Santa Ana, CA – The Vietnamese American Arts and Letters Association (VAALA) is excited to announce that tickets are now on sale for Viet Film Fest 2026. As the largest international Vietnamese film festival in the diaspora, Viet Film Fest 2026 will expand its in-person festival to four days, taking place from October 8–11 at The Frida Cinema, followed by a virtual festival from October 12–25, giving audiences more opportunities to experience Vietnamese stories from around the world. With 64 films selected for this year’s festival, including a record number of 20 feature films and 44 short films, Viet Film Fest 2026 showcases stories from 13 nations: the United States, Vietnam, Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, South Korea, and Taiwan.
Tickets Information
Tickets for Viet Film Fest 2026 are now available on Eventive! Enjoy early bird pricing through September 19:
- General Screenings: $15 early bird / $17 regular
- Special Screenings: $18 early bird / $20 regular
- Trống Đồng Awards Gala: $100 early bird / $125 regular
- Xinêphille Badge – admission to all films in-person and online: $180 early bird / $200 regular
- (NEW this year) Weekend Pass – admission to all films (including special screenings) in our in-person weekend program on October 10–11: $100 early bird (limited quantity available)
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Tickets: https://vietfilmfest2026.eventive.org/passes/buy
Special Events
For more information, please contact Jade Tu, our Hospitality Manager, at jadetu@vaala.org
Viet Film Fest Trống Đồng Awards Gala
Friday, October 9 | 7:00–10:00 PM PST | Bowers Museum, Santa Ana
Celebrate the achievements of Viet Film Fest 2026 filmmakers at the Trống Đồng Awards Gala. This year’s awards will honor outstanding talent with the Best Cinematography, Best Actor, Best Actress, Spotlight Award, Inspiration Award, and the Grand Jury: Trống Đồng Award for Best Short and Best Feature, recognizing the artistry and storytelling of the Vietnamese community.
Dustin Nguyen to Receive Inspiration Award – Viet Film Fest 2026 will honor acclaimed Vietnamese American actor, director, and producer Dustin Nguyen with the Inspiration Award at this year’s Trống Đồng Awards Gala. A pioneering figure in Vietnamese American cinema, Nguyen has built a celebrated career spanning film and television in the United States and Vietnam. He previously received Best Actor at Viet Film Fest in 2011 for his performance in Floating Lives. Nguyen will be in attendance to accept the award, recognizing his lasting contributions to Vietnamese and Vietnamese American cinema and his role in advancing Asian American representation on screen.
Festival Screenings & Spotlight Presentations
Most screenings will include a filmmakers Q&A post-screening. Final confirmation of panel participants, timing, and Q&A format is pending. For more information, please visit https://www.vietfilmfest.com
Opening Night Screening: A Little Dream of Me (Cảm ơn người đã thức cùng tôi) (2026, Vietnam; dir. Chung Chí Công)
Thursday, October 8 at 7:00 PM PST
The latest in a string of crowd-pleasing musical movies at VFF since the pandemic – all of which have commented on place, belonging, and dreams through their musical numbers. Since she was little, Hoài (V-pop singer Võ Phan Kim Khánh) dreamt of being an actress and a singer. Her deaf and mute father, Nam Nghia (Hữu Châu; who is neither deaf nor mute), is a former movie poster painter, and is always encouraging his daughter to pursue her artistry. Hoài’s childhood friend-later-romantic interest is Hiếu (Trần Doãn Hoàng), who aims to be a comic book artist or illustrator.
“Free to Love” Short Film Program, Followed by LGBTQIA+ Panel
Saturday, October 10 at 2:15 PM PST
In partnership with OC Pride,“Free to Love” gathers a slate of short films that stretch and challenge not only sexual orientation and gender expressions, but genre expectations – putting queer love in focus, a little off-centered, with family and longing in the foreground.
Centerpiece Screening: Y Vân: The Lost Sounds of Saigon (2025, United States; dir. Khoa Hà and Victor Velle)
Saturday, October 10 at 6:00 PM PST
Y Vân: The Lost Sounds of Saigon is a lyrical journey through memory, music, and identity. We follow Khoa Hà on a quest to rediscover and preserve the legacy of her grandfather, acclaimed composer Y Vân. From California to the deep heart of Vietnam, Khoa is in search of the lost master tracks that recorded Y Vân’s pre-1975 hits – possibly forever lost due to time and war. The first music-themed screening of two (concert documentary Saigon Jazz Presents Carol Kim follows) on Saturday night
Closing Night Screening: Ky Nam Inn (Quán Kỳ Nam) (2025, Vietnam; dir. Leon Le)
Sunday, October 11 at 4:00 PM PST
Set in the mid 1980s of post-war Saigon, Ky Nam Inn is Leon Le’s latest romantic drama detailing the nuanced lives of private individuals in the midst of a changing Vietnam. The plot centers on Khang (Liên Bỉnh Phát), a young translator from Da Lat who moves into a working-class neighborhood and meets a cast of animated characters that give the film its livelihood. He falls for a middle-aged widow, Ky Nam (Đỗ Thị Hải Yến), who cooks in the neighborhood. While their connection is real, neighborhood gossip and social pressures against their union due to age and class differences drive the film’s emotional turmoil.
Viet Film Fest Encore: In Waves (2026, France; dir. Phuong Mai Nguyen)
Friday, October 23 at 7:00 PM PST | The Frida Cinema, Santa Ana
In-person screenings at Viet Film Fest 2026 conclude with Viet Film Fest Encore, featuring a special, out-of-competition screening of Phuong Mai Nguyen’s In Waves on Friday, October 23 at The Frida Cinema. In Waves will become the joint first animated feature ever shown at VFF. The encore screening gives audiences a final opportunity to experience this year’s festival selection on the big screen and celebrate Vietnamese stories with the Viet Film Fest community.
In Los Angeles, AJ (Will Sharpe), a shy teenager, meets Kristen (Stephanie Hsu). She lives for surfing; he loves skateboarding and drawing. They fall madly in love, and a happy future seems within reach. But everything changes when Kristen faces a sudden illness. Together, they face adversity, driven by the strength of their love, their friends, and their newly shared passion for surfing and the ocean. This film will be presented with its English-language voice cast.
2026 Trống Đồng Film Festival Award Nominees
Grand Jury Trống Đồng Award for Best Feature
Antithesis of Gemini (Quỷ Tha Ma Bắt: Thai Chiêu Tài)
Directed by Trần Nhân Kiên
Vietnam, 2025
International premiere
Ky Nam Inn (Quán Kỳ Nam)
Directed by Leon Le
Vietnam, 2025
Orange County premiere
Made in Germany
Directed by Đức Ngô Ngọc
Germany, 2025
U.S. premiere
Southeast Asian American Journeys
Directed by Quyên Nguyen-Le, Joua Lee Grande, and Oanh-Nhi Nguyen
United States, 2025
Orange County premiere
Y Vân: The Lost Sounds of Saigon
Directed by Khoa Hà and Victor Velle
United States, 2025
Grand Jury Trống Đồng Award for Best Short
The Dream Is a Snail (Giấc mơ là ốc sên)
Directed by Nguyễn Thiên An
Vietnam, 2026
Entropy (Entropia)
Directed by Anna Fam-Rieskaniemi
Poland, 2024
Huong
Directed by Jenny Thach
United States, 2024
No Barriers (Lắng nhìn)
Directed by Anh Pham
Vietnam / Canada, 2025
Ripe (Chín)
Directed by Solara Thanh Bình Đặng
Canada / Vietnam, 2025
Water Girl (Fille de l’eau)
Directed by Sandra Desmazières
France / Netherlands / Portugal, 2022
Best Actor
Đặng Đình Lộc, Dream of Emptiness (Giấc mơ trong rồng)
Directed by Thien Hoang Bui
Tai’mua Hannemann, Dasher
Directed by Alexander Bocchieri
Hồng Thanh, Antithesis of Gemini (Quỷ Tha Ma Bắt: Thai Chiêu Tài)
Directed by Trần Nhân Kiên
Mike Nguyen Van Le, When Everything Would be Fine (Quand tout ira bien)
Directed by Mathieu Lam
Thái Hòa, Mr. Hero (Anh Hùng)
Directed by Võ Thạch Thảo
Best Actress
Đỗ Thị Hải Yến, Ky Nam Inn (Quán Kỳ Nam)
Directed by Leon Le
Đoàn Thiên Ân, Meet Me at the Eclipse
Directed by Lê Thiện Viễn
Hayley Ngọc Mai Nguyễn, Ripe (Chín)
Directed by Solara Thanh Bình Đặng
Camille Pham, When Everything Would be Fine (Quand tout ira bien)
Directed by Mathieu Lam
Maria Mai Rohmann, Made in Germany
Directed by Đức Ngô Ngọc
Best Cinematography
Bron Moyi, Amongst the Disquiet
Directed by Tuấn Andrew Nguyễn
United States, 2024
Chananun Chotrungroj, The Dream Is a Snail (Giấc mơ là ốc sên)
Directed by Nguyễn Thiên An
Vietnam, 2026
Maciej Kwaśniewski, Entropy (Entropia)
Directed by Anna Fam-Rieskaniemi
Poland, 2024
Bob Nguyen, Ky Nam Inn (Quán Kỳ Nam)
Directed by Leon Le
Vietnam, 2025
Chananun Chotrungroj, Ripe (Chín)
Directed by Solara Thanh Bình Đặng
Canada / Vietnam, 2025
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About Viet Film Fest: As the largest international Vietnamese film festival in the diaspora, Viet Film Fest showcases the best creative work by and about Vietnamese people. Our award-winning films have been screened in numerous cities and countries. Viet Film Fest was created in 2003 by the Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association (VAALA) to celebrate the many stories about Vietnamese people. Through the universal language of film, Viet Film Fest brings together multiple perspectives to expand the horizons of Vietnamese cinema. Viet Film Fest provides a nurturing environment for artists and the public to engage in open dialogue across borders. As the hub of the Vietnamese movie industry, the festival hosts networking opportunities with prominent directors, media experts, and producers. We are proud to be a central platform for filmmakers of Vietnamese descent to tell their stories the way they want them to be told.
About the Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association (VAALA): VAALA was founded in 1991 by a group of Vietnamese American journalists, artists, and friends to fill a void in the community and provide a space for newly resettled immigrant artists to express themselves. VAALA’s mission is to connect and enrich communities through Vietnamese art and culture. Historically run entirely by volunteers, VAALA is a community-based non-profit organization. Over the years, VAALA has collaborated with diverse community partners to organize numerous cultural and artistic events. VAALA’s four core programs include the annual Viet Film Fest and Viet Book Fest, the Gallery Beyond Walls program featuring art exhibitions, and free art and film workshops for youth, such as Youth in Motion: A Filmmaking Workshop for Emerging Filmmakers.