Past screening

Mai Khoi and the Dissidents

Directed by: Joe Piscatella
Runtime: 1hr 10min Year: 2019
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Details

Directed by: Joe Piscatella
Runtime: 1hr 10min Year: 2019
Country: United States
Topics: Music
Last Screened: Fri 30th Oct 2020

An intimate and inspiring portrait of Vietnamese protest singer Mai Khoi, who gave up her place in the limelight to fight for freedom of speech, human rights and democracy in Vietnam.

Singer/songwriter Mai Khoi became a pop sensation with her smash hit Vietnam, a patriotic ode to her home country, which propelled her into the limelight – and the favour of the Communist Party and state-run media. But when she begins to resist government censorship and speak out about human rights issues in the country, she soon falls out of favour with the authorities and becomes the inspiring voice of dissent for a generation, forming her provocative underground band, ‘Mai Khoi and the Dissidents‘.

Director Joe Piscatella’s intimate film follows the protest singer who gave up fame and fortune to fight for freedom of speech, human rights and democracy in Vietnam. Banned from performing, under constant surveillance, even taking to safe houses to evade threat of arrest, Mai Khoi refuses to be silenced.