On September 30, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism selected the film "Red Rain" by director Dang Thai Huyen as the representative of Vietnamese cinema to submit a preliminary list for the Best International Film category at the 98th Oscar.
On November 21, the American Academy of Motion picture Sciences and Arts (AMPAS) officially announced the list of films eligible to compete in three categories: animated film, Documentary film and Best International Film.
In the list of 86 candidates for the International Film category this year, "Red Rain" is present along with many representatives of Southeast Asia such as "Stranger Eyes" (Singapore), "Magellan" (Philippines), "Pavane for an Infant" (Malaysia) or "Sore: A Wife from the Future" (Indonesia).
In the next stage, "Red Rain" will have to " contend" with the remaining 85 works to win a position in the top 15 best films. The shortlist will be voted on by Academy members. To participate in the vote in this category, members must ensure that they have watched the full number of films as prescribed.
The preliminary round of voting will take place from December 8 to 12, before AMPAS announces the shortlist on December 16. The official nominations for Oscar 2026 will be announced on January 22, 2026.
The 98th Oscar Awards will take place on March 15, 2026 at the Dolby Theater ( Los Angeles, USA), broadcast live on ABC and more than 200 countries and territories.
The presence of "Red Rain" in the preliminary round opens up expectations that a war-themed film produced by Vietnam can go deep in the world's most prestigious film arena.
"Red Rain" recreates the 81 days and nights war to protect the ancient citadel of Quang Tri in 1972, The film recreates the fierce battle with very life-long slices: youth sent back on the burning Thach Han River, soldiers made of skin and meat with fear, courage and faith in a day of peace.
Red Rain is the result of 10 years of preparation, production and post-production in 3 years, with the participation of more than 1,000 mass actors to get the most realistic, most historical footage, close to the harsh reality of war, the film crew had to refer to 400 documentaries and thousands of pages of historical records.
Released in theaters amid the strong public interest, Red Rain quickly set a series of box office records.
After a month of release, the film attracted more than 8.1 million viewers, becoming the work with the largest number of viewers in the history of Vietnamese cinema. According to data from Box Office Vietnam, "Red Rain" achieved a revenue of more than 714 billion VND.
