Taking a hi-tech look at historical Ha Noi

Comical Ha Noi­: A scene of daily life in the ancient capital in Viet Nam's first 3D hi-tech comic. - Photo coutesy Demensional Art

by Vu Hoa
A group of young Hanoians have developed a new way of expressing their love for the ancient capital using 3D technology that preserves and enhances awareness of the country's heritage.
The launching of Viet Nam's first 3D comic by Dimensional Art has been an effort to inspire love for Ha Noi through images of the cultural beauty and historical architecture of each locality in the country. The comic is full of sparkling shots of the capital city.
Dimensional Art's director, architect Dinh Viet Phuong, has nurtured his long-time desire to create a Vietnamese 3D comic series since 2009.
"The comic builds a familiar world in which every reader can see themselves. It is a popular and simple collection of characters and context," Phuong says.
The comics originate in a Son Tinh (Mountain Genie) and Thuy Tinh (Water Genie) legend from the reign of the 18th Hung King. It was then that a beautiful princess named My Nuong lived. She was the King's only child, thus she was most precious. When she grew up and became a woman, the King began to arrange for her marriage. Son Tinh and Thuy Tinh were two men among hundreds who wanted to marry the princess and thus competed for the role of the king's son-in-law. Son Tinh won while Thuy Tinh was forced to give up the idea of marrying the princess. However, he still used his power to wage war with Son Tinh. That is the legend's explanation for the floods and prolonged rain that comes every year.
The comic's three main characters, including Vu Phong, Kha Di and Le Luu discover a secret in the legend and engage in strange adventures all over the country, from Ha Noi, and My Son, to Sai Gon Port and the Hoang Sa archipelago.
The ancient Ha Noi of the adventure is described in poetic beauty, with the peaceful morning at Sword Lake in the grace of autumn.
The capital also appears with its crowds, traffic congestion during rush hour and dust. The series of 30 comics not only introduces the historical landscape, but also the unique daily living, with cultural characteristics such as flower markets, kite flying and inexpensive tea shops near Ha Noi's Cathedral.
Phuong and other members of his group studied in several countries producing comics, including Japan, France, Belgium and the US, as well as attended courses both inside and outside the country.
The group has left space for the script to be supplemented with updated issues such as the floods in the central region or the discovery of a secret cellar in the Metropole Hotel.
"We expect to make a new branch of reading habits among young people, one toward a cultural and historical view of the country in general and Ha Noi in particular," he says, adding that the comics, however, will not be ideological messages but cultural ones.
He says that some volumes of the series will be published for free on the internet to collect comments from readers. They prepared for two and a half years for the project, getting investments from professionals.
"Money is not the reason for this project, our passion is. We believed that success would not come unless we took a risk," he says.
He adds that there would never be pioneers if people only thought about how much money they could earn.
The project inspires endless love for the ancient capital, with its 1,000 years of history. The group won the Bui Xuan Phai Prize in 2010 for their idea of renovating Ha Noi's Old Quarter and French architecture with the assistance of 3D technology.
Phuong and nine of his colleagues joined hands for the project, which produced virtual tours of the old city some 100 years ago through 3D technology.
They started the project without funding from any organisation, he recalled, they could only work on the project at night after 9pm when they finished their work, and then would be at it until 4am the following day.
The members of the group had to go to libraries to search for information and ask historians as none of them had any idea what Ha Noi actually looked 100 years ago.
It took them four years to finish the first virtual pictures of the ancient capital. They then had to rent a gallery to exhibit their work by themselves.
In early 2009, they worked with Ashui.com to build a website for the images of ancient streets and urban architectural heritage sites, as well as the living styles of Hanoians under French colonialism. They established an online museum using 3D technology.
The project has 70 virtual pictures of ancient Ha Noi and a 3D film of traditional festivals in the Old Quarter.
The group's larger ambition is to produce a 3D animated film and an online game based on the comic.
More than anything else, the young architects hope to preserve the cultural values of the old capital and pass their love for the city onto others. - VNS