Vo Dien Gia Huy earns high praise for his portrayal of Nam in Skin of Youth, a performance marked by both physicality and emotional depth. (Photos courtesy of the artist)
Actor Vo Dien Gia Huy has been honoured with the Special Jury Award at the 24th New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF) in New York for his lead role in On Ao Tuoi Tre (Skin of Youth), screened in the festival’s flagship Uncaged section, known for spotlighting bold and transformative Asian cinema.
The North American premiere took place on July 24, 2025, followed by enthusiastic Q&A sessions. The screening drew prolonged applause from both audiences and film professionals. Set in gritty Ho Chi Minh City in the late 1990s, the film tells a turbulent love story between San, a transgender singer, and Nam, an underground boxer on a mission to help her fund gender‑affirming surgery.
Critics have hailed Gia Huy as the “physical soul” of the film.
“Vo Dien Gia Huy brings to life Nam, a figure as fierce as he is desperate, a body like stone but eyes that melt,” and called him the film’s “physical soul”, Asian Movie Pulse praised how he embodied Nam’s fraught emotional core.
Meanwhile, Buttered Popcorn commended the film’s accessibility.
“One of the most accessible Vietnamese films to have hit the international festival circuit in recent years. Gia Huy acts not just with his body but with harrowing emotional interiority”.
Gay City News, often perceptive about LGBTQ+ cinema, wrote: “Although structurally imperfect at times, Skin of Youth carries raw energy that evokes the oppressive rhythms of late‑century Sai Gon - and above all, it rings true.”
Skin of Youth captures a turbulent yet tender romance through visceral punches, blood‑soaked confrontations, and moments of aching gentleness.
Gia Huy, born in 1996 in Tay Ninh and a graduate of HCM City’s Theatre & Cinema University, stunned critics with his theatre‑bred presence and emotional vulnerability. He first gained attention in Thaa Me Con Di (Momma’s Trip, 2019) and has since taken on daring roles in Fanti, Ke An Hon (Soul Eater), and Uoc Minh Cung Bay (Wish We Could Fly).
“Each international festival feels like reliving my first steps in front of the camera… the excitement never fades as I await audiences’ reactions,” Gia Huy said.
“I can only say I’m grateful to every opportunity and to everyone who believes in me,” he added.
Following Skin of Youth, he is set to appear in the upcoming film Tu Chien Tren Khong (Death Battle in the Sky), slated for release around Vietnam’s National Day holiday on September 2./.
