The documentary The Peoples of North Vietnam, which explores Réhahn’s work with Vietnam’s ethnic communities, has entered a new phase in its international journey. Following broadcasts on France 5, TV5MONDE, Discovery Asia, SBS Australia and RTP in Portugal, the film is now available on HBO Max in several Asian markets.
Its presence on Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming platform gives the documentary renewed international visibility and extends a journey that began several years ago with fieldwork carried out across Vietnam.
A documentary rooted in years of fieldwork
Directed by Éric Bacos and produced by Ananda Pictures and Ampersand, the film follows Réhahn through the mountainous regions of northern Vietnam.
For many years, the photographer has travelled across the country to meet its different ethnic communities and document their traditional clothing, customs, languages and stories. Over time, this work developed into the Precious Heritage Project and the Precious Heritage Art Gallery Museum in Hoi An.
In the documentary, photography becomes the starting point for a broader journey into the cultural diversity of northern Vietnam. The film follows Réhahn into villages far removed from the country’s major urban centres, meeting communities that continue to preserve elements of their heritage while adapting to the rapid transformations of contemporary Vietnam.
Completed in 2022 under the French title Les Peuples du Nord Vietnam, the documentary runs for approximately 52 minutes.
From France 5 to international distribution
The documentary first found its audience in France and across the French speaking world. France 5 broadcast the film several times, while TV5MONDE introduced it to an international audience through its global network.
The film then began travelling beyond the French speaking market under its English title, The Peoples of North Vietnam, with international distributor Harbour Rights handling sales abroad.
In 2024, the documentary entered a new stage of its international development. Discovery Asia acquired the film for Asian markets, while SBS acquired it for Australia.
These acquisitions led to actual broadcasts rather than simply catalogue listings. Discovery Asia scheduled the documentary several times throughout 2025 and continued to broadcast it in 2026.
In Australia, the film became available through SBS On Demand, with English and Vietnamese subtitles. In August 2025, SBS Vietnamese also produced an editorial feature of almost sixteen minutes devoted to the documentary, Réhahn’s work and the Precious Heritage Project.
The film also continued its journey in Europe. In Portugal, public broadcaster RTP aired it under the title Os Povos do Norte do Vietname.
A new chapter with HBO Max
The documentary’s international journey has now reached another important stage with its presence on HBO Max across several Asian markets.
Official pages for the film have been identified in the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan, Macao, Cambodia, Myanmar and several other territories in the region.
This development follows naturally from the film’s recent distribution history. Discovery Asia and HBO Max are both part of Warner Bros. Discovery. Following the acquisition and broadcast of the documentary by Discovery Asia, its appearance within the HBO Max ecosystem represents a further stage in its international distribution.
The precise date when the film was added to HBO Max has not been publicly announced. Its current presence across several territorial catalogues nevertheless confirms that the documentary is reaching a broader audience through the group’s streaming platforms.
More than 500 million people across the main Asian markets
The geographical scale of this distribution is significant.
The seven major Asian markets where Max launched in November 2024, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan and Hong Kong, have a combined population of more than 540 million people.
This figure does not represent the documentary’s audience, nor does it represent the number of HBO Max subscribers. It does, however, illustrate the scale of the markets in which Warner Bros. Discovery is developing its streaming presence.
That expansion has continued. In June 2026, HBO Max launched in Vietnam, and Warner Bros. Discovery announced that the platform was now available in more than 35 markets across the Asia Pacific region.
From the museum to international screens
The journey of The Peoples of North Vietnam is a natural extension of the Precious Heritage Project.
The project first took shape through travel, encounters and photography. Today, the museum in Hoi An brings together portraits, traditional costumes, objects and personal testimonies connected to the communities Réhahn has met over the years.
The documentary adds another dimension. It captures voices, gestures, journeys and landscapes, allowing these stories to travel far beyond Vietnam.
Several years after its completion, The Peoples of North Vietnam continues to reach new audiences. France 5, TV5MONDE, Discovery Asia, SBS Australia, RTP Portugal and now HBO Max mark the key stages of a journey that has gradually expanded from Europe to Australia and Asia.
For a film that began in the mountains of northern Vietnam, this international expansion gives particular resonance to its original purpose: bringing greater visibility to the cultural diversity of communities whose stories remain largely unknown beyond the country.
