Merited Artist Nguyễn Thị Đức Hoàn (1937 - 2003) was a Vietnamese film director, screenwriter and actress. One of the very first female directors in Vietnamese cinema, and the second after Bạch Diệp to garner significant commercial and critical success, she was initially discovered by Phạm Trọng Quỳ at the age of 17 while working as a Chinese interpreter. Advised by the veteran cinematographer to go into acting, she took up a training course at the National Theatre under the guidance of Soviet director Anatoly Vasiliev and later joined the Studio as a voice actor specialising in foreign movies dubs. In 1961, she was chosen for the role of Mị in "Vợ chồng A Phủ" by director Mai Lộc. The performance earned her a Silver Lotus Award at 2nd Vietnam Film Festival in 1973, and the success of "Vợ chồng A Phủ" catapulted her into the limelight. The actress continued to be the top-billed star in other critically acclaimed hits of the 60s, "Đi bước nữa" (1963) and "Bình minh trên rẻo cao"(1966). At the height of her acting career, in 1967 Đức Hoàn left for Russia to study film directing at Moscow State University; she transitioned to directing and scriptwriting full-time upon her return to Vietnam. She was renowned for her meticulous, realist directorial approach which emphasises the collaboration of actors in the creative process and champions more naturalistic dialogues. Her works often deal with the matter of guilt, betrayals, and the clash between desires versus the real world. She passed away on April 2, 2003 in Hanoi, at the age of 66.
