Vietnamese Copywriter Wins Global Award by Embracing Cultural Roots

Ho Gia Hoang, a Vietnamese advertising graduate and Fulbright scholar, won the D&AD New Blood Awards 2025, one of the world's most prestigious honors for emerging creative talent, after blending traditional Vietnamese folk art with contemporary branding in his master's graduation portfolio at Virginia Commonwealth University's VCU Brandcenter. Hoang, 33, graduated with honors from the Foreign Trade University in Ho Chi Minh City and RMIT University in 2015. He began his copywriting career at leading global advertising agencies in Vietnam, including Ogilvy, Dentsu, and Publicis, before putting his career on hold in 2023 to pursue graduate studies in the United States. Awarded a Fulbright scholarship by the U.S. government, Hoang enrolled in the Master's program in Branding and Copywriting at VCU Brandcenter. Ho Gia Hoang, who earned a master's degree in advertising in the United States via the Fulbright program. Photo courtesy of Hoang Despite having worked as a creative lead in Vietnam, Hoang said he was initially overwhelmed by the school's hands-on approach. Students learn through real client projects rather than traditional classroom instruction, working in an environment that mirrors a professional advertising agency. Over the two-year program, they complete dozens of campaigns before selecting around six of their strongest projects for their final portfolio presentation. From the beginning, Hoang found the experience challenging. "My classmates could critique ideas very quickly, while I had to come up with concepts and figure out how to express them naturally in English," he said. To improve, he spent hours studying how Americans communicate in everyday life, from humor and speech patterns to regional cultural differences, aiming to create promotional materials that sounded as authentic as possible. "There were times I rewrote a headline more than 10 times just to make it sound less like translated English," he recalled. As the only Asian student in his class of 21, Hoang said breaking into the U.S. advertising industry was particularly difficult due to its heavy reliance on language and cultural nuance. However, rather than trying too hard to blend in, he chose to highlight his Vietnamese identity. He participated in programs supporting minority students in advertising and secured a paid summer internship in Miami, Florida, during his first year. His graduation portfolio drew inspiration from "Vinh Hoa" (Glory), a famous traditional Dong Ho woodcut painting from northern Vietnam depicting a chubby baby holding a rooster. He paired the artwork with the iconic rooster-branded chili sauce bottle commonly found in Vietnamese pho restaurants across the United States. On his personal website, Hoang explained the symbolism behind the project: "The character of my book draws inspiration from 'Vinh Hoa', a classic Vietnamese painting that symbolizes luck, prosperity, and growth. And honestly, I could use all of that." Ho Gia Hoang at the presentation of his graduation portfolio. Photo courtesy of Ho Gia Hoang He noted that as someone born in the Year of the Rooster, the avatar feels like a piece of home. "Moving to America, suddenly, I felt like a baby again: learning, stumbling, and building everything from the ground up," he wrote. "It’s humbling, a little chaotic, but also kind of exciting. So, here’s to fresh starts, new adventures, and hopefully, a little extra vinh hoa on this journey." "I wanted people to recognize the Vietnamese influence while still making it familiar enough that Americans wouldn't feel disconnected," Hoang said of the design. "It's like introducing a new dish, rich in flavor but still appealing to local tastes." The project beat more than 800 entries from around the world to win the Advertising, Marketing & PR category at the D&AD New Blood Awards. "I used to think I had to become more American to succeed in advertising in the U.S.," Hoang said. "But the more I worked, the more I realized that what truly makes me unique comes from Vietnam." His award-winning portfolio featured seven carefully selected projects. Among them was a campaign for Apple Pay that reimagined the common habit of forgetting one's wallet as a positive behavior in the era of digital payments. He also worked with classmates to experiment with artificial intelligence to produce promotional images and videos for tourism in Chile, despite none of the team having visited the country. Establishing himself in the U.S. required nearly two years of intensive preparation, developing projects deeply rooted in American culture to demonstrate his adaptability. Ho Gia Hoang and his colleagues at Tombras. Photo courtesy of Hoang Before graduating, Hoang applied to Tombras, named Agency of the Year 2025 by Ad Age. He reached the final interview rounds at Amazon and Wieden+Kennedy as well, but accepted a job offer from Tombras less than a week after his interview. After earning his master's degree in May 2025, Hoang relocated to Knoxville, Tennessee, to begin his career. Despite launching a promising career in the U.S., he plans to return to Vietnam around August this year, concluding his three-year stint abroad. "I want to return and create campaigns that have a positive impact on the community," Hoang said. "I hope to bring Vietnamese culture and everyday life into my ideas so they resonate with real people and real stories." Subsidiary of VnExpress License number: 71/GP-CBC, Ministry of Information andCommunications, September 22, 2021 Editor-in-Chief: Pham Van Hieu Email: [email protected]: 028 7300 9999 - Ext 8556 10th floor, Block A FPT Tower, 10 Pham Van Bach, Cau Giay Ward, Hanoi