“Y Vân: The Lost Sounds of Saigon” is a documentary feature directed by Khoa Hà and Victor Velle, produced by Douglas Emerson, and backed by The Pink Cloud LLC. Completed in July 2025 with a runtime of 93 minutes, the project is a US production filmed in both English and Vietnamese, blending elements of music, history, biography, and personal documentary.
Y Vân: The Lost Sounds of Saigon review is part of the Submit Your Film Initiative
The documentary follows Khoa Ha, who embarks on a journey to recover her late grandfather’s lost musical recordings, gradually uncovering hidden family stories and a largely forgotten cultural history. At the center of the narrative is Y Vân, a legendary composer whose music defined the golden age of Saigon, filling radio waves and dance halls with melodies that spoke of love, resilience, and identity. However, following the fall of Saigon in 1975, much of his work was silenced, scattered, or lost, leaving behind a fragmented legacy.
The presentation is quite intriguing. The movie begins with animation, proceeds with a surrealist desert sequence, moves into the opening titles, and then implements a cinematic collage, where various elements are presented through the pages of an album, while the director’s narration explains what appears on screen. In that regard, her story starts with the story of her parents and their extended family, before grounding itself in her own life as a beautician and the beginning of her research on her grandfather, Y Vân.
The research eventually takes her to Vietnam, where the presentation initially unfolds like a music video, although it soon becomes more grounded. The combination of various cinematic elements continues, however, as does the music. The documentary also tracks the history of Vietnamese music through discussions with experts and musicians, as well as visits to record shops and music cafes, with a number of discoveries regarding her grandfather emerging particularly from the latter. The American influence during the 1970s becomes a particularly interesting aspect, while the almost constant music complements what is being discussed on screen in the best way. At the same time, the discussions with people who knew him, including his daughter, shed significant light on Y Vân as a person, including his relationship with his mother and his two wives, along with his overall persona. Lastly, Khoa Ha’s effort to reintroduce her grandfather to the world and continue his legacy, concludes the narrative in the best fashion.
There is an intense focus on Khoa’s hands, with her intricately painted nails and tattoos becoming a visual centerpiece, particularly in the beginning of the film. Additionally, the interviews conducted with various people familiar with the artist and his legacy further enrich the narrative. The portrayal of Vietnam, and particularly Saigon, is also quite impressive, including panoramic views, multiple frames within frames, and a combination of current and archival footage. The drone shots of the train, along with the interplay between sea and forest, are also particularly memorable. Overall, Jake L. Mitchell’s cinematography is of a very high level, with the quality of the images highlighting the work done in post-production, especially in color grading.
Still, the strongest asset of the production is undoubtedly the editing by Benjamin Shearn, who brings together the different aspects of the documentary with a fittingly fast pace, giving it a constant sense of motion that is also dictated by the rhythm of the music.
One could argue that there is a promotional aspect, as the documentary frequently functions as a guide to the beauty of Vietnam, while the director herself appears quite often on screen. Apart from this, however, “Y Vân: The Lost Sounds of Saigon” emerges as an excellent documentary, filled with emotion and nostalgia, one that highlights a little-known aspect of history, while also standing out as a work that will appeal particularly to music enthusiasts.
