Can Vietnamese technology escape the outsourcing problem?

Within the framework of the Vietnamese short film competition - 'Vietnamese 2025', on the afternoon of June 6, the next stop of the cinetour took place at Van Lang University (HCMC). Here, director - producer Ly Hai and 2 visual effects experts shared more about this stage in the filmmaking process through the topic 'Utilizing technology in film production'.

They are Tin Nguyen - a visual effects supervisor who has participated in 30 different films (including Detective Kien: Headless Case, The Price of Happiness... ) and Hoang Long - director, producer, on-site visual effects supervisor of many works (such as Em va Trinh, Thanh soi, Dat rung phuong nam... ).

Commenting on the general situation, Dr. Vo Van Tuan - Permanent Vice Principal, Head of the Faculty of Public Relations - Communication, Van Lang University shared: "In recent years, the rapid development of digital technology has dramatically changed the way movies are produced, distributed and enjoyed."

The Vietnamese Short Film Competition - Vietnamese 2025 is a clear demonstration of the connection between academia and creative practice, while affirming the role of technology as a powerful support tool, improving the quality and professionalism of artistic works.

Dr. Vo Van Tuan - Permanent Vice President, Head of Public Relations and Communication Department, Van Lang University

As an expert who has directed more than 30 film projects and nearly 20 domestic and foreign animation works, visual effects supervisor Tin Nguyen said that because this stage belongs to post-production, there is little room for creativity, and the most important thing is to adhere to the script and storyboard that have been agreed upon in the previous stage.

VFX supervisor Tin Nguyen believes in the potential of the domestic VFX industry.

PHOTO: NHAT THINH

However, the person in charge of this stage can completely participate in the creation process. During the pre-production stage, they can advise the director on many different options for using special effects, so that they are reasonable in terms of cost and technique while still ensuring the overall direction of the entire work.

Holding the position of on-site visual effects supervisor - a smaller part of visual effects supervisor - guest Hoang Long said that although the job is mainly in post-production, the visual effects person also has to closely follow the film making process. For example, right from the beginning, they have to read the script to know which details can be applied, otherwise when they go to the set, there will be many conflicts.

He emphasized: "Special effects still have to follow the story, based on the script and content from before. No matter how pleasing or wonderful the frame is after applying it, if it is not suitable, the audience will forget it."

On-site visual effects supervisor Hoang Long shared that visual effects should only be used as a supporting tool instead of being too dependent on it.

PHOTO: NHAT THINH

Commenting on the potential in the near future, visual effects supervisor Tin Nguyen said: "The visual effects industry in our country has only developed in recent years. Although it has begun, it is still not unified and professional. Accordingly, in the past decade, when many companies came to process foreign works, this also led to companies mainly serving the domestic film industry." However, according to him, "over time, the processing stage will gradually decrease."

Sharing more about the new technology, Tin Nguyen said: "There are two factors that evaluate the success of applying CGI: image quality and movement. Currently, AI only ensures 60% of image quality (because it cannot create large sizes and sharp images for movies)... so it is only applied for support."

Meanwhile, on-set visual effects supervisor Hoang Long also noted the use of green screen, because emotions only come from truly natural things instead of mechanical, overly technological elements.

With the theme Vietnamese , contestants who are Vietnamese citizens and foreigners living and working legally in Vietnam from 15 years old and above can exploit all topics permitted by the Cinema Law, related to the country and people of Vietnam. Contestants can use works they have created (as a director or screenwriter) within the past 3 years, and have never participated in other competitions or film festivals. In particular, contestants can take advantage of AI software in the process of creating their works.

Right from the preliminary round, short films that meet quality standards will be selected to be published on Thanh Nien Electronic Newspaper thanhnien.vn . After that, 20 short films that make it to the final round will be published on Thanh Nien Newspaper's digital platforms, including the YouTube channel with more than 6 million subscribers.

The contest officially accepts entries from May 23 to July 7, 2025. The award ceremony is scheduled to take place in August at Beta Cinemas Ung Van Khiem (Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City).

See more details here.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/ky-xao-viet-nam-co-thoat-khoi-bai-toan-gia-cong-185250606201118413.htm