A scene in Ciel Rouge

 The film tells the story of Philippe, a French soldier committed to pacifying an unfamiliar country made up of dense forests and rugged mountains. His ideals collapse when he is forced to torture and kill a young Vietnamese woman, named Thi, who is fighting for national independence. Unlike previous French films about the war in Vietnam such as ‘L’Amant’, ‘Dien Bien Phu’ and ‘Indochine’, Vietnam’s natural landscape is a major theme in Ciel Rouge and the war is only a background to the love story between the two main characters.

Audrey Giacomini, French actress of Vietnamese origin, stars in the film directed by César winner Olivier Lorelle. Ciel Rouge’s filming locations included Ba Be Lake in Bac Kan province and the rocky mountains of Ha Giang province.

Director Oliver Lorelle said: “25 years after Indochine, there is another French movie being screened in Vietnam. It’s great to screen authentic shots of Vietnam. Normally films about war in Vietnam are filmed in the south. I chose the northern mountains because they are not as well-known.”

Olivier said Mathieu Ripka, who has a profound knowledge of Vietnam, persuaded the production team to come to Vietnam. They had many authentic shots of Vietnam’s landscape and ethnic groups. Ciel Rouge was filmed in Vietnam in a month, but the production team spent several months prior to that surveying the sites and local life.