Reel Citrus, an L.A.-based distributor of Asian and diaspora films, will release Summer School, 2001, the debut feature by writer-director Dužan Duong, in limited U.S. theatrical release on December 11 at Cinemark cinemas, followed by an Amazon streaming premiere on December 18.
The film, billed as the "first Czech-Vietnamese feature film," opens a week before Dune 3 and Avengers: Doomsday. Reel Citrus acquired North American rights across all media plus worldwide streaming rights from AZN kru.
Summer School, 2001 follows 17-year-old Kien, who returns to his family's market stall in Cheb, a small town on the Czech border, after spending 10 years in Vietnam. The film is in Vietnamese and Czech with English subtitles.
After its world premiere at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, the movie drew more than 20,000 moviegoers during its run in Czech cinemas. At the Czech Lion Awards, it won best screenplay for Duong, Jan Smutný and Lukáš Kokeš, plus best supporting actor for Dũng Nguyễn, the first Vietnamese actor to win a Czech Lion. The Czech Film Critics' Awards named it best screenplay and Discovery of the Year.
At Viet Film Fest, the film won the Bronze Drum Award for best feature film, best actor for Tô Tiến Tài, and the Audience Choice Award for best feature.
Reel Citrus targeted theaters in areas with large Vietnamese American populations, including Southern California, the Bay Area, Houston, Dallas, Seattle, Las Vegas, and the Washington D.C. area. Additional locations include Chicago, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Central Texas, where Czech, Polish, and Central European communities are strong. Reel Citrus founder Brittany Tran said the company releases films "in person, one community at a time."
Duong told The Hollywood Reporter: "Vietnamese families have been part of Czech life for decades, but our stories rarely reach the screen. I made this film for my community in Cheb and for every family that has had to find its way back to each other."