Don’t you wish that every time 10-year-old you came up with a kickass comic, a team of veteran artists would step in to turn it into a professional animated short?
This year’s Earth Day celebration, which took place on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection, was a special one. It marked half a century since the occasion was first held in 1970. For Hanoi’s 12-year-old Nguyen Ngoc Gia Han, the event was probably her most treasured experience yet, as her drawings were used as the base for a sleek superhero animation released a week ago.
Han’s works clinched the third prize in the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF)’s character design competition held last year. To enter, kids across Vietnam were encouraged to design a superhero whose other-worldly ability can halt disasters and put a stop to climate change. The contest was a collaborative effort between UNICEF, the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority, and the National Young Pioneer Council.
UNICEF published the animated short, named Hai Moc Nhi, on April 22, with the art production done by Hanoi-based studio DeeDee Animation. Nhi, the titular character, lives in a fictional world controlled by evil corporations whose greed and relentless profiteering suck the Earth dry — sound familiar? A chance encounter bestows her with elemental powers and a snazzy superhero costume, and Nhi saves the world using the power of altruism.
The drawing competition, which attracted 16,000 entries from kids across 40 provinces in Vietnam, concluded with a ceremony on October 12 last year, The first prize went to Nguyen Tran Pha Le, a Grade 8 student in Nha Trang, who created a Super Artist wielding the power to heal the environment with her paintbrush. Le's idea is reportedly also being turned into an animation to be released in the near future.
[Image via Tuoi Tre]
