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| Musician Cao Dinh Thang - Music Director of the film “Red Rain” |
Musician Cao Dinh Thang recently shared with Hue Today Weekly an engaging conversation about his unforgettable journey with “Red Rain”, where he served as the film’s Music Director and composer.
2025 left many deep impressions for “Red Rain”. As the film’s music director, what would you say about these achievements?
As both the music director and a composer, I accompanied the film from its earliest conceptual stage until its release. Every phase of the production brought different emotions. The stories and memories during the filmmaking process inspired and motivated me to develop new ideas, plans, and creative projects.
While watching a film, audiences may rarely realize the role of a music director. How important is this role to the success of a film?
From a professional perspective, the music director is responsible for all aspects related to a film’s music. If the film director is the chief architect who creates the overall masterpiece, then the music director can be seen as the artist who colors that structure, allowing audiences to feel the atmosphere and emotions of the film.
A film music director must share the same artistic vision and understanding with the director and other production teams, while also shaping the musical identity and the spirit that the film can convey. As both the music director and the composer, I devoted time and passion to refining every frame, always striving to help audiences feel as closely as possible the emotions that “Red Rain” was meant to convey.
The music in “Red Rain” touched audiences on the deepest layers of emotion. In your opinion, what created this success?
I memorized the film’s script and also read “Red Rain”, the novel by writer Chu Lai. As a lecturer serving in a military environment, I was fortunate to meet historical witnesses and listen to real-life stories. In particular, my maternal hometown is located not far from the site of the battle to defend the Quang Tri Ancient Citadel. Since childhood, I heard my grandmother and relatives recounted stories about this heroic chapter of history. Together with my love for the nation and the Fatherland, all of those experiences enabled me to compose musical themes that carried the breath and spirit of “Red Rain”. I believe that music in each frame of the film will live its own life, evoking emotions that help audiences imagine and understand an era with great people of the nation - the heroes who were “determined to die for the Fatherland to live”.
Was “Red Rain” the first film in which you took on the role of music director?
During my studies at the P.I. Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory, I had opportunities to compose music for art films produced by directors, who I was acquainted with in Russia. At the same time, my professor was also one of the world’s renowned film composers. I was fortunate to be guided by him not only in professional expertise, but also in working skills, including film scoring. “Red Rain” is the largest-scale feature film I have ever had the chance to work on.
As a young musician entrusted with such an enormous historical film project like “Red Rain”, you must have faced considerable pressure. Mustn’t you?
I was first introduced to “Red Rain” in early autumn 2024. By late summer 2025, I and the artists and lecturers of the Military University of Culture and Arts had completed all stages of the music production and proceeded to integrate the final product with the other teams. The process of producing music for the film brought many fascinating experiences, not only for myself but also for many other teams in the production.
When I was assigned the task, I felt both surprised and deeply excited. It was a tremendous honor and source of pride for me as a musician, an educator, and a soldier to contribute to the mission of preserving, building, and promoting the nation’s culture and history that our forebears built with their blood and sacrifice.
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| Musician Cao Dinh Thang (8th from the right) and the film crew at the premiere of “Red Rain” |
Many adults may worry that young people are losing interest in history. Yet why has “Red Rain” - a challenging historical topic - captured the hearts of young audiences?
As a university lecturer, I regularly interact with young people both within and outside the military environment. Through many years of working and teaching, I can confidently say that the younger generation of our country still remembers, and will always remember history with deep reverence for the sacred values built by previous generations. “Red Rain” has contributed to educating not only younger generation, as the film has gone far beyond what was initially expected. With a passionate patriotism and pride in the values of the Fatherland and the nation, I believe that there will be many more works created by young generations to honor the country in the future.
From Hue to Russia for your studies, and then achieving success, you must have had many opportunities as a young musician. Why did you choose to return and serve the Fatherland within the military environment?
My family has a military tradition. During my years studying in Russia, I always reminded myself to complete my studies and training to the best of my ability so that I could return home to serve the Fatherland and the military, a place I have always considered my home, a place where I am proud to be an Uncle Ho’s Soldier.
After “Red Rain”, you must have new plans and aspirations, especially for Hue - a place is expected to become a major filming destination, not just for Vietnam?
As a son of Hue, I have always wished to create projects and artistic works that honor our culture and traditions. The land of Thuan Hoa - Phu Xuan possesses a unique beauty shaped by the convergence of many cultures, providing rich artistic material for myself and other artists to explore. I always hope that more projects and works carrying the cultural identity of Hue will soon be realized, bringing Hue even closer to the public.
Thank you for sharing with us!