Song Lang

Song Lang is a 2018 Vietnamese musical drama film directed and edited by Leon Le, and is also his debut film. The film is produced by Ngô Thanh Vân and Irene Trinh, based on the script written by Leon Le and Nguyen Thi Minh Ngoc. The film is produced by The Creatv Company and Studio68 and distributed by Lotte Entertainment, with the participation of Isaac, Liên Bỉnh Phát, Minh Phuong, Tu Quyen, Kieu Trinh and Thanh Tu. Set in Ho Chi Minh City in the 1980s, the film revolves around the relationship between Linh Phung, the lead singer of the cai luong troupe Thien Ly, and Dung, a debt collector from a cai luong family. Throughout the film, cai luong music is highlighted and plays a leading role in the entire story line. The film's title itself is also named after a musical instrument that plays the role of keeping the beat in cai luong. The script for Song Lang was conceived by Leon Le in 2012. However, because the original idea was not feasible, after a few years he sought out writer Nguyen Thi Minh Ngoc to rewrite a more suitable script. Leon Le spent a year looking for investors for the project but was rejected; Ngo Thanh Van was the last producer he sent the script to and she agreed to produce the work after only two days of reading the script. The film began filming in October 2017. The filming process took place over 32 non-consecutive days, with scenes mainly taken in District 5 of Ho Chi Minh City. Leon Le and composer Hoang Song Viet completely rewrote the lyrics of the cai luong segments in the work; The pop music and ancient music parts were also invested and harmonized with the instruments of a theater troupe...