There are still "obstacles".
Comics are a field within the visual arts industry that has made significant contributions to the cultural industry. Globally , over the past nearly 100 years, the comic book publishing market in developing countries such as South Korea, Japan, and China has achieved great success. In these countries, comic book publishing has become a highly profitable industry.
The characters in "Vietnamese Child Prodigy" are closely associated with the childhood of many generations of Vietnamese readers.
In Vietnam, over the past 10 years, the Vietnamese comic book market has also been booming. According to Dang Cao Cuong, Head of the Comic Book Editorial Board (Kim Dong Publishing House): "While not as explosive as Japanese comics, Vietnamese comics still hold a certain position in the domestic market. Some works have become iconic comics such as: 'Vietnamese Child Prodigy,' 'Tý Quậy,' 'Hesman the Hero'... In recent years, there have also been a series of famous 'made in Vietnam' comic books such as: 'Seven-Colored Rabbit,' 'Secret Class,' 'Mottled Cat'... These are works that have achieved and continue to achieve great success, as the characters in the stories have come to life, developed within an ecosystem, and been adapted into many different fields such as: animated films, souvenir products..."
Furthermore, another factor demonstrating the recent boom in Vietnamese comics is the increasing number of young authors, and we also have a growing community of readers who appreciate and love purely Vietnamese comic works."
"In particular, the Vietnamese comic book industry has seen significant development with the emergence of many large publishing houses investing in the production and promotion of comics, creating favorable conditions for comic book authors and artists. On the other hand, there are also online comic book platforms with many professional teams such as Comicola, Vinatoon, etc., which also contribute to strongly promoting the domestic comic book market," said Mr. Dang Cao Cuong.
However, after a rather long journey, although Vietnamese comics have made significant progress and established a certain position in the publishing industry, many believe that Vietnamese comics have not yet developed to their full potential and meet existing needs.
Tý Quậy comic series - a comic series that has garnered widespread reader interest.
Mr. Dang Cao Cuong stated: "The achievements we've just mentioned are only a small 'bright spot' of the Vietnamese comic book market. Compared to the rest of the industry, we are still very weak. Currently, Vietnam still lacks professional training facilities. These facilities should not only train artists but also scriptwriters. Because some comic book author groups, when collaborating, each person focuses on a specific task such as scriptwriting, drawing, or color sketching… Therefore, whether a work has a long lifespan depends heavily on the scriptwriter. Meanwhile, training facilities in Vietnam haven't yet provided balanced training for both scriptwriters and artists. This isn't just a problem in the comic book industry; the film industry is facing a similar situation."
At the same time, the authors themselves haven't yet determined their long-term paths; they create based on inspiration, so their works often lack a definite roadmap. Therefore, some works start off very well but then falter later, and some authors even fail to complete their works. Furthermore, we currently lack mechanisms and policies to reward comic book authors."
Sharing the same view, comic book researcher Nguyen Anh Tuan (pen name Chukim) argues that copyright issues in Vietnam are also one of the "barriers" hindering the development of comics. Nowadays, people's habits of accessing comic products have changed; they now read comics online through various sources, including "pirated" websites. This not only affects authors and publishers but also impacts the development of the Vietnamese comic book industry.
"Paving the way" for the development of Vietnamese comics.
Regarding the challenges facing Vietnamese comics in the future, researcher Nguyen Anh Tuan believes that, in order to promote the development of comics in the future, besides addressing copyright issues and dealing with the problem of readers reading pirated comics, we also need to change the mindset that comics are only for children. If we continue with that assumption, this art form will face many obstacles.
The Rainbow Rabbit comic series has also been widely loved by readers over the years.
Meanwhile, Mr. Dang Cao Cuong believes that the notion that comics are only for children has changed significantly. Comics continue to develop, serving the needs of a wider audience, with many works aimed at older readers being published in Vietnam. Therefore, for this field to develop, measures are needed to raise readers' awareness of copyright issues. This will give publishers and authors more opportunities to deliver higher-quality works. Currently, some foreign publishers are also releasing applications that offer free introductions to the first and latest chapters of some comic series. They are leveraging readers' habits and encouraging them to read copyrighted books, thus fostering the future development of this field.
Furthermore, in the future, the State needs to invest in professional training facilities, strengthen exchange programs with foreign countries, and organize more creative workshops and competitions. These are the places to discover potential comic book authors for further training. At the same time, comic book authors should develop their characters within an ecosystem, creating a life for the characters so that they can be developed not only in comics but also in other products such as films, clothing, and souvenirs.
Secret Class - a fun comic series for teenage readers.
"In particular, the role of editors needs to be enhanced because they are the ones who accompany authors in taking their works to a new level. For example, foreign editors, when they feel a work is 'declining,' will intervene and influence it to create a 'boost.' However, currently in Vietnam, the role of editors is somewhat weaker; authors decide the entire plot without allowing anyone else to interfere," Mr. Dang Cao Cuong further shared.
Source: https://toquoc.vn/phat-trien-truyen-tranh-viet-nam-van-con-nhung-rao-can-20241018165007042.htm
Comment (0)