He used to be a film producer and a student of the famous film director Martin Scorsese, but Gerald Herman choose Vietnam to be his living and working place for the past 15 years.
He also did not choose to work in Hollywood, but silently brought Vietnamese films to the U.S in order to help Americans understand more about Vietnam He added that he would spend all his life in this beautiful country.
The road to Vietnam
In 1992, Gerald decided to travel to Vietnam as a tourist when he was working as a manager in an advertisement company in Indonesia. He was charmed by this country immediately.
He said that when he was a student at New York University, he went downtown many times to protest against the American war in Vietnam. A scare on his forehead was the result of a clash with the police in the demonstrations.
Since then, Vietnam’s image has always been in his heart. The trip to Ho chi minh city in 1992 changed his life.
“At the time, the U.S still imposed sanctions on Vietnam. I had imagined that I would meet poor Vietnamese people with sad faces and hatred against the American”, said Herman.
However, people in the city seemed not to care about the past, they were busy with building the country and with economic development.
“This surprised me and I decided to leave Indonesia for this vibrant country”, Herman added.
His Lotus Communication Advertisement Company produced and placed advertisements in many newspapers in Vietnam as well as some TV channels. But the company had to close down as it could not compete with other big international companies which were arriving in Vietnam.
Herman moved up north to Hanoi to look for business opportunities and he became the chief representative of Singaporean Discovery Communications in Vietnam.
This new company wanted to change Americans’ views on Vietnam, and Herman himself had a dream of a cinema where classical film lovers could come.
As he used to be a film producer and owns a large collection of international films, Herman decided to found a movie club. It took him five years to find a place and to found the Hanoi Cinematheque, in part thanks to the assistance of the former Ministry of Culture and Information.
At first, the club had many financial difficulties because its activities were non-profit, mainly having to depend on the help of donors. To date the number the club members has increased to 2,000 and its activities are well supported by embassies from many countries such as Brazil, Italy, the UK, Japan, Iran, etc.
Herman himself is now busy with the management of the club. Sometimes he is invited to talk with students at Vietnam Cinematography University.
His small club in the centre of the city attracts hundreds of foreigners to Vietnamese films, helping them better understand Vietnam. For Vietnamese audiences, regular foreign films at the club help them gain access to international movies right here in Hanoi.
Herman is satisfied with the increasing number of people going to his club, but he is still a little bit sad as the number of Vietnamese members only accounts for one third of total membership.
He said that whether or not he can renew the lease for rental property for the club, he plans to spend the rest of his live in Vietnam.
Twice a year, he visits his parents in the U.S. As well, his wife and son visit him from America sometimes.
“I will live in Vietnam till I pass away”, Herman stressed.
The journey to bring Vietnamese films to the U.S.
Soon after arriving in Vietnam, Herman realized that Vietnam had an interesting history of cinematography from the 1960s and 1970s. However, these films had not been introduced to the world, and only some of them were shown at international film festivals.
In addition, some Vietnamese films that won international prizes were made by Overseas Vietnamese.
Herman holds that films are the things that make people understand each other best. That was why he paid to convert some Vietnamese films, such as Bao Gio Cho Den Thang 10 (When will October come?), Thuong Nho Dong Que (Missing the Countryside), etc, into DVD format so that they could be shown in the U.S.
In particular, four years ago, he helped bring Dat Phuong Nam (The Southern Land), a film series based on the story of the southern forests of Doan Gioi, to the U.S and some countries in Europe in DVD format with high-quality sub-titles in English, French and German.
Herman paid so much attention to this film because he thinks it is not only interesting for children but also for adults. And, he believes that this film will make the Americans change their minds about Vietnam.
“The Vietnamese are out-going, hospitable. Vietnam is rich in history and is looking forward to a bright future”, Herman said.
At the moment, Herman is still looking for additional donors to help him bring more Vietnamese films to the U.S, the capital of the international movie industry. Additional, he has an ambition to make a modern Vietnamese film, although at the moment he is very busy with his work at the film club.
Source: Tien Phong
Tag: Culture , Festival , Foreigners , Hanoi , Ho Chi Minh , International , Japan , Tour , Tourist , Travel , Vietnam , Vietnamese Herman’s journey to bring Vietnamese films to the U.S
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