Nha Tang

In the year 2001 an artist by the name of Nha Trang filmed a 13 minute video of six Viatnamese fishermen pulling richskaws across the bottom of the Souteast coast of Vietnam. Actors were not hired for this event, actual fisherman participated in this film, the fact that the struggle under water is all real heightens every minute of the film. This film also consist of ambient electronic sounds of flutes and bells.

The unique and weird film symbolizes the hard and difficult lives that the majority of the Vietnam society live . The harsh, task of dragging the rickshaws across the sea bed represents the burden of the past in modenization and as the fisherman come up for air, he only does this bcause he must in order to over come obstacles he faces. Progress underwater is very slow due to the weight of the rickshaw and the friction of the water which could symbolize the Viatnamese people's hard battle to live their lives, progress is being made but at a slow pace. The fisherman's faces still remain calm underwater until they need air this symbolize that these people can live naturally under these harsh conditions until conditions are so bad that they have to take action by push there physical limitations. Then at the end of the film the fishermen are forced to leave the richshaws at the bottom of the ocean and swim together to the surface, which could symbolize the economy and conditions have become so bad that the Viatnamese people cannot survive therefore only means of survival is to immigrate to a more prosperous and fruitful land. This can only be done by working together to over come obsticles like the harsh conditions.

The idea behind this film connects to the subject of the 'enlightenment' through how 'enlightenment' is a combination of ideas used to push boundaries of how people think and progress in evolution. Where the idea of the Vietnamese people, being pushed to there limit of survival under the harsh social and economical conditions are forced to progress in order to survive.

The title 'Towards the complex - For the Courageous, the Curious and the Cowards reflects Nha Trang's intentions because his film explores themes of survival and progress. In order for the Vietnamse people to survive and proegress they needed to be curious in having new ideas of moving to survive, they also needed courage to take action to progress and to be a coward is to never step outside your circle and in not taking a risk in progressing you will not progress and survival will become weak and there will be no evolution.