The first private film companies in Vietnam were established in 2003, meaning commercial movies has been in Vietnam for six years, compared to 56 years of state subsidized movies.

A scene from “Bi, Don’t Be Afraid” by director Phan Dang Di, which won a $10,000 prize at the Pusan 2007 film festival.

Basic concepts of movie economics like raising capital, producers and investors remain new. The seminar “Building projects and raising capital for producing films”, is organized as part of the 16^th Vietnam Film Festival, and has interested many film companies.

While representatives of state-owned film firms have expressed hesitate in seeking capital for film projects, directors and producers have becoming experienced in looking for backers.

Director Vinh Son, who developed the “Moon at the Bottom of the Well” for five years and knocked on doors of many cultural foundations and foreign partners, said: “These are good times for Vietnamese producers to ask for assistance. The world is more interested in Asia and Asian movies than ever before. The most important thing is we have a good script and a well-presented project, meeting international standards”.

He also shared his own experience in seeking money for films: “Some criticized myself and Thac Chuyen (director of Adrift) for making western-styled films for western audiences but investment funds and investors would not pay for a Vietnamese director to make western-style films. They want scripts with traditional elements and native culture”.

Director Bui Thac Chuyen, the most successful director in raising funds for his films said: “Don’t be discouraged if you are refused. We need to be creative in preparing documents. We have to convince donors of two things. The first is the aspiration of our projects, which are shown through story ideas, contents, and even the biography of the author. The second is we have to convince the donors about the feasibility of our projects”.

Journalist Sam Thuong, director of Sena Film, gave the following tips. First of all target partners who need to advertise their products through movies; seek a good script; have a good PR policy and choose suitable actors.

Sam Thuong cited Sena’s “Leave Love of Dust” film. The film was not a critical success but the producer raised 4 billion dong for it thanks to its PR project, which focused on Buddhist followers.

Ngo Bich Hien, production manager of BHD Film, said that to raise funds for film project, the most important factor is building the prestige of producers.

“Sometimes we have to accept losses to introduce new style products. Our TV series “We love each other, don’t we” is an example. We know that we would make a loss and the public may not like it but we had to produce it to show partners we are capable of making films in different styles.

“As a result, we have now have the backing of Singapore’s Mega Media for “Boundless Rice Field”, Hien said.

Director Bui Thac Chuyen added: “The establishment of private film companies is a big change to film production in Vietnam. In recent years, Vietnamese commercial films have begun to earn profits and the habit of watching new movies at cinemas has been formed among youth at big cities. Cinemas have grown by 200 percent a year”.

Chuyen added that state-owned film firms are in the privatization process and soon all will be equal.

VietNamNet/Tuoi Tre