Nguyen Thanh Phong's Man-Turned-Tiger was awarded Best Comics Strip at the Asian Youth Animation&Comics Contest 2011 held in Guizhou, China.

This year's contest, with the theme Green Cartoon, Creative Future, attracted hundreds of entries from young Asian talents in 70 countries and territories.

In 2010, Phong's Bicof Stories was published in Liquid City, a Southeast Asian comic collection that features artwork from outstanding artists in the region.

Phong talked with VNS about his recent award and the evolution of comic books in Viet Nam.

Could you tell readers about the contest and the award you recently received?

By chance, I heard of contest held in China for young Asian artists and sent in two comics earlier this year: A Boy Makes Paper Airplane, created in 2007, and Man-Turned-Tiger.

I went to the festival just for the experience – I didn't think I would win anything, since there were many talented artists participating in the festival.

You have attended international comics exhibitions and your work has appeared in foreign publications like the Italian Black and Liquid City. Could you draw a distinction between Vietnamese comics and foreign ones?

I have not studied Chinese comics much, but at an exhibition in South Korea I did notice that many Korean painters have been influenced by Japanese manga. Even so, one can tell the difference between manga and manhwa [Korean comics] from their stories.

Manga usually focuses on personal heroism, while manhwa highlights community spirit and the role of the individual within society.

Vietnamese comics have also been influenced by the manga tradition, and it is a much younger genre here than in Japan or Korea.

Actually, seasoned painters began the development of Vietnamese comics many years ago, but these veterans have not attracted readers, especially young readers.

The future of Vietnamese comics will depend on young painters who are studying the art in college or graduate school. These painters have not yet solidified their individual styles and will probably be influenced by what they see and admire. They are growing up with manga inundating the Vietnamese market.

How can we encourage the development of Vietnamese comics?

We need to set up a professional environment for comics, including painters, writers and, most importantly, readers. Additionally, development of Vietnamese comics would benefit from help from the Government, which should adopt policies that support domestic publishing and should regard comics as an instrument to promote Vietnamese culture.

You said that many painters have been influenced by manga. How did you create your own style, which critics have called "rough" and "dusty"?

Styles are formed from a combination of factors and influences – I didn't create mine in a vacuum. When I read and like a painter, his style will impact me naturally. The artists I admire most are Takehiko Inoue from Japan and Ashley Wood from Australia.

I combine these beloved styles with lessons and my own characteristic essence to create my works.

What are some of the challenges you faced in becoming a comic book artist?

There are many. In Viet Nam, comic book illustration is a profession without a promising future. In general, Vietnamese people do not read regularly, and because of that the market for comics is very small. There are not many Vietnamese comics. It is mainly a genre for children, with less of a focus on teenagers and no comics for adults.

Not many painters want to become comic book illustrators because they would not be able to earn enough money for their daily lives and would need to take on a second job. A few years ago, I had many classmates who painted comics, but most have quit by now and have moved on to electronic game and fashion design.

I had been keen on comics for a long time but viewed it as simply a hobby. After attending a training course held by Kim Dong Publishing House and a French school of comics, I changed my mind: I found that the real attraction of comic books is the story and not the image.

I believe that comics are for all kinds of people in the world. I hope to encourage Vietnamese artists to make comics professionally.

VNS