Inside Vu Phuong’s Creative World: The Making of “Em Xinh Say Hi”

When it comes to blending pop spectacle and visual storytelling, Vietnamese director Vu Phuong raises the bar. For the theme song music video of Em Xinh Say Hi, the flagship show captivating audiences across Vietnam, Vu Phuong and his team at Antiantiart delivered a cinematic experience that feels as vibrant as it is technically ambitious.

In this project, Vu Phuong orchestrated a massive production featuring over 30 artists, custom-built sets, and seamless VFX that transform performance spaces into colorful worlds. What makes this work especially compelling is how openly Vu Phuong shares his behind-the-scenes: from detailed VFX breakdowns to side-by-side comparisons with the final shots, giving filmmakers everywhere a window into the process.

We caught up with Vu Phuong to explore how he and his collaborators turned this vision into reality, and what lessons he’s learned directing large-scale music videos that double as cultural phenomena.

Let’s dive into his world!

Hey Vu! How did the opportunity to direct “Em Xinh Say Hi” come about? Did you pitch the concept, or were you approached with a brief?

I was approached by the show and virtually everyone in it asked for me to be the director. There was no pitching involved. Initially, a year before Em Xinh Say Hi, I also directed the theme music video for Anh Trai Say Hi – a version of the show that featured an all-male ensemble of artists. 

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From a creative standpoint, what was your main vision for the video? Were there particular emotions or ideas you wanted to capture?

For this project, first, it was about fulfilling the requirements. Having 30 artists within one single music video, while everyone has their own styles, talents, and personalities, can become a mess really quickly. Everyone has their own line in the song, so my job was to come up with a flow and concept that allows that to happen, while still maintaining an aesthetic for the entire video that still allowed each artist to shine.

So that was solving the problem. In terms of the concept, we concluded that the world for this MV should be HYBRID, fusing organic and mechanical aesthetics, futuristic but avant-garde, leaning heavily into the fashion aspect. I opened this video like a type of superhero movie where these girls are trying to open a portal through different dimensions. And by using these dimensions, I can put feature the artists in a way that highlights them.

There’s a flow break that I really like when the shuriken is thrown, which breaks the space. As a dancer myself, it’s really important to me that I calculate the visuals to be exactly in sync with the music – every beat must be accounted for. We only had 3 days of shooting, and the budget was only $50K, which is not a lot for a project of this scale so we could not waste anything. Everything needed to be precise.

Of course, we have the easy way out of shooting it with a K-pop MV template – and practically that’s what the show wants. But I didn’t want to compromise that way. If there’s dance involved, then we should also make it new and interesting, fit the concept and the music.

You worked with an ensemble of over 30 performers. What was your strategy to keep the set organized and energetic?

I think first of all, everyone had the mentality of wanting to work with us on set. That allowed an atmosphere of getting things done. Then, of course, I think we prepared really meticulously for it by assembling a tight crew that understands each other and are all willing to do more than what is asked of them.

We had one DP, but also 2 sub DPs for 2 units. A total of 4 ADs. We shot the whole thing with 2 units running simultaneously, swapping with each other when needed, and merging for shots that require all 30 artists.

We also did extensive VFX mockups beforehand to show the artists, letting them know what they’re doing, so everyone was excited to do it.

The video features complex VFX sequences and vivid production design. How did you balance practical elements with digital enhancements?

As a director, I love what VFX and CG work can do, but I still prefer practical sets and which allows us to be more confident on set. We had everything planned out with stills and storyboards, so we knew what needed to be practical.

We only shot 100% CG when it was absolutely necessary, and even those shots were carefully calculated.

Can you walk us through your collaboration with Microwave Soups in the art department? How did you arrive at the final aesthetic?

I’ve worked with Microwave Soups on multiple projects and developed a mutual understanding. We share an office together in Ho Chi Minh City, and honestly, we’re just really close, so the collaboration is just natural.

You’ve shared VFX breakdowns alongside the final footage. Why is transparency about the process important to you as a director?

Honestly, I didn’t really think about transparency when I shared the VFX breakdowns, haha. For me, the Antiantiart page has always been about giving people a look into the process of making things like this. It also sheds light on the incredible work done by our post-production team and the artists that we collaborated with – the people who are not above the line.

We think that would be a good thing to do for people who are looking to get into this industry, specifically, thinking and planning for VFX work. It started out hard for us when we tried to learn it ourselves. In Vietnam, there aren’t a lot of sources that share these things, so when we’re doing this now, we want to share them. 

How did you approach the choreography and camera blocking to keep everything dynamic without losing clarity?

I think similarly, it just goes back to the pre-production work that we did. I tried to analyze what each artist could do, how they can shine, and what scene would fit them so that the flow works.

Then the choreography comes after, and the framing would follow. We obviously didn’t want to go with the K-pop template, and if the show asked for it, we would do it, but then make it special and more specific to the flow.

What was the most challenging moment of production, and how did you overcome it?

I don’t think there was an exceptionally challenging moment. Rather, it was the low budget that was the most difficult to deal with. We honestly did this project in order to show our bigger vision and somehow gain a name for it. It’s the only reason why we agree to do low-budget projects.

In Vietnam, I think music videos can only reach that type of budget, so we do them with the mindset of exploring something new through it, or leveling ourselves up in certain aspects. We accept losing money to gain other things. And for this one, the way we dealt with the budget was having everything planned, asking for extra sponsors, not wasting time and equipment.

Like, we didn’t just have everything available on set, it was all calculated to move in and out on time to save as much money as possible. So that part was incredibly difficult. The post-production was also only around 25 days. We did it only by layering everything to the hour, shot by shot.

Everything needed to move constantly with no dead time. We worked with multiple artists from multiple countries and to maximize the process, we staggered the working time so when we were sleeping, someone in a different time zone was working. When we were up, they would be sleeping. No dead time. Everything was tight up until the last minute. When we were rendering the final shots, our office lost power.

By that point, we’d been up all night. So we moved all of our computers to a nearby house and continued to re-render the whole thing. The show was rushing every minute and we were counting everything by the minute. Ultimately, we got it in time. Everybody was all in to make it happen.

Looking back, is there a particular shot or sequence that you’re most proud of?

I think I was proud of the whole process and the spirit of everyone, rather than a single shot or sequence. For me, the project was not perfect.

But it did surpass our limits, in terms of budget, production power and conceptual development. I’m proud of that.

Finally, what advice would you offer directors who aspire to create music videos on this scale?

I honestly don’t fucking know, haha. I guess, step by step, complete the vision in your head. With each project, try to surpass your own limits. Stick with your brothers and ask yourself what you really want. Other than that, I really don’t know.

A huge thank you to Vu Phuong for taking the time to share his creative journey; if you’d like to dive deeper into his world and discover more of his incredible work, make sure to visit his Instagram page.

Thanks guys, for reading this in-depth feature on Em Xinh Say Hi and the creative process behind Vu Phuong’s visionary direction.
And if you haven’t yet, don’t miss our previous article dedicated to the Ciclope Festival 2025 , now live on our magazine!

Read more about the latest Vu Phuong’s project here.