[The Southeast Asian Grave Excavation Craze③] Vietnam Also Trusts and Watches Choi Min-sik and Yoo Hae-jin

Overcoming Transitional Uncertainty in Vietnam's Cinema Industry
Interview with Tran Doan, Vice President of Mockingbird Pictures
"Careful Translation... Even Reviewing Religious Materials"

Movies are a familiar culture among young people in Vietnam. As such, their criteria for choosing films are also meticulous. They carefully check reviews and other feedback in advance. This leads to a strong concentration phenomenon similar to that in Korea. It is a transitional period with a different character than before.

'Pamyoh' easily passed complex and strict standards. On the 14th day after its release, on the 26th of last month, it surpassed 2 million viewers. It is poised to break the all-time highest box office record for Korean films set by 'Yuksa-o' in 2022 (2.25 million viewers).

The first quarter box office ranking is second place. The first place, 'Mai', is hard to surpass. It attracted over 6.5 million viewers, rewriting the all-time highest box office record in Vietnam. 'Pamyoh' was released just as the momentum of 'Mai' was fading and took over the theaters. It easily surpassed competing films such as 'Kung Fu Panda 4' and 'Dune: Part 2', topping the box office for two consecutive weeks.

The local distributor Mockingbird Pictures is in a highly encouraged mood. Tran Doan, the vice president, said in an exclusive interview with Asia Economy, "More than the large number of viewers, it is meaningful to overcome the uncertainty of a new transitional period." He added, "Truly, it is an amazing work. The directing, acting, and content are all excellent, but the most surprising power is how it attracts audiences through the cultural and religious similarities between Korea and Vietnam."

Vice President Doan had been paying attention to 'Pamyoh' long before purchasing the distribution rights by checking Korean news and other sources. He had long discussions with his staff about whether the story would resonate in Vietnam. They even started related research, putting in great effort and passion.

The biggest concern was the uniquely Korean cultural elements such as pungsu-jiri (geomancy), mudang (shaman), and yeom (exorcism). The act of Pamyoh (digging up a grave to move or re-bury) itself is a religious practice familiar to locals, but the unfamiliarity of gut (shamanistic rituals), spells, and sorcery seemed significant. Vice President Doan saw that the curiosity these elements provoke and the historical background could provide audiences with another topic of interest.

He said, "I was worried because shamanism does not exist in Vietnam, but since there is a familiar concept of ancestor worship in the cultural foundation, I thought there would be no problem for the audience to understand the story and enough room for empathy." He continued, "For precise translation, we referred to both the Korean dialogue and the English translation provided by Showbox (the Korean distributor). We reviewed various materials and vocabulary related to faith and used the easiest expressions to understand without damaging the meaning implied by the film."

They did not expect the current box office results when they put in the effort. However, they secretly had high hopes due to the successes in Korea and Indonesia. Vice President Doan recalled, "It was difficult to promote with only the existing information. In that situation, hearing about the box office success in other countries was like rain after a drought. The marketing team actively utilized this to boost the atmosphere."

There is one more factor he believes drives the success: the leads of 'Pamyoh'. Each of them is highly recognized in Vietnam, which assured securing many screens. "Lee Do-hyun is the most well-known Korean actor in Vietnam. You can immediately see how popular he is just by looking at social media (SNS). Kim Go-eun has also built trust among locals through her outstanding performances so far. But above all, what completes 'Pamyoh' are veterans Choi Min-sik and Yoo Hae-jin. Films featuring them differ in quality from the start. You can just trust and watch (laughs)."