Tony Leung film and 7 other German works to screen in Vietnam

The festival will offer Vietnamese audiences a diverse selection of contemporary German cinema, spanning historical drama, social narratives and animation for the whole family. Screenings will take place in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, Hue and Da Nang.

Thai Mai Lan, director of the Goethe-Institut in Ho Chi Minh City, said the eight films selected for this year’s festival explore themes including freedom, growing up, identity, family and the desire for connection. Several have also received recognition at international film festivals.

One of the highlights is Yellow Letters, directed by German filmmaker İlker Çatak, which won the Golden Bear for Best Film at the 2026 Berlin International Film Festival, also known as the Berlinale.

The film follows Derya and Aziz, who lose their jobs and are forced to move into Aziz’s parents’ home in Istanbul with their 13-year-old daughter. As their lives are disrupted, the family must adapt to new circumstances while their marriage comes under increasing strain.

Another major attraction is Silent Friend, directed by Ildikó Enyedi and starring Tony Leung and Léa Seydoux. The film was announced as the winner of the FIPRESCI Prize and several other awards at the 2025 Venice International Film Festival.

Silent Friend centres on a majestic ginkgo tree in the botanical garden of a medieval German university town. Across three periods — 1908, 1972 and 2020 — the tree witnesses the lives of people whose encounters with the plant world change how they perceive nature, time and themselves.

KinoFest 2026 will also present Rose, directed by Markus Schleinzer, I Understand Your Displeasure by Armando Friedrich, Luisa by Julia Roesler, and Oh, This Unspeakable Void by Simon Verhoeven. Animated film The Last Whale Singer by Reza Memari will introduce about young humpback whale who discovers its special voice and embarks on a great adventure.

In Hanoi, KinoFest 2026 will run from November 5 to 8 at the National Cinema Centre. The festival will then continue in Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, Hue and Da Nang throughout November and December.

According to organisers, tickets priced at VND30,000 at selected venues are part of a non-commercial initiative intended to encourage audiences to make cultural activities a regular part of their lives.

KinoFest 2025 opens in Hanoi to mark 50 years of Vietnam-Germany ties

VOV.VN - KinoFest, the Goethe-Institut’s annual film festival in Southeast Asia dedicated to contemporary German cinema, kicked off in Hanoi on October 30, launching a series of screenings across Vietnam with ticket prices of only VND20,000 each.