The Beginning
A few days before my graduation from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, I came across a
startling image on the internet. This image was of a child who had no arms and was doing her math
homework with her leg. At the bottom of the picture there was a caption, it read, “Pham Thi Thuy Linh,
11…suffering from what is believed to be the effects of the jungle defoliant Agent Orange…” (AP
Photo/Richard Vogel). As you can imagine, this image greatly moved me.
At the time I discovered this photograph, I knew very little as to the details of Agent Orange. This very
picture was inspiration enough to drive me to make a documentary about the innocent victims suffering from
this byproduct of war. I continually did research on this topic, reading history profiles of this chemical agent
as well as stories and facts. During this time, with the help of my parents, I booked a ticket to Vietnam. To
help aid me in my endeavors I wrote a short proposal for friends and relatives which helped me in receiving
just enough aid to turn this vision into a film. Out of curiosity, before I left for Vietnam I took my camera
around and asked people what they knew about Agent Orange. The results only proved that more needed to
be said on this topic – six out of ten people had never even heard of Agent Orange. This lack of knowledge
fueled me even more, as I wanted others to be educated on a problem plaguing my people.
So what exactly is Agent Orange?
Agent Orange was the codename which referred to a herbicide developed by the American military. It was
developed for use primarily in tropical climates, such as is found in many regions of Vietnam. The purpose
of Agent Orange seemed simple enough: to deny an enemy protection in dense terrain through the
defoliation of trees and shrubbery. However, the complications that arose in the wake of this weapon proved
to be far worse than anyone could have possibly imagined. The product Agent Orange was tested first in
Vietnam in the early 1960’s, but brought into wider use during the height of the war (primarily between 1967
and 1968).
Agent Orange was an even mixture of two chemicals, these two chemicals are known as 2,4,D and 2,4,5,
T. The combined product proved to be a lethal tool of war and was mixed with kerosene or diesel fuel to
strengthen its effects. It is estimated that during the Vietnam War, nearly 19 million gallons of Agent Orange
were dispersed in South Vietnam via aircraft, vehicles and sometimes by ground forces (spraying).
The TCDD, or dioxin, found in Agent Orange is thought to be harmful to humans. In laboratory tests on
animals, TCDD was found to have caused a wide variety of diseases, many of which ultimately lead to fatal
complications. TCDD is in fact not found in nature, but rather it is man-made and is an unwanted byproduct
of chemical manufacturing processes. The Agent Orange used in the Vietnam War was later found to be
extremely contaminated with TCCD, resulting in mutations and suffering among those living in the
contaminated areas.
The Trip
On May 17th, 2005, ten days after my college graduation, I headed back to Vietnam for the fifth time in
fourteen years. I did not know what to expect, but I knew that I would gain much out of this experience. Upon
arrival in Vietnam, I headed to the Foreign Affairs Department in Danang in hopes of receiving the necessary
permission papers to begin filming. While the Foreign Affairs Department processed my proposal, I met with
the Vietnamese Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA), which coincidentally happened to be
located in the same city that I spent my childhood in. There I proposed the idea for my documentary and it
was well received by the organization. After they welcomed my proposal, I met with the director of the Agent
Orange Victims Fund to set up an itinerary and schedule for tours of the areas thought to have been most
affected by Agent Orange. Unfortunately my plans were put to a halt by the Foreign Affairs Department in
Danang. They did not have the power to grant me permission to film, so instead they had to send it to the
Foreign Affairs Department in Hanoi and get a signature from their director. After three weeks of waiting, I
finally had the necessary papers in my hand and was ready to begin shooting “Da Cam”.
With the papers in my hand, the next step was to visit VAVA again. They gladly gave me a list of those
families believed to be affected by Agent Orange. I made it a point to visit every family on that list, and what I
learned and found proved to be a life changing experience. Most of the victims I met were suffering from
diseases such as soft-tissue sarcoma, chloracne, respiratory and prostate cancer, spina bifida and other
birth defects, all thought to be attributed to their exposure to Agent Orange. To make things even more
difficult, all of the victims were surviving in very poor living conditions. Even worse was the fact that most of
these kids were never even given a chance to attend school. Though I will remember every family I met
through this enlightening experience, there is one that I still vividly remember to this day. This family
consisted of a widow and her daughter who is believed to be suffering from the effects of exposure to the
contamination resulting from Agent Orange. The widow’s daughter is twenty three years old and suffering
from complications due to the disorder known as spina bifida. This fragile woman burst into tears whenever
I would attempt to film her. She could not speak, but I could tell from her tears that she did not want me to
film her. This heartfelt image will be forever engrained in my mind. Every tear became another reason for me
to capture this tragic story of the innocent people who have been deprived of a normal life.
During the documentary, I met an American Non-Government Organization that provides direct aid to
those in Danang affected by Agent Orange. They organize trips to distribute food and money to the poor and
to Agent Orange victims. I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to go along with them while they
performed these services. For more information about this Non-Government Organization, please visit
Danangquangnamfund.org
The Vision
This issue has been a serious topic of debate between the US and Vietnamese governments during the
past few years. On March 10th, 2005, a U.S. federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed on behalf of some four
million Vietnamese claiming that U.S. chemical companies committed war crimes by making Agent Orange
available for use during the Vietnam War.
It is clear that this film may perhaps have serious political implications, but as a Vietnamese American, I
do not take a side and push away from the political debate between the two countries, both of which I
consider to be my home. Instead, I focus more on the victims and attempt to raise awareness about Agent
Orange. My ideal goal is simple: I would like this film to serve solely as an educational video for all of us.
Because I believe that this issue must receive immediate attention and I have been moved so deeply by that
which I saw, I am using a large portion of my profits to establish a scholarship fund to help the children
affected by Agent Orange to get a chance to receive what every human should have the right to, an education.
A few days before my graduation from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, I came across a
startling image on the internet. This image was of a child who had no arms and was doing her math
homework with her leg. At the bottom of the picture there was a caption, it read, “Pham Thi Thuy Linh,
11…suffering from what is believed to be the effects of the jungle defoliant Agent Orange…” (AP
Photo/Richard Vogel). As you can imagine, this image greatly moved me.
At the time I discovered this photograph, I knew very little as to the details of Agent Orange. This very
picture was inspiration enough to drive me to make a documentary about the innocent victims suffering from
this byproduct of war. I continually did research on this topic, reading history profiles of this chemical agent
as well as stories and facts. During this time, with the help of my parents, I booked a ticket to Vietnam. To
help aid me in my endeavors I wrote a short proposal for friends and relatives which helped me in receiving
just enough aid to turn this vision into a film. Out of curiosity, before I left for Vietnam I took my camera
around and asked people what they knew about Agent Orange. The results only proved that more needed to
be said on this topic – six out of ten people had never even heard of Agent Orange. This lack of knowledge
fueled me even more, as I wanted others to be educated on a problem plaguing my people.
So what exactly is Agent Orange?
Agent Orange was the codename which referred to a herbicide developed by the American military. It was
developed for use primarily in tropical climates, such as is found in many regions of Vietnam. The purpose
of Agent Orange seemed simple enough: to deny an enemy protection in dense terrain through the
defoliation of trees and shrubbery. However, the complications that arose in the wake of this weapon proved
to be far worse than anyone could have possibly imagined. The product Agent Orange was tested first in
Vietnam in the early 1960’s, but brought into wider use during the height of the war (primarily between 1967
and 1968).
Agent Orange was an even mixture of two chemicals, these two chemicals are known as 2,4,D and 2,4,5,
T. The combined product proved to be a lethal tool of war and was mixed with kerosene or diesel fuel to
strengthen its effects. It is estimated that during the Vietnam War, nearly 19 million gallons of Agent Orange
were dispersed in South Vietnam via aircraft, vehicles and sometimes by ground forces (spraying).
The TCDD, or dioxin, found in Agent Orange is thought to be harmful to humans. In laboratory tests on
animals, TCDD was found to have caused a wide variety of diseases, many of which ultimately lead to fatal
complications. TCDD is in fact not found in nature, but rather it is man-made and is an unwanted byproduct
of chemical manufacturing processes. The Agent Orange used in the Vietnam War was later found to be
extremely contaminated with TCCD, resulting in mutations and suffering among those living in the
contaminated areas.
The Trip
On May 17th, 2005, ten days after my college graduation, I headed back to Vietnam for the fifth time in
fourteen years. I did not know what to expect, but I knew that I would gain much out of this experience. Upon
arrival in Vietnam, I headed to the Foreign Affairs Department in Danang in hopes of receiving the necessary
permission papers to begin filming. While the Foreign Affairs Department processed my proposal, I met with
the Vietnamese Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA), which coincidentally happened to be
located in the same city that I spent my childhood in. There I proposed the idea for my documentary and it
was well received by the organization. After they welcomed my proposal, I met with the director of the Agent
Orange Victims Fund to set up an itinerary and schedule for tours of the areas thought to have been most
affected by Agent Orange. Unfortunately my plans were put to a halt by the Foreign Affairs Department in
Danang. They did not have the power to grant me permission to film, so instead they had to send it to the
Foreign Affairs Department in Hanoi and get a signature from their director. After three weeks of waiting, I
finally had the necessary papers in my hand and was ready to begin shooting “Da Cam”.
With the papers in my hand, the next step was to visit VAVA again. They gladly gave me a list of those
families believed to be affected by Agent Orange. I made it a point to visit every family on that list, and what I
learned and found proved to be a life changing experience. Most of the victims I met were suffering from
diseases such as soft-tissue sarcoma, chloracne, respiratory and prostate cancer, spina bifida and other
birth defects, all thought to be attributed to their exposure to Agent Orange. To make things even more
difficult, all of the victims were surviving in very poor living conditions. Even worse was the fact that most of
these kids were never even given a chance to attend school. Though I will remember every family I met
through this enlightening experience, there is one that I still vividly remember to this day. This family
consisted of a widow and her daughter who is believed to be suffering from the effects of exposure to the
contamination resulting from Agent Orange. The widow’s daughter is twenty three years old and suffering
from complications due to the disorder known as spina bifida. This fragile woman burst into tears whenever
I would attempt to film her. She could not speak, but I could tell from her tears that she did not want me to
film her. This heartfelt image will be forever engrained in my mind. Every tear became another reason for me
to capture this tragic story of the innocent people who have been deprived of a normal life.
During the documentary, I met an American Non-Government Organization that provides direct aid to
those in Danang affected by Agent Orange. They organize trips to distribute food and money to the poor and
to Agent Orange victims. I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to go along with them while they
performed these services. For more information about this Non-Government Organization, please visit
Danangquangnamfund.org
The Vision
This issue has been a serious topic of debate between the US and Vietnamese governments during the
past few years. On March 10th, 2005, a U.S. federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed on behalf of some four
million Vietnamese claiming that U.S. chemical companies committed war crimes by making Agent Orange
available for use during the Vietnam War.
It is clear that this film may perhaps have serious political implications, but as a Vietnamese American, I
do not take a side and push away from the political debate between the two countries, both of which I
consider to be my home. Instead, I focus more on the victims and attempt to raise awareness about Agent
Orange. My ideal goal is simple: I would like this film to serve solely as an educational video for all of us.
Because I believe that this issue must receive immediate attention and I have been moved so deeply by that
which I saw, I am using a large portion of my profits to establish a scholarship fund to help the children
affected by Agent Orange to get a chance to receive what every human should have the right to, an education.