Sad Fish Director Le-Van Kiet: World Premiere at 4th Biennial Vietnamese International Film Festival

Orchid Lam Quynh in Sad Fish
The Vietnamese International Film Festival in its fourth permutation returns to UC Irvine and the Southland starting Thursday, 2 April, with 60 films from the diverse Vietnamese diaspora as well as from Vietnam.
Monday's (March 30, 2009) Subversity radio show highlights Sad Fish, a locally made new independent film with its world premiere Saturday 4 April at UCI's HIB 100 at 7:30 p.m. as part of VIFF.

Directed by indie filmmaker Le-Van Kiet, Sad Fish stars established actress Kieu Chinh (Joy Luck Club, Journey from the Fall) , newcomer Orchid Lam Quynh (a UCI aluma), Long Nguyen (Journey from the Fall) and Jayvee Hiep Mai (Journey from the Fall). Exquisitely filmed, Sad Fish, a drama tinged with comedy, tells drenching stories of unconventional lives from Little Saigon, California, portrayals of nostalgia for homeland but also of daily routines of longings, relationships and domestic turmoil that transgress conventional boundaries. The film also depicts male intimacy and tension between "Happy Together"-type characters played by actors Jayvee and Long.


On Monday's show, we talk with Sad Fish director Kiet, who was last on Subversity in April, 2007, when VIFF then showcased his earlier gritty visual depiction of OC gang life in Bui Doi, The Dust of Life.


Audio of that earlier interview: http://kuci.org/~dtsang/subversity/Sv070416.mp3.


A wine reception for Sad Fish hosted by UCI's new Vietnamese alumni group, Vietnamese American Community Ambassadors (VACA), starts this Saturday at 5 p.m. at UCI's Cross Cultural Center. For more information and ticket info,, see: ttp://www.vietfilmfest.com/2009/viff/program-schedule/#april4 For more information on the film and other films showing at VIFF, go to: http://www.vietfilmfest.com/2009/




To listen to the show, click here: