Vietnamese deaf artist and his drawings for the cartoon Oggy

(Dan Tri) - Overcoming communication barriers, artist Tran Ve Nhin spent 26 years pursuing the drawing profession, contributing to creating familiar animated films such as "Oggy the Cat and the mischievous cockroaches".

“My dad is an extremely talented Deaf person.”

That was Thuc Nghi's proud introduction to his father, artist Tran Ve Nhin, in a post on Threads.

Her sharing surprised many people when revealing the story of her deaf father who has been involved in drawing for 26 years, having contributed to animated films such as "Oggy the Cat and the Mischievous Cockroaches", "Zig & Sharko" or "Monta in the Weird Galaxy".

The story quickly attracted more than 390,000 views, more than 40,000 likes and thousands of discussions and shares.

The artist has loved drawing since he was 10 years old

If you just look at the funny frames of "Oggy the Cat and the mischievous cockroaches", few people know that behind those movements there is the participation of a deaf artist from Vietnam.

In a conversation with Dan Tri reporter, artist Tran Ve Nhin - a born deaf-mute - shared in sign language, next to him was his daughter Thuc Nghi translating each of his father's words.

The artist opened the conversation with happy eyes as he recalled memories of his passion for painting since childhood.

"I liked to draw since I was 10 years old, just holding a pen and drawing like that," he recalled.

At the age of 18, his paintings had the opportunity to be displayed at the "Moonlight" exhibition, which gathered the works of many deaf students from schools. That milestone became the first turning point in artist Nhin's career.

Around 1997, while studying at a school taught by nuns, he was selected into a group of 6 students with the best drawing ability to participate in training at a Korean company.

Those classes opened the door that led him into the animation industry. In 2000, he passed the test and began working at a German animation company.

Few people know that the person who contributed to creating the funny movements in the animation "Oggy the Cat and the mischievous cockroaches" is a deaf artist from Vietnam (Photo: Provided by the character).

However, his first job was as a phase painter, a process of perfecting intermediate frames to create smooth movement of characters.

Three years later, he moved to a French animation studio and officially entered the animation department, responsible for creating movement for the characters in the film.

In 2017, he moved to work at VinTaTa, the animation unit of Vingroup before temporarily suspending work due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

When production activities resumed after the epidemic, from 2022, artist Nhin continued to return to pursue his passion at the French studio in Vietnam until now.

Contributed drawings for Oggy, Zig & Sharko and childhood frames

Audiences usually only see a few minutes of each complete episode, but for a character to run, jump, laugh or struggle in each frame is a whole production line with many stages.

With the international animation projects that Mr. Nhin has participated in, the French company is responsible for parts such as script, director, creation and character development.

After that, the content is transferred to the production team in Vietnam to continue perfecting the image.

Here, the artists take turns performing many stages such as creating layouts, creating motion, clean drawing, blending and coloring, before the product is transferred to post-production stages for completion.

That is also the line that the artist has been accompanying for many years.

Among the works he participated in, the animated film "Oggy and the mischievous cockroaches" left him with the most memories.

"I was impressed with the scene where Oggy and Jack were fighting over the cat character Olivia. When I saw the scene I created appear on the screen, I felt very happy," the artist shared.

The Oggy scene that painter Tran Ve Nhin remembers most was told in sign language (Video: Doan Thuy).

Another landmark is “Monta in the Grotesque Galaxy.” Not only because this is a project he especially loves, but also because for the first time his name appears in the end credits of the film.

A few lines of text may only flash across the screen for a few seconds, but for an artist who has spent decades in the profession, it is a memorable moment to confirm that his silent efforts are recognized.

To have those moments, he had to overcome many barriers. Working in an environment that requires close coordination between directors, artists and many other departments. For a deaf person, communication barriers become even more obvious.

Every time the French director exchanges expertise, an interpreter accompanies him. However, technical terms or movement requirements are not always easy to accept.

"There are scenes that I have to edit over and over again. The reception speed of deaf people is much different from that of hearing people," artist Nhin confided.

In his daily work, pen and paper have become a familiar means of communication between him and his colleagues. After many years of working together, his colleagues gradually found a way to understand him through his eyes, gestures and personal symbols.

From 2000 to 2016, artist Nhin worked entirely on paper. When the animation industry switched to electronic drawing boards and digital software, the artist entered a new learning journey.

The biggest difficulty for him right now is that the tool system is all in English.

"For deaf people like me, English is like a third language so it's very difficult to remember. My colleagues learned it after one to three months to get used to it, but it took me much longer," he shared.

In his journey to pursue his career, family has become an important part to help him overcome obstacles in life and work.

As someone who often accompanies his father during medical appointments, paperwork or work, Nghi learned sign language from a young age to be able to communicate and support his father.

There were times when she became her father's translator in important conversations with others.

Thanks to his early exposure to his father's work, Nghi clearly understood the requirements of the animation profession. She believes that speed and accuracy are always a big pressure on an artist, especially when her father is a disabled person.

"Dad is deaf, so his acceptance speed is not as good as other people. The animated films he participates in are all highly demanding projects. Yet, despite many difficulties, he still follows the profession for nearly 30 years," Nghi said.

Belief in the value of the artist

According to Thuc Nghi, the purpose of her post is not simply to tell the story of her father.

"I just hope people know that deaf people are very talented, have many different talents that have rarely been seen before," she commented.

Among the many comments under his daughter's post, what touched artist Nhin the most was the fact that the audience still remembered the characters he helped create.

"When I read the comments from young people, I was moved and proud. Finally, everyone knows the people who work silently behind famous movies," he confided.

When asked about the development of technology, artist Nhin admitted that modern software helps shorten many steps, especially repetitive operations.

However, he believes there are still values ​​that only humans can create.

"Technology can help draw faster, but what cannot be replaced is the soul of the character," he affirmed.

According to him, movements with different rhythms, emotions, and fast and slow tempos still require the artist's perception.

He does not deny the power of AI. Even admitting that in recent years, this technology has developed significantly, producing products quickly at low cost or even for free.

But what he worries about is abuse. According to him, one AI user could be just a small change. But if 10 people, 100 people or 1,000 people all choose AI instead of human creative labor, the artist profession will be at risk of shrinking.

In his eyes, the value of an artist does not suddenly disappear just because technology changes.

"The value of an artist actually does not change over time. Each person's perspective will determine whether the artist's career will go up or down."

After 26 years of working with the profession and contributing to the drawings associated with many people's childhood, artist Nhin believes that although everything around him has changed, his passion, responsibility and enthusiasm for the profession have never faded.