Thai digital content gaining recognition
HOME Sweet Home, a horror adventure video game, first released in 2017, is a global hit and continues to provide challenging and petrifying experiences to players in its Season Three in 2021.
Sea Of Love, animation for kids, telling a story of friendship between a whale, a ray, a seahorse and a shark, is streaming on Netflix. Girl From Nowhere ,amystery thriller series that became a hit globally with its second season topping Netflix charts in Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines, while ranking in the top 10 in Brazil.
These three successful titles have something in common: they are the home-grown creative products of Thailand, a country increasingly making its presence felt in the booming global digital content market.
Thailand’s digital content market is currently valued at Us$2bil (Rm9bil) with video games representing the largest share with Us$1.46bil (Rm6.5bil).
The country has long been recognised for the skills of its digital content creators and has become a major provider of outsourcing services for international projects.
The key competitiveness of the Thai digital content industry lies in the skills, discipline and servicemind attitude of its digital artists, its cost-effectiveness, as well as the rich creativity and cultural wisdom the country is known for.
The Home Sweet Home video game was created by Thai developer Yggdrazil Group, featuring horror elements drawn from Thai folklore.
Its strength lies in its base on Thai culture, myths, and beliefs, said a game critic at Cogconnected. The game is available in nine languages including English, German, Chinese and Japanese.
While the game industry is growing at a faster pace, the Thai animation industry has a longer history and is more rooted in the local cultural heritage. Thai animated characters often reflect “Thainess” through the rich colours and cheerful nature.
The first Thai 3D animated feature film Khan Khluay (known as The Blue Elephant in the US), produced by Kantana Studio, was released in 2006 and became a box office success, which has brought international attention to Thailand as a high-quality animation production base.
The Monk Studio’s latest achievement Sea Of Love is Thailand’s first Netflix Kids series, fulfilling its goal to introduce original content designed and produced by Thai talent for the world.
Thai series in the past decade have expanded to other Asian countries and beyond, partly due to the rise of streaming platforms.
Thai dramas that became hits in other countries include Love Destiny and My Husband In Law.
Girl From Nowhere Season Two won the Best Asian TV Series Award at Busan’s Asia Contents Awards in 2021.
Critics expect the popularity of Thai series to continue increasing in the future, thanks to attractive characters, storylines, locations and their reflection of local culture. – The Nation/asia News Network