First Rain, Brise-Soleil 2022 Directed by Thảo Nguyên Phan
The film opens with the fictional narrative of a Vietnamese-Khmer construction worker who specializes in brise-soleil, the concrete lattices for shading and ventilating buildings that, in cities like Ho Chi Minh City (before 1976 named Saigon), unite a traditional Vietnamese building technique with a modern material linked to US domination. The film’s second half, set during the 18th century’s feudal wars, centers on a folkloric love story between a Vietnamese medicinal healer and a Khmer woman that unfolds around the symbolic significance of a durian (or “thouren”) fruit, a major product of the Mekong Delta.
Language
Vietnamese
Spoken Language
Vietnamese
Gnere
Drama
Production Company
Han Nefkens Foundation
Release Date 23 April 2022
16 mins
