After 5 years of developing in the animation industry in Vietnam, there are many things that have helped DeeDee achieve our current position in the eyes and hearts of the audience. Beginning with almost nothing, the efforts that we put into our works have paid off nicely. Although starting from zero, all efforts of the team have paid off. Let's find out what makes DeeDee the top animation production studio in Vietnam.
The story of a pioneer animation studio in Vietnam
Started developing in the 1960s, but Vietnamese animation never became an "industry" way into the 2000s. Most productions during that period were from state-owned animation studios. It can be said that Vietnam is still trying to build its own industry even now.
Then, a few animation studios in Vietnam focused on generating high-quality animated films started appearing during the late 2000s and early 2010s. There are still so free of them who are committing to producing professional animation in Vietnam, such as Red Cat Motion (2012), Colory Studio (2009), or new names like Vietnam Animation Studio (2015). There still hasn't been any animation school that has an up-to-standard animation course.
DeeDee Animation Studio was established in 2016 by Quang Dang, in the context of the economy entering the 4.0 era, and the start-up wave is gradually gaining strength. This animation studio aims to produce high-quality animation works that the Vietnamese people can be proud of.
Starting a studio without being exposed to the professional animation process, without anyone showing us the rope, DeeDee Animation Studio has gradually made its mark and become successful with prestigious awards.
With a commitment to bring more significant changes to the Vietnamese animation industry in the future, in 2017, DeeDee took the first steps in professional animation production (one of which is the purchase of the official license from Toonboom - an internationally recognized professional animation software).
DeeDee always prioritizes quality over quantity. Instead of doing quick and easy Youtube projects, DeeDee decided to invest time and effort in making its first short film: "Awaken.” To our surprise, the work was fortunate enough to become the runner-up and won the best screenplay award at the FY 2017 Film Festival, the prospect award at the Digicon6 Vietnam Film Festival 2017, which was officially screened at The World Animation Celebration 2017 Film Festival.
After relatively good early years, DeeDeedidn't stop pushing forward and innovating itself. The results of these efforts are the breakthroughs in 2018-2019. The animation studio signed on to the first animated series in collaboration with the brand “Lifebuoy-The Silver iOn Squad,”. Then later we won several awards both domestically and internationally with Broken Being: Prequel, and other successful films, series, TV commercials, etc that also grabbed the attention of the public.
How DeeDee earns its current reputation?
International standard pipeline
Instead of reinventing the wheel from scratch, DeeDee Animation Studio applies a production pipeline similar to ones that have been used by international studios for years that include careful stages of pre-production, production, and post-production, also known as a turnkey solution. This is how DeeDee ensures high quality for its production from start to finish while remaining time-efficient.
This has been proven true by the fact that DeeDee has been chosen by many reputable partners, a series of quality projects have been published, including Bi Bo Ben - Fun with Traffic - an animated series in collaboration with Honda Vietnam that is being shown in Vietnam's national TV, She-Kings - an action historical animated series in collaboration with TNA Entertainment, or Happy Diwali - a promo video for the popular mobile game Clash of Clans.
Basically, the animation production studio is able to adapt and work on any project with various styles and requirements.
Talented and professional team
DeeDee Studio has all the resources you need to launch a 2d animation project. Storytellers, artists, and animators at DeeDee are all talented and experienced individuals in their respective fields. These are the people who not only understand their crafts, but also understand the need of their customers to cater to them with the best products.
Above all, the team in united and enthusiastic in striving for a better future for animation in Vietnam. Obviously, luck is an essential component in our success. But luck alone doesn't accomplish anything without persistent efforts.
Last but not least, with the desire to measure up with technologies around the world, DeeDee maintains a training process simultaneously to improve the animators' skills.
Modern technology and equipment
Since Vietnam hasn't had a standard process or formal education program for animation, DeeDee has learned from the best animation studios in the world.
As for the program of choice, Toon Boom Harmony was researched and selected by DeeDee since the beginning.
Creativity and professional technologies are still the top criterias for DeeDee Animation Studio’s work.
DeeDee Animation Studio’s best-animated projects
It is the quality of the work that have brought DeeDee our current reputation. As a fast-growing animation studio, DeeDee Animation specializes in various types and styles of animation, including animated short films, animated series, music videos, and TV commercials. Many of them have received awards.
Among those works, the most prominent must be Broken Being and the upcoming collaborative project with Shin-Ei Animation.
Broken Being
The year 2019 marked a memorable milestone for DeeDee Animation Studio when the short film "Broken Being: Prequel" was released to the audience on April 1st and went on to achieve international recognitions. This film follows a male protagonist in a Vietnamese village seeking answers about his deceased lover — and discovering that his picturesque reality may not be real.
Reaching the audience with an adult animated film like this is a great challenging, the project has received many rewards. The film has gained positive reviews from international audiences and critics, thanks to its combination of unique art direction and the "adult animation" approach.
It won a Best 2D Film award at KHEM Film Festival, United States; 21st Vietnam Film Judge Award; Best Animation Short Bloodstained Indie Film Festival; Golden Kite Award: Best Artist 2020. The film has also been included on the Iflix streaming service's top Trending list, and it has an official profile on IMDb.
Collaboration with Shin-Ei Animation
By 2021, DeeDee Animation Studio will have produced nearly 100 projects, large and small, with various genres. DeeDee's brand has been guaranteed not only by big name clients such as Honda, Unilever, Vinamilk, Garena, etc., and other international partners such as Shin-Ei Douga, Media Caption Asia, or Huion.
Following the success of previous collaborative projects, DeeDee Animation is cooperating with Shin-Ei Animation, an animation production studio under TV Asahi, to produce an anime series released in 2022.
Conclusion
Despite having a quite some experience and is still gaining more and more positive receptions from the public, DeeDee never stops pushing the envelop and reaches the highest height in the animation industry.
Thanks to that spirit, DeeDee has always been active to engage in the happening within the field. The studio is always able to respond and adapt quickly to trends and technologies to keep churning out higher quality animated productions. Hopefully we'll keep receiving non-stop supports from our audience around the world in the future.