duc ngo ngoc
DIRECTOR/Writer
The Vietnamese-German director & writer Duc Ngo Ngoc was born in Hanoi and later moved to Berlin as the son of GDR contract workers.
In award-winning films such as “Fruit & Vegetables,” “Farewell Halong” and “Trading Happiness,” he processes his personal experiences of migration and presents his perspective on the issue. "Trading Happiness" was nominated for the FIRST STEPS Award in 2020 in three categories and won the Audience Award at the Max Ophüls Preis film festival in Saarbrücken in the same year.
Ngo Ngoc completed his bachelor’s degree in media design/media art at the Bauhaus University Weimar. As part of his master's degree in film directing at the Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF, he studied for a semester at the Hanoi Academy of Theatre and Cinema.
Triggered by the lack of diversity in the film business, Ngo Ngoc founded the documentary-based workshop "Dreh's Um" for Vietnamese-German youth. For his intercultural media work he was awarded with the Dieter Baacke Prize 2022.
His passion for documentary film also influences his approach on fictional sets. He enjoys working with amateur actors and loves to play with hybrid formats, especially when developing scripts and rehearsing with actors. Ngo Ngoc is particularly interested in merging comedic elements with tragic tones to reach large audiences. In addition to cinema, he therefore worked on Grimme Award nominated series such as "Wir" and "Echt " in 2021 and 2022.
Recently, he wrote and directed an episode of the six-part drama series "Made in Germany," which tells the stories of a group of friends who grew up in Berlin in the second generation. Together, they face challenges in establishing their roles in society, chasing individual aspirations, contemplating their identities, and confronting life's profound questions.
Duc Ngo Ngoc is represented by Patricia Barona.
made in germany
COMING UP
made in germany
Duc Ngo Ngoc’s latest project, the six-part series "Made in Germany," produced by Studio Zentral and photographed by Meret Madörin, premiered at the 45th Max Ophüls Prize Film Festival in 2024 and and can now be seen in the ARD Mediathek.
HA-Neu - Berlin (WT)
Duc Ngo Ngoc’s feature film “Ha-Neu - Berlin” produced by ostlicht Filmproduktion has received script funding from Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung. Shooting is planned for 2025.
LOGLINE:
Law student Nam (29) harbors good intentions when he extends a helping hand to Viet (26) on his illicit journey from Vietnam through Germany en route to Britain. Intent on assisting, Nam's benevolence takes a dark turn when Viet is discovered lifeless in the back of a truck. Now, Nam must confront the repercussions as he faces Viet's grieving family, the authorities, and the weight of his own conscience.
VARIA
DREH’S UM - Filmworkshop
2020 gründete ich »DREH’S UM«, einen künstlerisch-sozialen Filmworkshop. Vietdeutsche Jugendliche im Alter zwischen 14 und
24 Jahren werden über den Zeitraum von einem Jahr durch sämtliche Produktionsschritte des Filmemachens geführt und professionell begleitet.
Es geht einerseits ums Filmedrehen und andererseits darum, sich der eigenen Perspektive zu ermächtigen, die Kamera selbst in die Hand zu nehmen, sie im übertragenen Sinne auf sich selbst zu richten – weg vom weißen, oft stereotypischen Blick auf unsere Community.
Die Jugendlichen richten den Blick auf ihre eigenen Familien- und Freundeskreise und gestalten so persönliche und einzigartige Kurzfilme.
Contribution by Duc Ngo Ngoc