival.

The lead actor in 1982 is Đỗ Thị Hải Yến, who gained international recognition for her role as Phượng in The Quiet American 2002 remake directed by Phillip Noyce.

"By the third sentence of the pitch for 1982, I had fallen in love with the project," Yến said.

"For the 1982 girl, even as the world around her collapses, she must search for her mother and fulfil the responsibilities of an unwilling family breadwinner. I believe that the story of 1982 tells the story of its time, and I'm eager to share it with audiences around the world."

Yến is also one of the film's producers. 

1982 was among several feature film projects at the Tokyo Gap-Financing Market in 2025, a dynamic market created to assist film producers in securing funding. 

This year’s Vision-Asia selection includes films from Việt Nam, Japan, India, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Hong Kong (China), the Philippines, Iran and Mongolia.

Filipino filmmaker Arvin Belarmino brings Ria, a folk-punk drama about a musician fighting to preserve her home and music, while Mongolia’s Sakhya Byamba, winner of Busan’s New Currents Award in 2013 for Remote Control, returns with Zogsool, a satire set around an isolated gas station during the early days of COVID-19. 

Thai actor Inthira Charoenpura makes her directing debut with Bua, co-directed by feature newcomer Phensiri Klangsurin.

The 31st Busan International Film Festival runs from October 6 to 15, with the Asian Content and Film Market held from October 10 to 13. — VNS