Anh Minh Truong makes a splash in Cannes

By Marc Losier

Second-year Film Production student Anh Minh Truong created a stir last week when his film, Mon Oeil, won for Best Short in an online competition entitled Silence On Court presented by the Cannes Film Festival.

Ten short films from all over the globe were chosen to take part in the competition, which is jointly organized by Le Short Film Corner de Cannes and the National Film Board of Canada (NFB).

Elegantly shot and constructed, Mon Oeil combines delusion and daydreams; its main character obsesses over an eye peeping through a peephole.

The ambitious filmmaker from Sherbrooke was delighted to hear the good news.

“This is a big step in the right direction for my future. The credibility of this award will make it easier to gain acceptance into other festivals and may also prove useful when applying for grants for future works.” He may well need those grants if he continues on his steady pace of three projects per year.

Truong said he’s not a cinephile. “I consider myself a film creator. I concern myself with making films. I don’t like to get bogged down with film theory and its history; I just don’t have the time.”

At this point, his familial relationships and sensitivity to life’s smaller moments inspire him. His next endeavour is in the writing stages and will be shot in August.

Though not able to attend the festival, he was represented by members of the NFB and awarded a Sony High Definition video camera for his winning effort.

Ciném3a

In other film news, Action Art Actuel’s exhition Ciném3a took place from May 13 to 25 in the Cabaret-Théâtre in St. Jean sur Richelieu.

This year’s theme was documentary filmmaking and featured the works of several students from Marielle Nitoslawska’s second-year course, called Documentary Approaches.  

Daniel Drapeau, Geneviève Parent, Dan Popa, Annie Durochers and Robert Clément Reis exhibited their work before an audience on the final night that included director Jeremy Peter Allen, director of the Quebec film L’Exécution.