(VNF) - The 2017 Israel film festival is due to be launched in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in late February and early March, offering an opportunity for Vietnamese to discover new and unheard aspects of Israeli culture.

Israeli Ambassador to Vietnam Meirav Eilon Shahar said the festival furthermore allows Israel to enhance links with Vietnam by providing an insight into rich cultural heritage of Israel through an assorted selection of films.

The festival will introduce to Vietnamese audiences some of the best films of Israel, such as Magic Man, Zero Motivation, A Matter of Size, Jellyfish and Five Hours from Paris.

This cinematographic journey will help connect the two nations’ citizens as well as boost Vietnamese people’s understanding of Israeli perse cultures, traditions and identities, the Ambassador said.

The festival is taking place from February 23^rd – 27^th at the National Cinema Centre (87 Lang Ha Str.) in Hanoi and from March 2^nd – 6^th at BHD Star Cineplex ICON68 (2 Hai Trieu Str.) in HCMC. Tickets are free (Max. 4 tickets/person).

In Hanoi: email to consular@hanoi.mfa.gov.il or call 3843 3141 (ext.516), clearly mention name of the movies, screening date/time and numbers of tickets you want.

In HCMC: directly collect the tickets from 27/2 to 5/3 at Guest Services Counter, BHD Star Cineplex- Floor 3 Bitexco, No. 2 Hai Trieu Str., District 1./.

Magic man: A magical journey of a 78 year old man and his religious Chasidic rapper son to Greece searching for an old magician who saved the father's lives.

Jellyfish: The story of three very different Tel Aviv women whose intersecting stories weave an unlikely portrait of modern Israeli life.

Zero motivation: Three consecutive stories recount the events of an administration office at a remote army base in the Israeli desert.

A matter of size: A comedy about a 'coming out' of a different kind - overweight people learning to love themselves through the Japanese sport of sumo wrestling.

Five hours from Paris: A love story between an Israeli taxi driver and a Russian music teacher in a working-class suburb of Tel Aviv.

Minh Phuong