''Oh, Saigon'' is a 2007 autobiographical documentary by

Vietnamese American Vietnamese Americans ( vi, Người Mỹ gốc Việt, lit=Viet-origin American people) are Americans of Vietnamese ancestry. They make up about half of all overseas Vietnamese and are the fourth-largest Asian American ethnic group after Chinese ...

director Doan Hoang about her family's separation during the

fall of Saigon The Fall of Saigon, also known as the Liberation of Saigon by North Vietnamese or Liberation of the South by the Vietnamese government, and known as Black April by anti-communist overseas Vietnamese was the capture of Saigon, the capital of ...

and her attempt to reunite them afterwards. ''Oh, Saigon'' was executive produced by

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

and

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

winner,

John Battsek John Battsek is a British film producer of documentary films. Battsek co-founded Passion Pictures, a two-time Oscar-winning and four-time Oscar nominated independent production company. In 2020, Battsek departed Passion Pictures to launch cre ...

. ''Oh, Saigon'' received film grants from the

Sundance Institute Sundance Institute is a non-profit organization founded by Robert Redford committed to the growth of independent artists. The institute is driven by its programs that discover and support independent filmmakers, theatre artists and composers f ...

Documentary Fund,

ITVS ITVS (Independent Television Service) is a service in the United States which funds and presents documentaries on public television through distribution by PBS and American Public Television, new media projects on the Internet, and the weekly seri ...

, and the

Center for Asian American Media The Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) was founded in 1980. The San Francisco-based organization, formerly known as the National Asian American Telecommunications Association (NAATA), has grown into the largest organization dedicated to the adv ...

, and after its release, received a number of film festival awards and accolades.

Synopsis

Cast

The main characters in the film are the Hoang family: * Nam Hoang as Nam - a South Vietnamese pilot who pulls his family out of Vietnam to settle in Kentucky * Doan Hoang as Doan - Nam's daughter and the film's narrator. * Hoang Hai as Hai - a Communist soldier who is Nam's older brother. * Hoang Dzung as Dzung - Nam's younger brother. He is a fisherman. * Anne Hoang as Anne - Nam's wife. She was a socialite in Saigon, but after the relocation, she works as a seamstress. * Van Tran as Van - Anne's daughter and Doan's secret half sister. On the day of the airlift, she is left behind. Also includes the following family members: * Nhat Hoang * Dylan Tran Le

Development

Hoang developed the film over seven years, where she documented her family. In 2005, the

awarded Hoang a grant for the then titled ''Homeland''. She also received funding from the Independent Television Service (ITVS), the Center for Asian American Media, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Filming was done in the United States and Saigon. According to the official website: "The subjects are shot on location in the expanse of America and its suburbs, as well as Saigon’s vibrant, noisy streets, and the rarely-seen breathtaking backwaters of Vietnam – emphasizing the physical differences between two countries that shared a war. Archival footage, moody Super8mm landscapes, and motion-graphics-animated family photographs juxtaposed to clear, colorful DV, shot in a fluid cinema verité–style highlight changes and similarities between past and present."

Release

Hoang premiered ''Oh, Saigon'' in March 2007 at the

San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival CAAMFest, known prior to 2013 as the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival (SFIAAFF), is presented every March in the San Francisco Bay Area in the United States as the nation’s largest showcase for new Asian American and Asia ...

She then showcased the film at various film festivals, universities, and museum venues. Hoang took the film to 16 countries, including a tour of Spain in 2011 and 2012 tour of Vietnam for the US State Department and American Documentary Showcase. The film is currently available to view on Netflix and Amazon.com.

Reception

Awards and nominations

*Grand Jury Prize for Non-Fiction Feature Film – Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, May 2008 *Best Documentary Award - 42nd Brooklyn Arts Council International Film Festival, May 2008 *Best Brooklyn Film - 42nd Brooklyn Arts Council International Film Festival, May 2008 *Best of the Fest – Austin Film Festival, February 2008 *Best Documentary Nominee - San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, March 2007 *Grand Jury Prize Nominee – Vietnamese International Film Festival, April 2009

References

External links

* * {{IMDb title, 1158302 2007 films Documentary films about families Documentary films about refugees Documentary films about the Vietnam War Autobiographical documentary films 2007 documentary films Vietnamese documentary films American documentary films Vietnamese-language films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films