DANAFF IV: PROMOTING VIETNAMESE IDENTITY TO THE GLOBAL STAGE VIA DA NANG

On the evening of June 28, the 4th Da Nang Asian Film Festival (DANAFF IV) officially opened at the Ariyana Convention Centre Danang. Not just an opening for a promising cinema week, the opening night was also a way for Da Nang in particular, and Vietnam in general, to tell the story of identity through music, stage, and modern performance language. From folk songs of three regions to Western symphonies combined with contemporary dance, the program suggests a highly evocative way of promoting a destination.

Greetings from Vietnam to the world through folk melodies

At the Ariyana Convention Centre Danang, the opening ceremony of DANAFF IV officially kicked off the film week taking place from June 28 to July 4, 2026, gathering 102 works, about 200 screenings, and more than 1,000 domestic and international delegates. From the very first minutes, the program chose music as the lead, instead of a purely ritualistic opening.

The program opened impressively with a mashup concerto of five traditional folk melodies, evoking the unique folk music materials of all three regions such as “Di Cay” (Planting Rice), “Ly Cay Bong” (The Cotton Flower Song)… Under the baton of conductor Dong Quang Vinh, those familiar melodies were dressed in a new, luxurious symphonic structure. This overture was a sophisticated highlight: before officially entering the film festival, DANAFF IV cleverly chose Vietnamese cultural identity as the first greeting sent to international friends.

It was not merely a performance, but a deliberate symbolic mindset. A regional-scale film festival held in Da Nang chose to start its journey with its very folk music roots. However, the melodies did not appear as a cliché nostalgia. At that moment, “Di Cay” or “Ly Cay Bong” were no longer stories of specific geographical areas in the North or South. The resonance of materials from three regions in the same concerto created a cultural manifesto: Vietnam possesses a rich identity heritage, but has enough internal strength and sensitivity to dialogue with modern thinking.

After the ceremony, the folk thread continued through the “Ly Keo Chai” (Fishing Song) – “Ho Ba Ly” mashup, performed by singer Phuong Vy, singer Do Hoang Hiep, and MQ Dance Team. One melody evokes the labor rhythm of the river regions, another carries the echoes of the Quang region. Placed side by side, these two materials took the audience through Vietnamese cultural regions via sound, movement, and light.

In another shade, “The Beautiful Blue Danube” performed by the Sun Symphony Orchestra, combined with ballet by Hien Sen and Man Nhi, shifted the stage to a classical European space. Johann Strauss II’s melody created a soft and elegant movement, expanding the artistic range of the opening night from Vietnamese identity to international dialogue.

This transition did not feel disjointed. On the contrary, it showed how the program was built as a journey: starting from Vietnamese materials, passing through world artistic standards, and then returning to the spirit of cinema with the “Phep Mau” (Miracle) – “A Little Dream of Me” mashup. The closing performance provided a lighter pause, closer to the emotions of cinema: where people entrust memories, aspirations, and things hard to say in words.

Overall, the artistic performances in the opening night transcended the role of entertainment segments interspersed with rituals. They were a continuous narrative thread. That story originated from original identity, expanded through cultural intersection, and concluded with the pure emotional language of art.

Destination promotion capacity of Da Nang city

From the opening night, DANAFF IV showed an increasingly clear role in promoting the image of Da Nang, Vietnam. Not just an international film event, the festival also created a cultural touchpoint where music, cinema, stage, and the venue space together contributed to positioning Da Nang as a coastal city investing in culture and creative industries.

In the context of tourism destinations increasingly competing through experience, a film festival like DANAFF brings more value to Da Nang than a series of activities over a few days. The event creates a reason for artists, filmmakers, experts, the press, and the public to meet in the city. It also creates natural media materials: the red carpet, film screenings, professional seminars, exchange activities, and emotional stage moments. From there, Da Nang is mentioned not only for its landscape but for its ongoing cultural life.

The opening night at the Ariyana Convention Centre Danang clearly demonstrated this capacity. A seaside event venue capable of hosting large-scale programs does not just play a logistical role. When placed within a sufficiently tight artistic script, the venue becomes part of the destination experience.

The event also suggests a broader direction for Vietnamese tourism. When culture is placed at the center of international events, the national image comes not only from scenery or static heritage but from current creative capacity. Vietnam not only has traditions to introduce but also has the ability to innovate traditions, bringing them into performance forms suitable for a global audience.

From “Di Cay”, “Ly Cay Bong” to “The Beautiful Blue Danube”, “Ly Keo Chai”, “Ho Ba Ly”, and “Phep Mau”, the opening night of DANAFF IV showed an evocative way of storytelling: Da Nang steps out into the world not only with blue seas and bridges but with events that touch identity. When presented in modern language, that identity becomes a media asset for both the city and the image of Vietnam.