Hà Nội Academy of Theatre and Cinema is turning its campus into a showcase for the next generation of Vietnamese creatives. From December 5 to 17, the school hosts the first Chuyện Thanh Xuân — Stories of Youth — Arts Festival, a multi-disciplinary event built almost entirely around student work.
The programme is unusually broad for a student festival: cinema, television, animation, theatre, musicals, traditional opera, dance, photography, painting and fine arts all feature. Rather than simply displaying graduation pieces, the organisers have picked standout students from different departments and asked them to collaborate — mixing, say, film with dance or photography with theatre — to create new works that speak to contemporary Vietnamese life, their hometowns and social issues.
There is official weight behind it. Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Tạ Quang Đông attended the launch and said the festival should help the country find young talent at a time when Vietnam is investing heavily in its cultural industries. He floated the idea of expanding it into a nationwide event, and the ministry has offered to back strong student works with slots at national exhibitions and festivals, plus promotional support.
Rector and Meritorious Artist Bùi Như Lai, whose academy has been training performers for more than 45 years, says the goal goes beyond staging student shows. He wants the event to link students and lecturers with working artists, producers and arts organisations, and eventually to get joint student productions into regional and international film and arts festivals. The plan is for Stories of Youth to run annually, each year with its own theme.
The launch also doubled as a rebrand for the academy, which unveiled a new visual identity meant to signal a more creative, open and internationally minded institution.
For travellers, this is a nice excuse to see Hanoi from a different angle. December is a pleasant month in the capital — cooler, drier and busy with end-of-year cultural events — and most festival activity will centre on the academy's campus, with student work that is fresher and cheaper than the mainstream theatre and cinema on offer downtown. It is also a rare chance to watch Vietnam's next wave of directors, actors and designers before they become names, and to see traditional opera forms sharing a bill with animation and contemporary dance. Check locally for public performance schedules and ticketing, as some sessions will be industry-facing while others are open to audiences.
