Director Huynh Tuan Anh speaks when receiving the prize
Phuong Khau (The Emperor's Gift) is an original drama series featuring life during the Nguyen Dynasty. It is set in the Hue Imperial Palace and tells the story of concubines during the reign of King Thieu Tri (1841-47). The 11-episode drama received more than 2.2 million views on YouTube.
Vietnam had three web series festival entrants including Phuong Khau (The Emperor's Gift), The Tale of Kieu, and Bo Gia (Papa). This was the first time the organiser introduced a prize for the original series category with both Phuong Khau from Vietnam and Squid Game from South Korea competing. Phuong Khau was given the Best Director of The Year award and its director Huynh Tuan Anh became the first Vietnamese director to win this prize.
Speaking about the award, director Huynh Tuan Anh said that Phuong Khau was still modest in comparison to similar productions in Asia.
"I think I am a bit lucky to be given this award," the director said. "The organisers and the jury may have paid attention to the Vietnamese unique cultural features in my series. I’ll still have to try and learn a lot for my future projects."
A scene in Phuong Khau
Phuong Khau will be screened at Auditorium 6 cinemas at 3.30pm on November 10.
The annual Asian World Film Festival 2021 which has been held from November 1 and will run until November 11, saw the participation of nearly 100 films from over 40 countries and territories.
