This article is also available in Vietnamese.

In today’s briskly-changing advertising industry, some small and discrete Production Houses catch in the dilemma of rare opportunities to upscale their business. Therefore, a Production Hub is undoubtedly an ideal model for companies to exchange knowledge and support each other. Born to be a collaborative framework of independent production teams, ME Group defines itself as the first sustainable commercial Production Hub in Vietnam.

"Production Hub" is considered to be an extremely new terminology in Vietnam. To put it simply, it refers to a production system gathering independent companies with various skills under the same roof. Taking advantage of learning and exchanging between production teams, the Production Hubs play a pivotal role in generating the best solution for many customers with the need of different industries. 

The founders of May Production and Echo have teamed up from these incentives to bring unique international standards Production Hub in Vietnam. As a result, ME Group was founded after a final agreement in early 2020. The name “ME” is also an acronym for M(ay) and E(cho), the first two members of this production network. 

Up to now, the holding company includes 5 entities: May Production, Echo, Ginger Shots, 18 Studios, and YAM Live (coming soon in 2021).

To start with corporate culture, ME Group serves as the center of business management, marketing, finance, legal, and business strategy. Simultaneously, the holding company also ensures that all Production Houses in the system can communicate efficiently and support each other flexibly when in need. 

Founded by Tony Nguyen and Phuong Tran in 2011, May provides full production services for TVC, digital videos, branded content, MVs,... Within the first years of operation, May has achieved to work with most of the agencies and global brands on the Vietnamese market, and they are now a large leading scale TVC Production House. In 2018, May opened a branch in Bangkok, servicing several TVC productions in the City of Angels.

Founded by Lien Dang and Yann Williot in 2007 in Sai Gon as a TVC Production House, Echo is also present in Singapore since 2017 to best support their regional network in SEA. Mainly focused on working for regional agencies, production houses, and brands willing to shoot in Vietnam, Echo is still producing on a regular basis for locally based clients.

Setup in 2017 as the digital sister company of May Production, 18 Studios is now a full-service production house based in Saigon. From TVC and digital content to music videos, 18 Studios can propose cost-effective creative solutions with its full in-house team: director, DOP, art director, post-production...

Founded by ME Group partners & Mr. Joel Spezeski in Q2 2020, Ginger Shots is an agile and precise blend between a talented local team and the most up-to-date tech production practices and tools specialized in TableTop and Motion Control projects. With a priority to develop the branding of Ginger Shots abroad, the team aims to work for regional clients expecting world-class expertise. 

As a ME Group project, Yam Live is a unique content creator OTT video platform that will be launched in 2021 in Vietnam. Stay stunned to see interesting projects from this platform!

In terms of Production Hub’s success, it is impossible not to mention the founders' significant contributions. They are Tony Nguyen & Phuong Tran (Co.Founder May PH, 18Studios), Lien Dang & Yann Williot (Co.Founder Echo), independent entrepreneurs who have a strong production background in this market.

Understanding what it means to start businesses from scratch independently, the leaders are still fully involved in the daily operation, which is a significant part of the working atmosphere in ME Group. Their company is officially a Holding, but they see it more as a family getting bigger.

Sharing from the leaders of ME Group, there are two priorities right now for the holding company:

• The first thing is to keep developing the Group on production expertise and competence. ME Group is working on being more sustainable. It takes a bit of time to switch from entrepreneurship to offer a corporate vision, but this is where their focus is, from investing in new production technologies to training new talents to anticipate production/entertainment trends. 

• The second thing is to place Vietnam on the map as a trustworthy and reliable production hub. For instance, Echo has been active in Singapore for years, building a network and working now commonly for regional players. May Production has made a name for itself regionally too, Ginger Shots, with its high-tech setup, is expected to promote even more Vietnam as a modern place to shoot.

In the advertising business, the biggest competition of ME Group today is Regional. When Echo opened its office in Singapore a few years ago, they did struggle with the fact that Bangkok got decades of experience. But once they get a few majors clients/agencies flying to Vietnam, it changed their perception, they finally realize that there is not much of a gap anymore for most of the projects. Vietnam production has been improved dramatically over those last years, from the producers to the technical teams to the equipment available. Consequently, May & Echo are recently winning more regional pitches over Bangkok.

Video “Vinfast - Dẫn lối tiên phong” (May Production):

Regarding the COVID-19 situation, it did allow the companies of the Group to showcase their level of services. Last month, they worked remotely for clients in Korea, Singapore, the Philippines, and Thailand. They are also pitching more on some projects from Europe or the Middle East, considering the global situation right now. 

In a nutshell

With the mission of being the most reliable and forward-thinking production hub in Vietnam for global creations, ME Group thrives on existing as a sustainable ecosystem of independent production teams, offering two of the most critical assets in this industry: agility & expertise. Keep watching what amazing and exciting their teams are preparing for the next time!

Ngọc Anh / Advertising Vietnam