Before the Sea Forgets

Echoed in a memory-laden house are daily conversations between a mother and her two sons, all seemingly asleep. This autobiographical short, in a hybrid form, chronicles a personal memory from director Le Ngoc Duy's adolescence, using set design and reenactment to reconstruct his childhood home and featuring his mother’s voice as part of the cast.

A high school student ignores his family's financial struggles and falls in love with a girl who rents a room in their house. Overwhelmed by shyness, he can only admire her secretly through his dreams. In a rare moment of courage, he enters her room, only to discover that the issues within his family are far more complex than he had ever imagined. This revelation changes the way he sees his family forever.