Curated by Phuong Phan

Selected by Phuong Phan, a member of Wandering Salon 2023 curatorial team, the question of how to live kindly as a human being is the central question of Trần Văn Thuỷ’s 1984 documentary Chuyện tử tế, almost ten years after the official end of the American War in Vietnam in 1975. Taking viewers to the streets, the film seeks the meanings of kindness in a country that was on the brink of political and economic change happening in late 1980s. It is crafted from a collection of images of archival work, combined with footage of sites in Hanoi, hand-held camera shots, and more than twenty interview respondents.

The screening will be followed by a close reading programme with the filmmaker in November. In this reading group we will read several chapters from the filmmaker’s book and learn about the process and creation of the film. Out of respect for the film director and other participants, we kindly ask for your commitment to the reading and participation. If you are interested, please register for reading material at wanderingsalon@gmail.com. (PP)

Trần Văn Thuỷ (*1940) is a Vietnamese director, reporter and author based in Hanoi who has created more than 20 documentaries. His films, perceived to be critical, though critically acclaimed, have often been banned.

Phuong Phan is an art historian, researcher and curator based in Berlin and Hanoi.