AUGUST LETTERS
(2021)

Xuan Ha and I wrote to each other. 

August is when I celebrate the anniversaries of my father's death and my nephew's birth. August makes me think of death, life, and the ends and the beginnings. 

​

I asked Ha, "Do you want to do this with me?" I think I was not ready to face this by myself. One does not heal after losing a loved one. Parts of you died with them. We should embrace that and wear the void they left behind as part of our luggage.

​

Making this film was a journey I was not prepared for. I had not seen the photos of the funeral. I had laughed at the idea of having photos taken when my sister asked me to ask my friend Giang to take them. I was always gung-ho about protecting my private emotions from the eyes of the public. 

​

Six years later, I looked at them. I saw something new when I looked at them to evaluate, study, and arrange for this little film. There was too much. Some were left out. No film can contain LIFE. 

​

The film evolved as I evolved in the re-examination of my feelings. I thought I would delve into the line of departure for Ba and arrival for Gin.

​

​Kyoto University’s Visual Documentary Project, Best of 2021
“Till Later Letters”, Group Exhibition, Á Space, Vietnam, 2022
Kyoto International Film and Art Festival, Center for Southeast Asian Studies, 2023
Overshare Film Festival, Testing Grounds, Melbourne, Australia, 2023
“Fractured Lens: Memory, Archive, and Photography at an Intersection”, screening & artist talk, Sàn Art, Saigon, Vietnam, 2023
​​