If Heaven Awaits (2023)
If Heaven Awaits portrays the Hải Phòng born and bred Dung Hà (Vũ Hoàng Dung), a notorious gangster who used to monopolize gambling sites, adopt a masculine appearance and openly date women. Together with illegal activities, her sexuality was the subject of discussion and ridicule in the public eye. She was shot point-blank by her rival in the year 2000; the assassination shook Vietnam's underworld.
A fictional rendezvous between the long-gone Dung Hà and her old flame, rumored to be her one true love, plays out along the 2000s pop ballad Đêm Nay Anh Mơ Về Em (“Dreaming of You Tonight”). Adopting the aesthetic of music videos from this era, the work centers lesbian longing and butch/transmasculine expressions against the backdrop of heteronormative pop culture.
Year of production: 2024
Duration: 6’39’’
Genre: Experimental, Music video
Screening format: DCP 4K
Sound: Stereo
Aspect ratio: 4:3
Language: Vietnamese
Written, directed and produced by Ha Dao, with support from Prince Claus Fund (NL) & Experimenter (IN).
