The Vietnamese with Kenneth Nguyen

In this episode, Kenneth sits down with Czech-Vietnamese filmmaker Duzan Duong to explore the creative and personal journey behind his debut feature film, Summer School 2001 — a project that took 8 years to make and 6 years to write.We discuss what it takes to navigate European film financing structures, how he approached casting and directing actors, and where the emotional core of the film came from. Duzan opens up about the personal and cultural themes that shaped the story, and gives us a glimpse into what’s next on his creative horizon.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Many of you still have the chance to record and preserve the legacies of your own families. I’ve sat with families now for interview sessions to record the rich histories of parents and explore the lives of the generations that preceded them. Don’t let your family stories go untold! Take a moment to reach out and together we will bring out your family’s story on a recorded journey. - Kenneth NguyenVisit vietnamstorybank.com today for more information!Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vietnamese-with-kenneth-nguyen/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In this episode, Kenneth sits down with Eric Nong, the Artistic Director of the Viet Film Fest, to explore this year’s film selections and the evolving landscape of Vietnamese cinema. From the exciting rise of animated Vietnamese films to the behind-the-scenes process of how films are chosen, the conversation also touches on how AI might shape the future of curation and storytelling in film. Eric also discusses what kinds of films are selected this year. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Many of you still have the chance to record and preserve the legacies of your own families. I’ve sat with families now for interview sessions to record the rich histories of parents and explore the lives of the generations that preceded them. Don’t let your family stories go untold! Take a moment to reach out and together we will bring out your family’s story on a recorded journey. - Kenneth NguyenVisit vietnamstorybank.com today for more information!Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vietnamese-with-kenneth-nguyen/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In this episode of the Vietnamese podcast, we’re joined by Karen Tran Wood, a seasoned entertainment marketing and publicity executive with over a decade of experience leading award-winning campaigns across film, television, and lifestyle brands.As Head of Entertainment Marketing & Publicity at IW Group, Karen oversees a division dedicated to crafting integrated, culturally resonant campaigns that connect with today’s diverse audiences. Her client portfolio includes major names like Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Lionsgate, Universal Pictures, The Walt Disney Company, and Warner Bros. She has led standout campaigns for Barbie, Avatar: The Way of Water, Shōgun, The Cleaning Lady, Moana 2, and Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning.In our conversation, Karen shares what it takes to build inclusive, high-impact marketing strategies in today’s Hollywood—and why multicultural audiences, especially Vietnamese Americans, deserve greater attention from studios and brands. We also dive into the global future of Vietnamese film and music, how it compares to industries like K-pop, and her thoughts on how AI is reshaping the entertainment landscape and the future of creativity.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Many of you still have the chance to record and preserve the legacies of your own families. I’ve sat with families now for interview sessions to record the rich histories of parents and explore the lives of the generations that preceded them. Don’t let your family stories go untold! Take a moment to reach out and together we will bring out your family’s story on a recorded journey. - Kenneth NguyenVisit vietnamstorybank.com today for more information!Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vietnamese-with-kenneth-nguyen/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In this episode of Viet Origins, Kenneth Nguyen joins Professor John Phan of Columbia University to examine the creation and evolution of chữ Nôm, Vietnam’s early vernacular writing system. Born out of a need to express Vietnamese thought in written form, chữ Nôm emerged as a linguistic innovation that pushed against classical norms. Just as hip hop gave voice to the unheard, chữ Nôm became a medium for cultural expression outside the dominant literary establishment. Is it possible that chữ Nôm was Vietnam’s first form of lyrical resistance? Tune in as we draw connections between past and present, language and liberation.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------John D. Phan is an Associate Professor of Vietnamese Humanities at Columbia University, based in the Department of East Asian Languages & Cultures and the Weatherhead East Asian Institute. He focuses on the linguistic history of Vietnam and its cultural context.His first book, The Lost Tongues of the Red River: Annamese Middle Chinese & the Origins of the Vietnamese Language, published in April 2025 by Harvard University Press, posits the existence of a regional dialect of Middle Chinese once spoken in northern Vietnam (the Red River Delta) and explores how this dialect influenced the emergence of VietnamesePhan completed his M.A. at Columbia University (on Ming‑Qing vernacular fiction, 2005) and earned his Ph.D. from Cornell (on Sino‑Vietnamese language contact, 2012). His scholarship examines the evolution of writing systems, vernacular literary forms (like chữ Nôm), and the social-political implications of multilingualism in East Asia--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Many of you still have the chance to record and preserve the legacies of your own families. I’ve sat with families now for interview sessions to record the rich histories of parents and explore the lives of the generations that preceded them. Don’t let your family stories go untold! Take a moment to reach out and together we will bring out your family’s story on a recorded journey. - Kenneth NguyenVisit vietnamstorybank.com today for more information.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vietnamese-with-kenneth-nguyen/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

If you joined us last time for the episode "Did Chinese Writing "Civilize" Vietnam?" we are here to answer your questions on this AMA based on the questions we got from the podcast sub series so far. We had quite a conversation with Professor John Phan from Columbia University about the evolution of the Vietnamese language. We dove deep into its fascinating history, from its roots and the long influence of Chinese culture, to the creation of the modern writing system and its unique place in Southeast Asian linguistic history.We're doing another follow up round of Ask Me Anything (AMA) episode! we’ve gathered some of the most thoughtful questions from our last episode from the listeners, and I’m excited to dive deeper into the topics we touched on in the last episode, clarify some points, and explore a few new ideas that came up after the show.-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------John D. Phan is an Associate Professor of Vietnamese Humanities at Columbia University, based in the Department of East Asian Languages & Cultures and the Weatherhead East Asian Institute. He focuses on the linguistic history of Vietnam and its cultural context.His first book, The Lost Tongues of the Red River: Annamese Middle Chinese & the Origins of the Vietnamese Language, published in April 2025 by Harvard University Press, posits the existence of a regional dialect of Middle Chinese once spoken in northern Vietnam (the Red River Delta) and explores how this dialect influenced the emergence of VietnamesePhan completed his M.A. at Columbia University (on Ming‑Qing vernacular fiction, 2005) and earned his Ph.D. from Cornell (on Sino‑Vietnamese language contact, 2012). His scholarship examines the evolution of writing systems, vernacular literary forms (like chữ Nôm), and the social-political implications of multilingualism in East Asia--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Many of you still have the chance to record and preserve the legacies of your own families. I’ve sat with families now for interview sessions to record the rich histories of parents and explore the lives of the generations that preceded them. Don’t let your family stories go untold! Take a moment to reach out and together we will bring out your family’s story on a recorded journey. - Kenneth NguyenVisit vietnamstorybank.com today for more information.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vietnamese-with-kenneth-nguyen/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In this episode of Viet History Makers, we sit with Professor Kevin Pham to explore the remarkable life and legacy of Trần Đức Thảo, who we can describe as Vietnam’s earliest intellectual export. A philosopher trained in France, Thảo studied alongside some of the 20th century’s most influential European thinkers, including Jean-Paul Sartre and Maurice Merleau-Ponty. Yet his journey was not one of mere academic exchange—he carried philosophy across continents, weaving together European phenomenology with Marxist theory, and later returning to Vietnam to shape debates on culture, ideology, and national identity.We discuss his rise from colonial Vietnam to the Parisian intellectual scene, his groundbreaking work in philosophy of consciousness and language, and the difficult political turns his career took as he navigated the complexities of intellectual life under colonial rule, revolution, and socialism. Along the way, we ask: what does it mean for Vietnam to have produced a global thinker in the midst of colonial struggle? And how should we understand the contributions and contradictions of a man who bridged East and West, philosophy and politics?This episode sheds light on a figure too often overlooked, placing Trần Đức Thảo back into the story of global intellectual history.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Kevin D. Pham is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Amsterdam. His research introduces Vietnamese political thought to the academic field of political theory, showing how Vietnamese thinkers challenge and enhance conventional Western understandings of important political concepts.He co-hosts Nam Phong Dialogues, a podcast in which he and Yen Vu have casual chats about Vietnamese history and being Vietnamese American. He is the author of The Architects of Dignity: Vietnamese Visions of Decolonization (Oxford University Press, 2024).Kevindoanpham.com--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Many of you still have the chance to record and preserve the legacies of your own families. I’ve sat with families now for interview sessions to record the rich histories of parents and explore the lives of the generations that preceded them. Don’t let your family stories go untold! Take a moment to reach out and together we will bring out your family’s story on a recorded journey. - Kenneth NguyenVisit vietnamstorybank.com today for more information.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vietnamese-with-kenneth-nguyen/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We sit down with siblings Han and Holden Nguyen, finalists from The Amazing Race Season 37. They open up about their journey to the show, including the audition process that first brought them into the spotlight.We dive into their unique sibling dynamic—how competing side by side strengthened their relationship, but also tested it under the pressures of racing around the world. Han and Holden also reflect on just how close they came to winning it all, sharing the emotional highs and near-misses along the way.Finally, they reveal the deeper reasons behind why they decided to join The Amazing Race, offering insights into what motivated them and what the experience ultimately meant for their family and their future.Instagram: @teamasianswag@hanbnguyen@hole.den- - - - - - -- - - - - - - - -Many of you still have the chance to record and preserve the legacies of your own families. I’ve just begun to sit with families now for interview sessions to record the rich histories of parents and explore the lives of the generations that preceded them. Don’t let your family stories go untold! Take a moment to reach out and together we will bring out your family’s story on a recorded journey. - Kenneth NguyenVisit vietnamstorybank.com today for more information.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vietnamese-with-kenneth-nguyen/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Kenneth Nguyen sits down with Hanh Nguyen, Executive Editor of Salon.com, to talk about Vietnam’s cultural rivalry with Korea, the power of K-pop and Korean dramas, and what defines meaningful culture. They also get into F1 the Movie, Brad Pitt as the ultimate leading man, and why Vietnam still lacks a star of that stature.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Many of you still have the chance to record and preserve the legacies of your own families. I’ve sat with families now for interview sessions to record the rich histories of parents and explore the lives of the generations that preceded them. Don’t let your family stories go untold! Take a moment to reach out and together we will bring out your family’s story on a recorded journey. - Kenneth NguyenVisit vietnamstorybank.com today for more information.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vietnamese-with-kenneth-nguyen/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In this conversation with Professor John Phan, an Associate Professor of Vietnamese Humanities at Columbia University, listeners dive into the fascinating evolution of the Vietnamese language. Phan examines its intricate relationship with Chinese influences and dispels the myth that Vietnamese originated from Chinese roots. He elaborates on the development of Vietnamese writing and its cultural significance, along with the impact of technology on language and identity. The discussion brilliantly intertwines historical context with modern cultural expressions in Vietnam.

Chris Tran from Little Saigon Official discusses the pressing issue of toxic masculinity in the Vietnamese community. He shares insights on how traditional masculinity pressures men and affects family dynamics. Chris highlights the need for empathy and unlearning harmful behaviors to foster better relationships. They also delve into cultural challenges men face, reflecting on language's role in shaping gender dynamics. This conversation aims to spark dialogue and encourage a healthier, more inclusive understanding of masculinity.