Packaging and digitizing to make traditional art 'attract' young people

On TikTok, YouTube - "viral" traditional arts and heritage

With the online nickname "Tuyet Mai Lay Di", Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai (24 years old) is one of the prominent content creators in spreading traditional culture. She currently has nearly 800,000 followers and 24 million likes on the TikTok platform alone. Her clips introduce easy-to-understand and creative stories and historical figures, helping young audiences love and understand Vietnamese culture in a very unique way. In particular, the Vietnamese costumes that this young girl recreates make Gen Z and fashionistas very excited.

Video introducing the history of Long Khoa Hoc group

PHOTO: SCREENSHOT

Famous for his digital content introducing technology products and explaining scientific issues, another prominent face is Long Khoa Hoc (29 years old) who has recently expanded into the fields of culture, history and traditional arts through the channels Xin Chao Vietnam and Hanh Trinh di hanh. Through these channels, Long and his team want to tell stories about Vietnamese culture, cuisine and people in modern digital language, arousing patriotism and preserving traditional values ​​among young people.

Currently, the Long Khoa Hoc team has "transformed" many topics, figures, characters, historical stories, literary legends, stage arts, folklore and festivals into short videos, with a youthful and humorous style, attracting millions of likes and followers on digital platforms. Similarly, many other young people are also creating cultural content in a unique "remix" form - from livestreaming to impersonating folk characters, to creating podcasts interviewing fictional historical figures...

Bringing Traditional Art to Social Media, From Trend to Strategy

Conquering young audiences is not just a trend, but a strategy to build a loyal audience community for the future. Theaters and cultural and artistic units therefore cannot stand aside.

Meritorious Artist Nguyen Hai Linh, Director of the Vietnam National Music, Dance and Song Theater, shared: "Although it is still in the early stages, we have begun to digitize art programs to store and promote on YouTube and the website."

Folk songs, ancient stories, and traditional festivals are appearing vividly on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube Shorts...

PHOTO: LONG SCIENCE

According to him, in the coming time, the theater will promote digitalization and communication on channels such as TikTok and other social networking platforms - where young people are present in large numbers. He said that the important thing is to research and closely follow the tastes of young audiences, thereby changing the content, form of expression and production model of programs and products accordingly. The theater has also prepared a full team of young staff to carry out this work well.

Meritorious Artist Truong Bac, Deputy Director of the Vietnam National Music and Dance Theater, also said that in order to reach young audiences, especially the Gen Z generation, packaging and digitizing traditional music products is inevitable. "We are implementing a multi-platform communication strategy: releasing trailers, short videos, posting on channels such as Facebook, YouTube, Zalo, combining with the press to spread widely. Behind-the-scenes stories, good performances, and elaborate music products not only help the program reach domestic audiences, but also bring traditional Vietnamese music to the international arena," Meritorious Artist Truong Bac said.

In fact, technology is bringing about clear changes in the preservation and dissemination of traditional arts and cultural heritage in digital space, before the young audience.

When tradition becomes something "wanted to tell", no longer something "must be learned"

A positive sign is that more and more young people are renewing heritage in their own language: from fashion collections inspired by traditional costumes on Instagram, Vlogs exploring craft villages, memes telling fairy tales, to "reaction videos" of folk festivals... What was once considered "innovative" is now an effective bridge between tradition and the young public.

Digitization is not just an archival tool but a new way of storytelling - transforming heritage into a modern, intimate and more accessible experience for young people

PHOTO: SCREENSHOT

Digitalization has helped young people move from a passive role of receiving to an active role of learning, exploring and reflecting. Heritage is no longer something to be "displayed", but has become material for modern creativity and generational connection. AI technology is also applied (for example, restoring ancient singing voices, restoring lost pronunciation and timbre...), thereby bringing cultural experiences through hearing, sight and emotion.

Sharing with Thanh Nien , Long Khoa Hoc group said: "In fact, the project follows the direction of preserving and promoting heritage on a digital platform, so it faces many difficulties: from finding accurate sources of information to how to tell stories that are attractive but still true to their nature. Initially, we focused on views and followers, but after a while, we realized that the true value lies in in-depth content, capable of preserving and evoking national pride. But it is here that we see the needs of young people - they want to learn, want to "flex" with their own cultural and historical knowledge about their homeland. We believe that, if told in the right way, heritage will no longer be old values, but will become a source of vivid inspiration for the new generation."

The digitization of traditional arts and heritage creates compelling visual stories (from costumes, craft villages to contemporary folk songs), showing the trend of spreading creative culture on digital platforms.

PHOTO: SCREENSHOT

Ms. Dang Thi Phuong Thao, Deputy Director of the Press Department, commented: "To spread culture to the new generation, we need quality products, "packaged" with their aesthetics and language."

Ms. Thao also emphasized the accompanying role of the press and the creative community: "Not only reporting news, the press needs to retell the heritage through images, sounds, and emotions - that is the effective way to reach Gen Z."

The encouraging sign is that on TikTok, one of the most popular and active digital platforms among young people, more and more rich content about traditional arts and heritage is appearing.

PHOTO: SCREENSHOT

Digitalization does not mean commercialization or cultural simplification. It is a way of selecting, transforming and spreading traditional values ​​in modern language. When tradition is retold in modern language, it is no longer something "to be learned", but something "to want to hear - to want to tell".

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/dong-goi-va-so-hoa-de-nghe-thuat-truyen-thong-hut-gioi-tre-185250520225346034.htm