Vietnamese female filmmaker wins prize at Cannes Film Festival 2022

The award offers financial support worth EUR20,000 to the most promising female short film director, with the winner being selected from the Short Films Competition and La Cinef's selection at Cannes.

“Giac Mo Goi Cuon”, known as “Spring Roll Dream” in English, is a short animated film created by director Mai Vu which competed in the La Cinef category. She took a total of two years to complete the film.

The stop-motion short tells the story of a Vietnamese family residing in the United States. The main character is a single mother named Linh who tries to build a stable life for her son Alan, although the balance is disrupted when her father Sang visits from Vietnam.

During a meal, he insists on making Vietnamese spring rolls for his grandson, although Linh prefers to eat typical American cuisine such as mac and cheese instead. From here, conflicts arise between Sang and Linh. At this point, Linh is confronted with the past and the culture that she left behind, causing her to question where her Vietnamese heritage belongs in her family's new life.

The character of Sang was inspired by a lonely old father who wishes to connect with his children and grandchildren, but only knows how to express his love by cooking for them.

Director Mai Vu was originally born in Ho Chi Minh City and has been working in animation since 2011. Between 2012 and 2015 she directed more than 70 episodes of “Xin Chao But Chi”, also known as “Hello Pencil”, the first stop motion animated series produced in the nation.