Vietnamese Cinema: Dark Side and Bright Spot

Currently, the Vietnamese film box office situation is unstable with fluctuating revenue, reflecting major fluctuations in audience tastes and product quality; thereby revealing the dark and bright spots of the market.

"Don't look at Tran Thanh and Ly Hai's movies and think Vietnamese cinema is bright"

Recently, during the discussion at the National Assembly on the draft Law on Value Added Tax (amended), looking at the Vietnamese film market, Mr. Bui Hoai Son - Standing Member of the National Assembly's Committee on Culture and Education, concurrently Member of the Central Council for Literature and Art Theory, stated: "We cannot just look at 1 or 2 films by Tran Thanh and Ly Hai earning several hundred billion VND and think that the entire Vietnamese film industry is bright. In reality, there are dozens of films that are making a net loss". This statement reflects that the market is still very unstable and unsustainable.

The movie Once Upon a Time There Was a Love Story is earning over 40 billion VND.

PHOTO: DPCC

Some successful films that have caused a fever at the box office show the great commercial potential of Vietnamese cinema as well as the appeal of stories that are close and easy to relate to everyday life for domestic audiences. However, there are also too many Vietnamese films showing in theaters that have difficulty attracting audiences, causing the whole industry to become unstable, in a fierce competition from imported films. Foreign films, although not blockbusters, such as Quất Mộ Trung Ma, Laughter Across the Border, Quỷ Ăn Tạng, etc., all have high revenue at the Vietnamese box office due to the attractiveness of their content and production quality and are increasingly dominating, becoming a strong competitor of Vietnamese films. Meanwhile, Vietnamese films still lack good scripts, and have not had proper investment in production and promotion, leading to an imbalance in the market.

The film Once Upon a Time There Was a Love Story, adapted from a best-selling novel by Nguyen Nhat Anh, did very well in terms of quality, and was thought to be "special" in attracting audiences, but after half a month of showing, it earned more than 40 billion VND. Two other Vietnamese films that have recently been released in theaters are Hotgirl Squad (shown for the past month) and Teacher Rescue (only shown for a few days), each "newbie" only earned around 100 million VND. That's not to mention dozens of other heavily losing films shown since the beginning of 2024. This raises the question of taste, film quality, and promotional strategies to be able to "connect" with domestic audiences.

The movie Hot Girl Squad earned 67.9 million VND after being shown in theaters for more than 20 days.

PHOTO: DPCC

Obviously, the success of films such as Mai by Tran Thanh with a revenue of 551 billion VND, or Lat mat 7: Mot giau uoc by Ly Hai with 483 billion VND are just rare bright spots in the context of many other Vietnamese films suffering losses, showing the instability of the market. Vietnamese cinema is facing many challenges and fluctuations, especially at the end of the year. Despite the growth in the number of films released in theaters and the diversity of genres, the Vietnamese film market still lacks outstanding breakthroughs. Even with works that were released in theaters last month with a crew considered "hot" such as Getting rich with ghosts (actors Hoai Linh, Tuan Tran, Diep Bao Ngoc...), Co dau hao mon (by director Vu Ngoc Dang with the acting of Kieu Minh Tuan, Le Giang, Thu Trang, Uyen An...), but in reality, tickets sold 70 - 100 billion VND, but still did not create a "boost" in revenue like the films of Tran Thanh and Ly Hai.

What to do to escape the precarious situation?

According to producer Tung Nguyen, in order to develop sustainably, the Vietnamese film industry needs to increase investment in production and improve content to suit modern audiences. As Mr. Bui Hoai Son - Standing Member of the Committee for Culture and Education, emphasized, Vietnamese cinema cannot rely on just a few successful films, but needs a comprehensive strategy to help domestic filmmakers develop sustainably.

Some experts in the film industry also believe that to reduce the instability and help stabilize the market, film directors and producers need to focus on a number of solutions such as: Investing in quality scripts that are deep, attractive, ensure uniqueness, rich in genre and suitable for tastes; because filmmakers Tran Thanh and Ly Hai have succeeded thanks to scripts that are close and accessible to the general audience.

In addition, to compete with international films, Vietnamese films need to meet high standards in terms of image, sound, and special effects; it is mandatory to invest in equipment and a team of highly skilled technicians to help raise the level of production and improve the audience's movie-watching experience. To attract a large audience, producers need to develop a diverse marketing strategy, using social media, promotional events, etc. to create attraction right from when the film is still in production or when it is being shown, as in the case of the films Nha Ba Nu, Mai, Lat Mat 7 or the "reversal" in promotion and distribution of the state-owned film Dao, Pho and Piano earlier this year. Finally, it is necessary to cooperate and learn from international sources to improve skills, as well as create opportunities to expand the promotion and distribution of Vietnamese films in the international market.

Ms. Bich Hien of BHD Film Studio said: "The sustainable and stable development of Vietnamese cinema needs more support in terms of policies and long-term investment, such as tax incentives, investment funds for creative projects, and support for human resource training. These are important factors to create motivation and help Vietnamese cinema develop stably."

Director Le Minh acknowledged: "The market is developing better than a few years ago, many people want to make films and the competition is also greater. I know and see clearly many directors who are very dedicated to their profession, devoting themselves to this creative work to make attractive products to keep audiences coming to the cinema. I also believe in the new generation of directors with new thinking, different approaches and wanting to break out of the safe circle of those who came before to be able to break through, create works that are suitable for audiences and better for Vietnamese cinema."

The biggest consequence of this unstable revenue is that it will make investors hesitant to invest and spend large amounts of money on new film projects.

Mr. Nguyen Hoang Hai, CEO of V Pictures Film Investment and Production Company

Thanhnien.vn

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/dien-anh-viet-mang-toi-va-diem-sang-18524111323134982.htm