The soft power of culture

It is undeniable that Vietnamese culture has recently had many positive signals, spreading widely and touching the emotions of the public at home and abroad.

Young artists such as Hoang Thuy Linh, Son Tung M-TP, Soobin Hoang Son, Hoa Minzy, My Anh... are making efforts to renew traditional culture in the language of their generation: modern, multi-layered, creative and global. Products such as Gieo Que, Bac Bling or remixes of See Tinh... not only spread strongly on digital platforms but also contribute to creating the image of a youthful, adaptive and integrated Vietnam.

However, we need to face a sad reality: most of those successes still bear the mark of individual efforts, and “single swallows” have not been able to create a spring of “soft power” for Vietnamese culture. The lack of a strong enough support system from state policies and systematic investment from professional cultural institutions makes those successes spontaneous. This makes the “soft power” of Vietnamese culture like a potential source of energy - flowing underground but not yet having enough pressure to break out into a cultural stream with widespread influence.

Culture is identified as a pillar of development on par with the economy as well as many other fields, requiring a separate strategy, a worthy financial resource and a methodical planning like any other strategic sector. The reality of many countries such as Korea, Japan or China has shown that if invested intelligently and with vision, culture can absolutely bring great economic benefits. The explosion of Hallyu - the Korean cultural wave - is not a miracle but the result of a long-term strategic vision and close, methodical coordination between the state, artists and technology corporations.

Although Vietnam's cultural industry contributes more than 4% to GDP, this modest figure is just the tip of the iceberg of the country's cultural potential. In some areas, the domestic market is still being overwhelmed by imported cultural products, not because we lack talent or creativity, but because we lack a solid "legal corridor" to protect copyrights, and an effective distribution system to bring Vietnamese cultural products to the world. And above all, we lack an overall strategy, an "architect's hand" to connect the disconnected links in the cultural value chain. A passionate film like Tunnel: Sun in the Dark or the Tet "blockbusters" of Tran Thanh and Ly Hai cannot rely solely on the efforts of a few individuals. Behind a powerful film industry must be a transparent policy system, a stable financial mechanism and a professional distribution network reaching out globally. French culture doctor Frédéric Martel did not hesitate to warn: “Culture needs to be protected against the harsh impact of market rules”. That does not mean turning our back on globalization but rather an intelligent act of self-defense, proactively adapting, regenerating and renewing cultural identity with approaches that are closer and more attractive to modern life.

Culture is the “soul” that positions Vietnam deeply and differently in the eyes of international friends. It is time for a long-term, synchronous and bold national cultural development strategy to “take off” Vietnam’s soft power. Only then will Vietnam’s cultural “soft power” truly become an intrinsic pride, a source of energy that connects and inspires the world.

MAI AN

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/suc-manh-mem-cua-van-hoa-post791547.html