A still from Memoryland by Bui Kim Quy (Photo: VNA)

Charge d’affaires of the Embassy of Vietnam in Germany Dang Chung Thuy was among the audience at its premiere at the Berlinale on Monday.
Memoryland opens with the death of a mother. Although her heartbeat stops, her consciousness continues worrying about her son and blessing him. Her neighbour digs a grave near the house in the field for her, but the son insists on cremation. Because he does not receive much in the way of inheritance, he must be careful budgeting the funeral.
In this year’s Berlinale, the 99-minute film is vying in the “Forum” category. There will be five screenings of the film at five different movie theatres in Berlin from now until this Saturday. 
After Berlinale, “Memoryland” will compete at Doc Fortnight, an annual international festival for nonfiction films, in New York, the US at the end of this month. 
Founded in 1951, Berlinale is one of the three oldest and most prestigious international film festivals in the world, along with France's Cannes Film Festival and Italy's Venice Film Festival. It is attended by more than 250 films by 69 countries and territories this year.