'Positioning' Vietnamese animation on the big screen

OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES IN THE DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY "STORM"

According to the "bosses" in the Vietnamese animation industry (such as Alpha Animation Studio, Sconnect, Sun Media...), in the past 10 years, Vietnamese animation has made great strides with nearly 800 works released, with a production scale of 25-30 films/year, each film lasting less than 30 minutes. Vietnamese animation has contributed 10-15% of the revenue of the entire film industry. In 2023, Wolfoo and the Mysterious Island earned 5 billion VND in theaters, entering the top 3 box office revenue at that time, marking the first Vietnamese animation film to be shown in theaters. The Wolfoo project also released more than 4,000 episodes on social networking platforms, averaging more than 4 billion views per month.

The Aspiration Stream Animation Film Festival is taking place in Hanoi.

PHOTO: SCONNECT VIETNAM

In the wave of strong development of technology and digital content, Vietnamese animation is facing unprecedented breakthrough opportunities. According to Mr. Ta Manh Hoang (General Director of Sconnect Group): "There have been successful domestic animation businesses and products that have affirmed their influence, built their position not only in the Vietnamese market but also reached out internationally, becoming a bright spot in our country's creative industry. In addition, support from investment funds and policies to encourage the development of the state's cultural industry also create favorable conditions for domestic animation projects to develop more strongly in the digital age".

However, the difficulties and challenges of Vietnamese animation are not few, as director Dang Hai Quang (DeeDee Animation Studio) said: "One of the biggest difficulties of producing animation in Vietnam is the limited budget, which limits the ability to invest in technology and human resources. Unlike live-action films, producing high-quality animation requires advanced technology, along with a longer and more complicated process, from coming up with ideas to building characters, settings, and animating every detail."

Speaking more about this, Mr. Ta Manh Hoang emphasized: "The process of producing animated films requires a long time and high cost, especially for large-scale and high-quality projects. Creating an animated film is a series of elaborate stages from script building, character design, voice acting to post-production, all of which require careful investment in financial resources and human resources."

PHOTO: SCONNECT VIETNAM

Wolfoo and the Mysterious Island is the first Vietnamese animated film to hit theaters.

PHOTO: SCONNECT VIETNAM

TO HAVE MORE VIETNAMESE ANIMATED FILMS SHOWN IN THEATERS

Despite the boom, Vietnamese animated films are rarely released in theaters. According to Mr. Ta Manh Hoang, to produce a Vietnamese animated film for theatrical release, the requirements in terms of budget, human resources and time are significantly greater than making short film series for online platforms. A theatrical film needs a large investment to achieve image, sound and special effects quality that can meet the standards of the big screen. This budget can be up to a minimum of 3 million USD, especially if using modern technology or complex effects. In addition, the production team for a 90 - 120 minute animated film needs enough experts in many fields such as scriptwriting, character design, animation, sound processing and visual effects.

According to director - Meritorious Artist Trinh Lam Tung (founder and CEO of Alpha Animation Studio): "It is very difficult to call for investment capital for an animated film, whether state or private capital. The process of producing a film for theatrical release also has many problems that cannot be completed overnight. Besides, although the human resources for the industry have been quite abundant in recent years, high-quality personnel are still not enough and have not met the needs of a large project. Finally, the audience's trust in Vietnamese animation is still more or less unsatisfied. So this vicious cycle has always been a difficult problem to solve for many generations". However, director - Meritorious Artist Trinh Lam Tung also commented: "If we look at it positively, this problem has been and is being solved strongly, and will be solved decisively in the coming time".

PHOTO: SCONNECT VIETNAM

Young production team of Vietnamese animation

PHOTO: SCONNECT VIETNAM

Representatives of some animation production units also said that the current demand for animation market is very large, especially for children. Parents want to have more clean, safe,educational animation content. However, when producing animated films for theaters, producers and investors will face a big risk because animated films are mainly produced for children - an audience that has not yet formed the habit of going to the theater, this requires the industry to make efforts to change the content access habits of young audiences and families, opening up the potential for domestic theatrical animation. An advantage is that Vietnam has many materials to exploit into familiar, unique and attractive stories from a rich treasure of folk culture.

To have more Vietnamese animated films shown in theaters, "There needs to be close coordination between private and state units and companies. In particular, the state plays an important role in creating financial support mechanisms, encouraging investment, providing financial policies to support creative businesses and digital content creators. At the same time, support in connecting with international organizations and organizing animation festivals and professional seminars are also essential activities to help improve the quality of the animation industry. Private companies also need to innovate, research the market, train high-quality human resources, and apply advanced technologies to optimize production costs and improve quality," said Mr. Ta Manh Hoang.

Currently, Sconnect is collaborating with Sun Media to implement the project Matt, Not Again - The Adventures of Genius Boy Matt . Sconnect and Alpha Studio are also preparing to produce 3 animated film projects for theatrical release titled: Taurus Legend, Wolfoo and the Three Realms Race and " Blank Blank Ceramic Warrior " scheduled for theatrical release in 2025. (continued)

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/dinh-vi-phim-hoat-hinh-viet-tren-man-anh-rong-185241117204517909.htm