DAY 01 THE DOPE ON DIGITAL Strong growth & buoyant demand says Asia is getting it right.
PROMISE OF CASH & CONSULTANCY
all3media International can take you global.
02 Dec 2015 THE MIGHT OF ASIA CJ E&M’s DJ Lee paves the way forward in today’s pay TV market.
Visit us at ATF 2015 Stand D10
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02 Day @ a glance Explore Junior @ ATF with high powered presentations on creating compelling content for kids!
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great mind shares The industry’s biggest names take the stage at ATF’s Pre-Market Conference, sharing insights hot off the press
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from the market
PRofile
Deals and spills from the market floor; the latest collaborations and acquisitions in Asia
AF_IAM_ATF.pdf
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President of CJ E&M’s Media Content Division, DJ Lee, has no doubt the Pay TV market in Asia is a booming one, even amid the nervous tick that has entered the industry
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GALLERY
FEATURE
Snapshots from the scene at ATF 2015 Pre-Market Conference
The Emerging Cinema of South East Asia: 7 Filmmakers to Watch
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Digital TV Services on the Rise in Asia
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36 PRODUCTS NEWS Check out what’s on offer at the Market
FEATURE
Asia’s Growing Force in the Global Market
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DAY at a Glance
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2 Dec 2015 Wednesday JUNIOR @ ATF
conference 10.00am–11.30am Opening Ceremony 1.00pm–1.40pm In Conversation Sponsored by
Market EVENTS 9.00am—6.00pm Level 5 Film & TV Market Southeast Asian Film Financing Project Market 12.00pm—2.00pm Level 3, Saraca 3900BC SMF Media Leaders’ Lunch
(By invitation only)
1.50pm–2.30pm Masterclass: Engaging Kids Through Storytelling The Five Elements Of A Good Story
2.00pm—4.00pm Singapore Pavilion - E08 SNEAK PEEKS
3.30pm–4.15pm The Ultimate Audience: Satisfying the Asian hunger for kids content
2.30pm—4.00pm Level 4, Room 4811 ITV STUDIOS PRESENTS FORMATS SHOWCASE 2015, Bringing You The Best
4.30pm–5.15pm Holding Hands: Making Asian and Western Collaborations Work 9.00pm–11.30pm Opening Party Sponsored by
(By invitation only)
3.30pm—4.30pm Taiwan Pavilion - C10 TAIWAN PAVILION NETWORKING RECEPTION PARTY
Editorial & Production Team Editorial Director Lunita S V Mendoza On Site Editor Mark CHEN Designer Zoey LIM Photographer Justin ONG Project Management Senior Project Director YEOW Hui Leng Project Manager Joyce CHUA Marketing Senior Corporate Marketing Manager CHUA Yee Ling Marketing Manager Monika AU PUBLIC RELATIONS Senior Account Manager Diana LOW
4.00pm—6.00pm Malaysia Pavilion - D10 CREATIVE MALAYSIA NETWORKING RECEPTION
Assistant Account Manager Samantha NG
4.00pm—5.00pm Singapore Pavilion - E08 SINGAPORE HOUR (TV)
Research and Delegate Program Executive Genevieve CHEW
Buyers
Exhibitors & Participants QUOTE OF THE DAY
QUOTE OF THE DAY
Our objective at ATF is reposition the proposition of our newly merged company to the market. The merger of WME IMG brings together the leading agency in sports, with the leading talent agency in the world. The merger brings together a wealth of exciting content opportunities, which we want to communicate to the market.
This is my first time at ATF first time, but KBS has been participating for several years now. As Director of Acquisition in the Programming Division, I am particularly interested in high quality documentaries, covering science, culture, current affairs, world affairs, and history.
Tom Broom, Executive Vice President & COO, WME IMG
Jeong Joong Kim, Director of Acquisition and Chief Producer, KBS Media
Account Manager PHUA Meenyi Project Coordinator Chrystia LIEW Conference Executive Producer Lunita S V MENDOZA Operations Operations Executive Amelia KHO Operations Executive Bryan LAM Published by REED EXHIBITIONS, a division of Reed Elsevier (Singapore) 2008 Pte Ltd
Formatted For Life
China s 430 m eries 2 illion v iews on Ten Cent
From award winning TV opinions to beastly dating shows – and everything in between – all3media international have formats to suit all your needs. ATF Stand No: K08 @all3media_int all3mediainternational.com
from the m arke t
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Korean Version of Chef In Your Ear Renewed For Second Seasons
Cottonwood Media Makes Delightful Debut Chef in Your Ear (Bomanbridge Media)
Kids and family entertainment content producer Cottonwood Media is set to delight audiences as it makes its ATF debut at the France - TVFI pavilion with two titles based on Random House books.
Singapore-based Bomanbridge Media has renewed the rights for the highly successful reality cooking format, Chef in Your Ear, to Korean powerhouse CJ E&M for 2016. Created by Justin Scroggie of The Format People, Chef in Your Ear pits two professional chefs in a competition to produce a restaurant-quality dish – by remote control. The cooking is done by self-professed “kitchen disasters”, novice cooks
who take instructions from the chefs, who are locked out of the kitchen, unable to smell or taste the food. The original Canadian versions, in English and French, have drawn record audiences. Locally-titled Avatar Chef, the Korean version shows early signs of similar success, with the season proving popular with audiences.
The Ollie & Moon Show is a slapstick comedy that follows two animated cats – who could not be more different – across a live-action globe. Moon, a fashionforward hat aficionado, is happy-go-lucky and takes joy in serendipity. Ollie, on the other hand, is a planner who hates surprises. In their travels, the unlikely pair introduces kids to unlikely friendships and global citizenship. Cottonwood’s other offering is Squish, an animated comedy set against the surprisingly hilarious backdrop of amoeba, as they struggle to survive in the cutthroat world of single-celled organisms.
ATF Formats Pitch Sponsorship with All3media International All3media International and ATF invite Asian producers to enter their shows into this competition that will enable the expertise of all3media International to aid the winner on its global path. All3media International is known in the region for licencing in such formats as Are You Normal, Gogglebox, Sexy Beast and Undercover Boss. The company now wants to work with Asian-based producers to export their shows. All3media International is here to focus on the Format opportunity with this competition, as the key driver for export/import – a genuine two way street of ideas and talent. This endorses their general mission to work with the best creators of TV and the best TV – to partner leading creatives in the broader TV medium. It embraces the Asian regions expertise in game shows and also their incorporation of
technology and interactivity – witnessed by the statistics of Are You Normal’s performance on Tencent for example. Call for Format entries will happen via ATF and the competition will culminate at ATF 2016. This is also reflected for the second time at MIPFormats – ATF’s sister show – where the international pitch is open to all creators and producers around the world. ATF Formats Pitch* will see three rounds of judging – two rounds prior to the market in starting in Autumn of 2016. Judges across the stages will represent key creative power houses such as Studio Lambert and Lion TV, as well as key local and European broadcast commissioners. The winner will receive a cash prize and bespoke consultancy with a range of all3media producers, as well as a trajectory to distribution via All3media International.
* Shows will have strong potential to be formatted in Europe and ROW
The Secret Life Of Four Year Olds 1 x 60’ pilot and new 7 x 60’ series commissioned Format and Finished episodes available
A breakout hit for Channel 4 in the UK Now launched on DR1 (Denmark) and VTM (Belgium) Coming soon to TF1 (France)
UK indies. Stand K32 Amelia Ritchie, Sales Executive amelia.ritchie@zodiakrights.com
from the m arke t
Flame Scores Hot Pre-Show Deals The future looks bright for Australian Flame Distribution, whose new science series, Predict My Future – The Science of Us, has caught fire with broadcasters in Europe, Australia and the US. Commissioned by TVNZ, the series presents evidence that early life events can be accurate predictors of future health and happiness. Predict My Future - The Science of Us (Flame Distribution)
History has also proven to be a timeless hit with audiences. WWII – The Price of Empire sheds new light on major campaigns during the war through archive footage and eyewitness accounts. Commissioned by Foxtel for the History Channel, it has also been picked up ahead of the show. In all, Flame has packed over 200 hours of new content to exhibit, including The Herbert Brothers, the unlikely upstarts who beat real-life Madmen at their own game, Highwaymen, Pirates and Rogues, an intriguing glimpse into the violent world of cunning yet charming rogues, and some hairy encounters with the best pints and grub in Hairy Bikers – The Pubs that Build Britain.
Cleverman (Red Arrow International)
Asia Shows CAKE the Money
Total Drama Presents: The Ridonculous Race (CAKE)
Red Arrow Hits the Target with Fat Content Haul Red Arrow International hasn’t missed the mark in its line-up for the 2015 ATF season, anchored by the weighty reality format, Diet Wars, a smart and sexy original scripted drama, Cleverman, and the global hit, Married at First Sight, a slightly bizarre social experiment.
It’s deals galore, as European kid’s entertainment specialist, CAKE, hits pay dirt with the signing of several Asian buyers. The notable inking rakes up a significant 340 half-hours. The list includes the Cartoon Network taking in four seasons of Fresh TV’s award-winning animated reality TV series Total Drama, and includes the latest season Total Drama Presents: The Ridonculous Race. China’s JY Entertainment acquired a VOD package of animated favourites,
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while Singapore’s MediaCorp procured a free TV deal for Poppy Cat (S2). Top that with a line-up of free TV, pay TV and VOD distributors in China, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand gunning for CAKE’s animated pre-school series Space Racers, it’s reassurance for a region once thought lacklustre. Look out for CAKE’s brand new pre-school space series, Ready Jet Go! at ATF, which is expected to premiere on PBS in the US in 2016.
The global distributor’s line-up is heavy on scripted content; reimagining classic Peter Pan in the breathtaking event movie Peter & Wendy, thrilling audiences with the seductive, high-stakes espionage series, The Romeo Section, and bringing back acclaimed Amazon crime series Bosch, based on Michael Connelly’s best-selling novels. But perhaps the most intriguing is its realworld social experiment for BBC One, The Day the Cash Came, where families living below the poverty line are gifted a year’s salary in cash, no strings attached, by an anonymous benefactor.
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Cineflix bags Asia deals ahead of ATF Independent UK TV content distributor, Cineflix Rights, has inked a series of deals with broadcasters in Asia in the run up to the Asia TV Forum & Market. Pakistan’s PTV Global has bought more than 160 hours of content including Mayday: Air Disaster, Border Security, and Border Force, while Discovery India has bought hipster travel show Food, Booze & Tattoos, and Next Step Thailand has bought wildlife and natural history series Angry Planet and Ocean Vet.
WHO WE ARE We are the Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW), a labor union made up of the thousands of professional writers who create the television shows, movies, new media/digital content, documentaries, animation, videogames, news and radio programming that keep audiences constantly entertained and informed.
Writers Guild of America, West 7000 W 3rd Street Los Angeles, CA 90048 T: + (323) 951-4000 T: + (323) 782-4501 E: contracts@wga.org FAX: (323) 782-4707
www.wga.org Represenative attending ATF: MELODIE SHAW Field Representative/ Organizer
Our members write every genre of audiovisual content creating some of the most popular and profitable entertainment in the world. If you are producing English-language theatrical motion pictures, television shows, or new media/digital programs and want Hollywood-style storytelling, our members have the skills you want. Many of our members are multilingual and culturally diverse giving them a unique edge for creating content with international appeal.
WHAT WE DO • Negotiate with studios, independent producers, networks and new media/ digital companies to improve writers’ compensation, benefits and creative rights • Enforce contracts • Protect financial and creative rights • Determine and protect writers’ credits • Process residuals payments • Provide portable pension and health benefits • Foster networking and educational opportunities • Engage in public policy advocacy directly and through our political action committee If you have questions about the important work being done by the WGAW, the largest labor organization of its kind in the world, visit the Guild’s website at www.wga.org.
NEED A WRITER?
Angry Planet (Cineflix Rights)
Commenting on the deals, Chris Bonney, CEO Rights, Cineflix Media said: “We’re really pleased to be closing these high volume deals for some of the most popular and enduring blue light brands in our catalogue as well as taking some of our newer wildlife and natural history programs into the region, where we think they’ll be equally successful.”
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DJ Lee to Asian content creators: “Make your own Kimchi” take its content global, leveraging our ‘talent, technicians, and identity’. “We are not just good at mathematics and playing the violin,” he jokes before emphasising on how CJ E&M’s current success is owed to its investment in creating content, and in developing their own content-creation system. “Branding Korean content is like branding Kimchi,” Lee said. “I encourage all of you to make your own Kimchi; to make your own original recipe.” The challenge is to “find your own kimchi”, and the way to do so is mapped in three ways - creative casting, finding stories that cross generations, and exploring emotions and relationships to gain a loyal and passionate audience.
“It is a very exciting time in media content creation because people can create, consume and distribute content anywhere in the world”, said DJ Lee, President, Media Content Division, CJ E&M, as he delivered the opening keynote, Into the Future of Television: Asia’s Move Forward.
‘Better late than never’ was a central theme, alluding to the fact that for a long time, Asian screens have been dominated by Western content. Noting that there are more opportunities now than ever before as technology changes the way audiences consume and distribute content, it is time for Asia to
Asia is particularly diverse and to embrace the opportunity that Asia has to offer, Lee revealed his mantra: Keep calm and cooperate. “Success lies in building relationships and exchanging ideas,” he said. “So, make your own kimchi, if they like it, they will probably come back and order more. Let’s combine our recipes and create multicultural content and send it across the world,” concludes Lee. “It’s better late than never.”
APAC OTT Challenged by Piracy and Intensifying Competition Despite the numerous opportunities in APAC TV markets for OTT services, the spectre of pirated online video sources was constantly raised as a significant constraint on growth and spending. The consensus was that while it is challenging competing with a free service, it is possible to ensure that legitimate services offers enough in the way of convenience and user friendliness to prevail against illegal alternatives. The focus turned to the growth offered by markets such as Thailand and Russia and the ever improving network distribution infrastructure for OTT video in APAC. While many markets aren’t quite ready for the bandwidth demands of UHD streaming, there were notable exceptions, particularly Korea and Japan. Thailand has a thriving online video scene which is growing and preparing for the impending launch of Netflix in 2016. While the
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Millennials are driving a content revolution: René Rechtman We are going through a revolution now, spanning across creation, distribution, and monetisation of content, says René Rechtman, “It is a seismic shift and millennials are driving it.”
videos is just 3.8 minutes compared to 5.1 minutes two years ago. Six second videos, popularised by Vine, and apps like Snapchat are evolving all the time to cater to the new generation of users.
Rechtman, Head of International at Maker Studios was delivering the second keynote of the day, speaking on the Development and Expansion in Asia’s Digital Marketplace.
Content, too, is evolving to keep millenials interested, and its form matters. Unboxing, pranks, parodies, let’s play, are just some of the new forms that have recently evolved.
Around 50% of the population in Asia are millennials. With millennials being four times more likely to go online than other age groups, and with 98% of them doing so using their smartphones, Rechtman believes it’s all about mobile in this generation.
“Who have heard of unboxing as a media content category twelve months ago? It’s crazy,” remarked Rechtman. Local conditions may determine the uptake of short form media, though. In his experience, the top three to four YouTubers in any market are local talent. For creators and producers in this content revolution, act local and think global, advises Rechtman.
The creators and rising stars among the millennials mostly come from YouTube, said Rechtman, noting that we live in an era where influential social media stars like PewDiePie and KSI have more clout over millennials than traditional advertisers. In the world of short form video, ‘audience is creator is audience’ and for them authenticity and trust are key factors. “It is all about authenticity, you can’t try to hide behind a good story,” he said. While he admitted that “we don’t know the future”, the trend towards short form content is supported by the data. By September 2015, the average length of online
Hollywood entertainment proposition of Netflix is appealing to global audiences, the importance of local content in nonAnglophone markets such as Thailand and Japan, was stressed repeatedly. For content owners such as Fuji TV, Taka Hayakawa demonstrated the power of online distribution which has enabled the broadcaster to dramatically increase the number of markets it was exporting popular Japanese drama series to by working with online distribution partners. This breadth of distribution is also being leveraged by YipTV which offers a linear OTT subscription service whose channels routinely show high value sports broadcasts live, such as “El Clasico” between Real Madrid and Barcelona which drives a global audience of hundreds of millions. YipTV who must also compete with free, illegal sports streams argued strongly that the convenience and value offered by its service was slowly turning the tide against illegal video streamers, where user experience is commonly markedly worse by comparison.
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APAC Online Opportunities Abound for Traditional TV Players Discussing the opportunities available for traditional TV players – TV content creators, broadcasters and pay TV operators – in online distribution offered many strong indications of the opportunities traditional TV sees in online distribution. There is no longer the “them and us” mentality which was prevalent when online video began its current growth surge and the focus now is on how best to serve audiences deeply committed to the flexibility and content formats offered by OTT. This is crucial for the TV industry as OTT visual entertainment consumption is strongest amongst younger audiences. Gaining a foothold in OTT and learning how best to attract and retain audiences online is strategically vital for the long term health of TV. Endemol’s Fotini Paraskakis and MNC’s Yudha Wibawa both echoed the importance of the on-demand, short form video format for younger viewers. However short form isn’t isolated from the linear TV experiences: Paraskasis spoke of the trend of TV producers wanting to work with streaming stars and of the ambition of streamers to increase their involvement and exposure on traditional TV. Short form online is becoming an increasingly important proving ground for visual entertainment talent.
The perspective of the BBC’s Monty Ghai on building the globally recognised BBC’s presence online hinted at further growth opportunities in APAC. The BBC is launching three on-demand services in 2016, led by BBC Brit targeting a younger male demographic. With some of the most recognisable broadcast properties in the World and a wider public service remit to raise
the visibility of British culture and entertainment throughout the globe, the BBC has identified online distribution as fundamental to their wider goals in ensuring that both the shows themselves and the channel brand retain their huge cachet and influence. The BBC is also broadening production across APAC and increasing short-form video production.
SHOW ME THE MONEY (OR NOT), DIGITAL IS HERE TO STAY! All four speakers who represented online content networks of major media conglomerates unanimously agreed that, they wouldn’t be cashing out of their digital businesses any time soon. This united voice, which came at the end of ATF 2015’s Pre-Market Conference session: “Digital Content: Cashing In Or Cashing Out”, was a real revelation on the back of a global digital content industry that is facing unprecedented economic and market challenges. The panel comprising some of the biggest hitters in game – Christopher Smith from Endemol Beyond, Philip Kitcher from RTL’s Stylehaul, Jenna Mok of CJ E&M Korea’s DIA TV and Media Marini Ramlan of Prima Digital of Malaysia – however, did disagree on which content business model proved to be most sustainable and profitable, which led to a lively debate.
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Does TV have a future? The question is whether this segment will go on to commercial broadcast and pay TV subscriptions or remain with OTT when they grow up. Standalone subscription Video-on-Demand (SVOD) services, like Amazon and Netflix are gaining traction, satisfying an audience hungry for what is described as binge viewing. For traditional TV to continue to grow, it needs to leverage on OTT distribution with multiple services and content bundling, including working with third-party OTT and mobile video services without overly affecting their intellectual property.
The advent of Over-The-Top content, or OTT, in recent years has seen the delivery of audio, video, and other media over the Internet proliferate in a manner that has gotten pay TV operators to take note of. Independent and without the involvement of a multiple-system operator in control or in the distribution of content, does it bode well for traditional TV? Ed Barton, OVUM’s Practice Leader for TV, paints a picture of how the television can
continue to grow in the face of multiple IPenabled devices and independent content. The key is to firstly recognise that OTT content has provided overdue competition for traditional TV. This is evident especially in children aged 11-15 whose primary consumption is in the short form video driven by aggressive, innovative and technology-oriented companies such as YouTube and Netflix.
This is evident in the expansion of Netflix, which sees around 60% of its subscribers enjoying pay TV as well, which points to a trend of SVOD as a supplement rather than a replacement for pay TV. Barton envisions that by 2025, traditional TV can evolve, becoming more personalised in terms of content as well as advertising deployment. “Now we all see the same commercials but in future, we can potentially see different ads and content. Instead of having channels X,Y, and Z, you can just have channel U where your viewing needs and habits, and even preferred device, can be available in one simple option.” TV has a fantastic future.
Smith of Endemol and Stylehaul’s Kitcher favoured storytelling as the absolute key in determining the success, or failure, of a web original series, a factor that preceded even the choice of talent and delivery platform. It was no coincidence that Marini and Jenna, both Asians, championed for the continent’s cause where creativity driven by localisation and understanding of native cultural sentiments would win the day instead. Despite the endless possibilities of content business models out there, industry players are not deterred and will continue to challenge the convention, dispel the misconception and cast new proposition for the one thing that matters – their audience.
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One of the top creative persons in the format space paired with one of the biggest Asian networks. success in place of social media. In addition, Mr Winnan and Ms Qiu highlighted the need for truly integrated digital formats that are developed with mobile and online interactivity as core pieces of the format, rather than being tacked on after a format is developed. Both panellists pointed out that the overall format needs to be able to be successful across markets with cultural differences; they stressed the importance of story-telling that transcends cultures and can be scaled up or down in magnitude for individual markets.
Through the discussion with Ms Qiu and Mr Winnan, it became clear that the strategies for these media powerhouses centred on foreign format acquisitions and coproduction. This is augmented by the opportunity for JSBCi to leverage its domestic talent to develop formats that can be successful globally. ITV similarly sees a big opportunity in developing the production capabilities throughout Asian markets through partnerships which will help develop rock-star local content.
JSBCi sees digital platforms being used for collaboration with traditional broadcasters throughout the development, production and broadcasting stages to obtain viewer feedback that can actually direct the focus of the show before it reaches the screen. Likewise, Mr Winnan is also seeing digital platforms, mostly social media, being used to quantify the success of formats and shows. He envisions the potential for the eventual decline of audiences as the key metric to quantify
What do Buyers Want? Including advertising, subscription and public sources, the APAC region is now the second largest TV market by revenues, behind the US, and accounting for 21% of the global $194 billion market. Both pay TV and broadband connections are growing faster in APAC than other regions. This creates a large and unique market opportunity because pay TV market growth is slowing down in other regions. To exploit this opportunity, TV players, either linear or non-linear, are betting on unique content to stand out from the crowd. This point was illustrated by the examples from LeTV, Youku Tudou, GroupM Entertainment and CJ E&M. Given the uniqueness of the market, all these companies have an interesting line up of content in their 2016 programing bucket list. Focused on the Indonesian market, Group M has allocated budget for intellectual property creation and looking for long-term partnership
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The best content will always find an audience Steve Macallister, CEO, all3Media International, shares his thoughts on the content production and distribution landscape in the UK and other parts of the world in a conversation with Sahar Baghery, Head, Global Research & Content Strategy, Eurodata TV Worldwide, France. All3Media International, among the UK’s top distributors, is expanding globally and will soon be opening an office in the US and in this region.
his producers,” he said. “It has become ever more complex.” Macallister also shared with the audience how he was growing the business worldwide through more investment in content and market research, and a more proactive approach in co-productions to succeed and stay ahead of the surve in a fast-changing market. Formats are a big driver of business in Asia, he revealed. On formats, he cited
the example of Tencent in China. They had licensed a show, Are you Normal, to the Chinese media company. The show became extremely popular in China as it leveraged on audience participation using Facebook. In its second season, the show registered 430 million engagements on the social media platform. On the future of content, Maccallister emphasised the importance of working with great producers, because the best content will always find an audience.
“We are opening an office in APAC at the end of next year because half the TV sets of the world are here,” announced the company’s CEO Steve Macallister at a forum in the ATF on Tuesday. Macallister also announced a competition, the ATF Format Pitch, during his talk with Sahar Baghery, Head, Global Research & Content Strategy, Eurodata TV Worldwide, France . He invited Asian content makers at the forum to submit their great ideas for studio-based entertainment shows for a chance to win US$250,000. “The market is evolving rapidly and there is a lot of fragmentation in local markets,” said Macallister. Talking about content distribution, he said that in a global but fragmented market, distribution has become a key part of being financed. “The role of a distributor is to figure out the best way to market for
with broadcasters and production house in 2016. They are looking at the local market trends that move quickly, like demand for Turkish, Middle East and Indian romance contents, which are in demand but need to be dubbed into local language. Animation and Documentaries are also of interest, but again customization is important. Youku Tudou, meanwhile, is looking at forging international partnerships in coproduction in 2016 in order to overcome the regulations that limit international content in their portfolio. LeTV is looking at high quality drama series to drive subscription in 2016. For CJ E&M, fresh content in its formats will continue to be their main focus. In addition to creating their own format, they are also looking at localising international formats to suit local demand. According to IHS, it will be important for TV players to address the two trends shaping up the TV landscape currently: firstly, the new TV audience has to be thought of
holistically spanning business models (free to paid content) and platforms (online to traditional broadcasting). This varied nature of the industry may create challenges for businesses in this market. Secondly, the era of ‘one size fits all’ TV subscription is over. The consumer will now exist on a continuum from free-to-view only to those taking large TV bundles. Aggregators still have a role in the ‘new TV’ but packages will have to adapt to better serve these diverse consumer needs.
be very different for countries within the region. In this context, it is important to understand what each company is doing and build the APAC TV market success model company by company, country by country.
Despite the growing strength of international players, like Netflix, consumers in difference countries will exist in different points on this continuum. Both these trends will create opportunities as well as challenges that are unique to the APAC market. Based on the direction given by the panellists and the interest in the questions generated by the audience, the APAC market seems ready to address these unique drivers and challenges which may
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Profile
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Covering Every Base Korea’s CJ E&M reflects Asia’s global ambition By Lunita S V Mendoza, Executive Producer & Editorial Director, ATF
Lee Deok-jae, or better known today as DJ Lee, is a man who has no doubt the pay TV market in Asia is a booming one, even amidst the nervous tick that has entered the industry in the form of the Millennials. He walks fearlessly, sticking to an age-old wisdom that unique and original content will always be worth its weight in gold.
CJ E&M anticipates US$580 million in international revenue by 2018, with China contributing 60% (40% from Japan and Southeast Asia). CJ E&M is also moving ahead with joint local productions with Chinese satellite broadcasters, leveraging CJ E&M formats, working with local artists and growing media and movie businesses through JVs with Vietnam partners. In addition, CJ E&M is growing and investing in emerging digital business. From this ambitious list, what will CJ E&M be focused on next, following the completion of its subsidiary in Shanghai this year? As CJ E&M envisions becoming a global content company in the Korean broadcasting industry, it prioritizes global co-productions. In the short-term, CJ E&M plans to activate co-productions with Chinese and South East Asian production companies based on their formats. Through this cooperation, CJ E&M plans to share its knowledge and experience and upgrade the standard of Asian content. In the long run, CJ E&M plans to pave the way for Asian content to become global by co-producing with major global partners. In CJ E&M’s push forward to grow its overseas market, what elements in the MCN and digital space will you be looking for in terms of shortand long-term partnerships? The most important element in the digital content business is the network and community of creators, who are closely connected to users. With this in mind, CJ E&M plans to secure partnerships with Asian creators and MCN business operators in order to execute various content campaigns. In the long run, CJ E&M plans to concentrate on developing a profit model for premium digital content.
“As CJ E&M envisions becoming a global content company in the Korean broadcasting industry, it prioritizes global co-productions.” 02 14
DJ Lee, President, Media Content Division, CJ E&M
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“Barely 10 years ago, no one in Korea predicted that the pay TV arena could grow like this.”
CJ E&M’s most popular programme, I Can See Your Voice.
The merchandising business is a clear revenue source that is substantial enough to garner significant attention. CJ E&M is Dreamworks’ exclusive agent for Korea. Will there an overseas expansion of this success and where will the foremost focus be on? In the content business, merchandising or commerce business based on content IP is critical because it creates massive sales volume, which cannot happen from just selling copyrights. As well, to make the merchandising business a huge success, overseas sales is essential to secure a certain market size. In this sense, CJ E&M considers China, Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia as important regions.
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Based on your extensive experience in the pay TV arena, how relevant will history be, seeing how landscapes have changed so much, leading towards a transient and highly inconsistent behavioral pattern today? Barely 10 years ago, no one in Korea predicted that the pay TV arena could grow like this. For 10 years, the competition in the pay TV area has been fierce, and viewers’ behaviour has constantly evolved. It is not easy to predict the television industry in the next decade. However, there is a thing that one can predict – it is that premium content will still attract viewers 10 years from now. This is why CJ E&M is not just a broadcasting company, but is a “content creation and marketing company”.
Can you predict which pillar will champion the growth of this industry five years from now? In the Asian content market, the format, digital, and MCN business seems to be infant businesses that do not have a proper profit model yet. The success and failure of such businesses depend on the changes of the media environment, consumer demand, digital technical standard, and regulations of various countries. Thus, nobody can predict which pillar will champion the growth of the content industry. I hope at ATF, we can share and discuss opinions on such issues.
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"FRESHEST CONTENT : WHAT'S TRENDING IN SOUTH KOREA?" 03 Dec 2015, 11:30-12:30, Level 4, ATF Conference Theatre Visit Korea Pavilion @ ATF Booth #H10/H20 02
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Audience at the Pre-Market Conference
CEO of all3media International, Steve Macallister, announced the upcoming 2016 Call for Format competition during his session with Eurodata TV Worldwide’s Sahar Baghery
Michael Tribolet, Chairman, Co-Founder & CEO of YipTV, at conference session ‘View From Over-The-Top’
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Managing Director of Endemol Asia, Fotini Paraskakis, at ‘Driving The Shift: Native Players, Digital Strategies’
IHS Technology’s Vinita Jakhanwal moderated the ‘What Do Buyers Want?’ session with panellists Hwang Jin Woo of CJ E&M, Fera Rosihan of GroupM Entertainment, Maggie Xiong of Youku Tudou, and Charlene Lai of LeTV
VP Asia Pacific of Stylehaul, Philip Kitcher, with Senior VP (Asia) of Repucom, PJ Roberts, sharing a laugh in the Speakers’ Lounge
GALLE RY
Keynote speaker DJ Lee with moderator Sang-Im Kim, Senior Director of Business Operations at Sony Pictures Television Networks (Asia), on creative marketing
Yeow Hui Leng, Senior Project Director of Reed Exhibitions, kickstarting the Pre-Market Conference
Panellists from the Pre Market Conference session, ‘View from Over-The-Top’, field a host of questions from an engaged audience.
VP of Strategy & Partnerships at WebTVAsia, Desmond Ngai, in conversation with a conference attendee in the Speakers’ Lounge
Keynote speaker René Rechtman, Head of International at Maker Studios, on the influence of the millenial generation in Asia and the rising stars of social media
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Monty Ghai, Senior VP & GM of BBC Worldwide (SEA), at ‘Driving The Shift: Native Players, Digital Strategies’
FE ATURE
Digital TV Services On the rise in Asia The signs are good for digital TV services in Asian territories in the coming years. Andy Fry has been following the growth curve By Boutique Editions
RTL CBS has acquired a wide range of titles including Netflix original drama series House Of Cards
Asia’s digital TV business is set for strong growth over the next few years. Despite continued economic volatility in the region’s major markets, the prospects for both pay TV and subscription video on demand (SVOD) look surprisingly buoyant. Recent figures from leading market analyst Digital TV Research (DTVR) predict that pay TV subscriptions among Asia’s top 68 operators will increase from 376 million in 2014 to 535 million in 2020 – a rise of 74%. At the same time, DTVR says, these 68 operators will see their total subscription and VOD revenues climb by nearly $10bn, hitting $33bn by 2020. These up-beat forecasts follow another recent report from DTVR, which says the number of SVOD-connected homes in Asia will rise to 68.83 million by 2020 – four
22
times today’s figure. The Asia Pacific OTT TV & Video Forecasts report anticipates strong growth in leading economies including Japan, China, South Korea, India and Australia. And there are also positive numbers for Indonesia and other emerging markets. DTVR is expecting SVOD revenues to rise from $1.03bn in 2014 to $4.76bn in 2020. Headline figures like these explain why so many international channel operators are seeking to establish a foothold in Asia. Already well-embedded in the region are the likes of A+E Networks, Scripps Networks Interactive and Discovery Communications, which recently added to its portfolio with the acquisition of Setanta Sports Asia. Other recent arrivals in Asia include BBC Worldwide’s premium factual
channel BBC Earth, Rewind Networks’ Hits and a portfolio of TV channels operated by an RTL Group/CBS International joint-venture. Alongside the international channels, global SVOD giant Netflix has also started moving into the region. After opening for business in Japan during September, it unveiled plans to enter South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan in early 2016. “The combination of increasing Internet speeds and ubiquity of connected devices provides consumers with the anytime, anywhere ability to enjoy their favourite TV shows and movies on Netflix,” Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings, says. “These four markets well represent those trends.” SNI’s managing director of Asia Pacific operations, Derek Chang, says his company now has four channel brands in
DAY 1
the region: “We launched Food Network Asia in 2010 and then acquired Travel Channel (2012) and Asian Food Channel (2013). Most recently we launched HGTV (2014). As a result we now have six feeds broadcasting across 21 countries in seven languages.” Assessing the region, he says: “There is short-term volatility in the market – for example the slowdown in China’s economy and currency concerns in Malaysia and Indonesia. But you have to accept volatility is part of day-to-day business. Longer term, Asia is a dynamic market where population and demographic trends are moving in the right direction for pay TV.” SNI mostly uses US content, but Chang says there is an opportunity for local content creators. “We’ve produced shows in markets like Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong and the Philippines because it’s important to have a local flavour to your schedule. Usually we will localise proven formats like The Best Thing I Ever Ate using Asian talent.” Alongside production opportunities, the growth of pay TV and SVOD platforms is also good news for content distributors. HITS, for example, is broadcasting US shows including Cheers, Seinfeld, Grey’s Anatomy and Law & Order, while RTL CBS has acquired a wide range of titles ranging from The X Factor UK to drama series House Of Cards. In the case of recent US drama acquisition Limitless, HITS managed to secure a deal for the show to air within 12 hours of its US launch. “We’re committed to bringing strong programming to
audiences in the region and are delighted to air Limitless day-and-date with its US broadcast,” says Jonas Engwall, CEO, RTL CBS Asia Entertainment Network. “It will complement the line-up of programmes on our channel.” Latin-American scripted product, already popular in Asia, is also finding new outlets in the pay TV market. US Hispanic network Telemundo, for example, is launching a two-hour block on the femaleskewing cable net Diva – part of the same NBCUniversal family as Telemundo – with titles including Aurora and Cruel Love (Perro Amor). There is also growth in demand for factual TV, says Cineflix Rights Vice President Sales Asia Pacific and Benelux, Chris Bluett: “We have seen healthy
in Australia, Nine Network has launched Stan, its own SVOD service.” The advent of such services means the issue of on-demand rights has also moved up the agenda for Asian broadcasters, Bluett says. “Two-to-three years ago SVOD was not the main focus of a negotiation. Now it is one of the main terms broadcasters wish to discuss. Even if they don’t have an SVOD service up-andrunning they are keen to tie down rights – especially on content that they consider is key to their strategy.” Joanne Azzopardi, Beyond Distribution Vice President international sales, Australia, New Zealand and Asia, is also positive about Asia’s rising potential. “There is definite demand in Asia
“Longer term, Asia is a dynamic market where population and demographic trends are moving in the right direction for pay TV. ” growth in the region over the last year. This has been driven in particular by the expansion and ambitions of the big international cable players, which has helped increase both demand and prices.” While it is still early days for SVOD, Bluett says the market is on the move: “We have been closing deals with Netflix for Australia and New Zealand and also talking to them about potential in Asia. We’re also talking to iFlix – A new Malaysia-based SVOD service – about content deals. And
for the kind of content we represent, especially factual, lifestyle and children’s edutainment. Pay TV channels are increasingly competitive in the services they offer and opportunities to monetise on-demand rights exist both through dedicated VOD services as well as through traditional pay TV broadcasters.” Examples to back Azzopardi’s case include Love It Or List It on HGTV Asia, a range
THE NUMBERS
ti
Subscrip
10bn
.03bn
$4.76bn
$1
es to
venu OD re
5bn
ill grow
enues w
OD rev on and V
33 billion
30bn
rise
10 billion
1bn
Asia’s mong e a s n riptio creas subsc tors will in V T y ra Pa 8 ope top 6
376 million
400mn 70mn 2014
SVOD-connected homes in Asia will rise Source: Digital TV Research
68.8mn
535 million
500mn
74%
SV
2020
SNI’s Derek Chang: “We now have six feeds broadcasting across 21 countries in seven languages”
23
FE ATURE
DAY 1
Canada’s DHX Media licensed over 400 half hours of content including Teletubbies, to iQiyi
of cooking titles on Asian Food Channel, true-crime series Fatal Vows on AETN’s CI Channel and almost 100 hours of documentary titles with Turner’s Heritage Channel. “For SVOD,” she adds, “we are working with Netflix for our factual series Mythbusters and in Malaysia with Astro for many of our children’s titles including Backyard Science.” While Netflix and other pure SVOD players may be relatively new to the region, it’s important to keep in mind that hybrid on-demand services that combine advertising and subscription are already booming in China. Between them, the likes of Youku Tudou, Sohu, Tencent and iQiyi generate millions of content streams and have become voracious buyers of international content, covering everything from Sesame Street to Saturday Night Live. One beneficiary of this is Canada’s DHX Media, which licensed over 400 half hours of content including Teletubbies, Paddington and Caillou to iQiyi in June 2015. It has also done deals with Chinese entertainment and online video company LeTV for Teletubbies and rights company Sunshine for 160 half hours including Inspector Gadget. Thom Chapman, DHX Media territory manager for Englishspeaking Canada and Asia Pacific regions, says: “China is becoming one of our key
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“There is definite demand in Asia for the kind of content we represent, especially factual, lifestyle and children’s edutainment.” territories for distribution growth and coproduction possibilities. It has been exciting to see the amount of OTT, SVOD, and APP players in the market and the growth in appetite for kids’ content.” Another company that has benefited from this trend is Turkey’s Global Agency, whose variety show format Is That Really Your Voice? has recently been a huge hit on iQiyi. Isil Turksen, Sales Director at Turkish distributor Global Agency, says: “Asia is a continuously growing market. We are seeing new actors in every market and by establishing new relations, we are expanding on both the format and finished content side.” While Global Agency is exploring SVOD, it is pay TV where Turksen sees the best short-term opportunity: “We are currently in touch with channels in both South East Asia and Northern Asia.” Our current focus is Malaysia and Indonesia and we hope to close deals here in the near future with our drama series.”
Beyond Distribution’s Fatal Vows features on AETN’s CI Channel
FE ATURE
ASIA GROWING IN FORCE
IN THE GLOBAL MARKET The ATF is playing a key role in exposing Asian content to the international marketplace. It’s also the place where international content partnerships are formed. Andy Fry meets some of the players in the Asian content business By Boutique Editions
Japan’s NHK is working on a 4K production with the BBC called Wild Japan
Asia is a TV production powerhouse. Active in every programming genre, the region’s leading content owners and distributors enjoy great success selling their shows to channels within the region and around the world. In drama, leading Korean shows continue to work their magic on audiences across the region. A good example is KBS’s hit show, The Producers, which has sold to broadcasters and platforms in China, Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Kazakhstan, while digital streaming rights have been licensed to parts of Europe, the Middle East and North America.
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In the entertainment genre, this year has seen a growing number of alliances between Eastern and Western firms around formats. One high-profile example announced at ATF sister show MIPCOM saw ITV Studios Global Entertainment form a partnership with CJ E&M of Korea to exchange format rights and develop new ideas for the global market. This followed a previous similar partnership between RTL-owned FremantleMedia and SMG. In the same genre, TBS Japan has been enjoying success with its assault course game show format Sasuke/Ninja Warrior, which it licensed to Banader Gulf Company for use in the Middle East. The show also aired on NBC in the US.
In the factual genre, Asian firms continue to be active partners in a number of pioneering co-productions. Japan’s NHK, for example, is working on a 4K production with the BBC called Wild Japan and has also recently partnered on a range of projects with platforms including Al Jazeera in the Middle East, SABC in South Africa and US-based digital platform CuriosityStream. NHK global content development division senior producer, Sayumi Horie is keen to form partnerships within Asia “because we want to increase entertainment content originating in Asia”. A recent example of this is Songs Special: The Genetics
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of Pop, produced with TVBS in Taiwan. Horie’s ambition echoes other developments in the region. For example, Korea’s EBS is working with China’s Shanghai Media Group (SMG) on a 4K documentary about the ancient tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, which the partners are confident they can sell to broadcasters around the world. Animation is a genre in which Asia has become a recognised centre of excellence. Recent developments have included the relaunch of two iconic Japanese franchises, Sunrights’ Beyblade and Toei Animation’s Dragon Ball. The newest edition of the latter, Dragon Ball Super, was licensed to Toonami in Asia on the eve of the ATF. Mark Eyers, chief content officer for Turner’s Kids Networks in Asia Pacific, says: “This announcement is huge for fanboys and girls in Asia. Dragon Ball is undoubtedly the original and world’s biggest anime export, and is a cornerstone of our programming on Toonami. Since the channel launched in 2012, Toonami has been airing episodes of Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Z Kai, and to premiere Dragon Ball Super demonstrates the channel’s continuedcommitment to securing musthave content, first on Toonami.”
Bubble Gum, a romantic comedy from CJ E&M
Aside from all the great work coming out of Japan and Korea, the likes of China, the Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore have all emerged as key cogs in the Asian animation success story. Examples of this include the recent launch of numer-
ous Malaysia-backed co-productions. At MIPCOM, it was revealed that Malaysia’s Giggle Garage and South Korea’s Funny Flux are working on animated series Katuri while Malaysian producer Lil’ Critter Workshop has joined forces with another Korean
FE ATURE
studio, Grafizix, on the show FrienZoo. Animasia Studio also struck a sales deal with US distributor NCircle Entertainment for its animated pre-school series ABC Monsters. Much of Asia’s finest content is on display at the ATF, where more than 150 companies from across the region will be among the exhibitors. One is Singapore-based producer Beach House Pictures, whose head of business development Jim Ribbans believes “the rest of the world is waking up to the talent and creativity that exists in this part of the world. At Beach House Pictures, for example, we produce content across all genres – from natural history and science to specials, character-driven travelogue, reality formats and kids live action, animation puppetry and drama. “The three key titles we are bringing to ATF this year are: Wild Cities, an international, multi-episode version of the successful Wild City format that premiered on Channel News Asia earlier this year; Borneo Rangers, an ob-doc/adventure/ character-driven series set on the island of Borneo; and Mr Midnight an ambitious, freaky, creepy tweens drama series, based on a series of books by James Lee (Jim Aitchison) that out-sold Harry Potter in Asia.” He adds: “As an Asian producer of international content it makes huge sense for us to be at ATF. It offers us the chance to interact with international broadcasters and distributors, and also get a great sense of what is happening locally. It is a great opportunity to re-establish relationships and create new ones.” Ribbans reports strong sales in Asia and beyond: “Our content generally does very well worldwide. Our recent landmark series, China From Above, co-produced with CICC, National Geographic International and NDR, garnered 130 million online views in China in just two weeks, while Nomad Chef, produced for Discovery International, has been well received in every market it has shown.
Korea’s CJ E&M reports “a strong lineup of shows involving popular actors/actresses and storylines” at the ATF this year, according to Ellen Oh of the company’s international sales division. One example is Reply 1988, the third series in the Reply franchise. A family drama, it is set in 1988 against a backdrop of the Seoul Olympics and popular Hong Kong movies. Other titles are “Bubble Gum, a romantic comedy filmed by the production team that made Gentleman’s Dignity and Secret Garden. Park Hae-jin, the main character from My Love From The Star, is also starring in Cheese In The Trap, which is based on an extremely popular webtoon in Korea. We also recently-aired Oh My Ghost, which was loved by all viewers.”
Nippon TV’s Shigeko ‘Cindy’ Chino: “Family entertainment is our strong area”
Asia in one place.” Shigeko ‘Cindy’ Chino, senior director of international business development at Nippon TV says: “Family entertainment is our strong area and we recommend our latest observational reality format, The Kindergarten, which has been successful for over 17 years in primetime Japanese TV.” She adds: “We also have new finished series such as the much-discussed social experiment show, Matsuko-Roid, in which an android hosts the show.” Other titles include magazine show Celebrity Confessions to Ariyoshi, young adult animation series Nurse Witch Komugi R, sitcom A Girl’s Breakfast and action dramas such as High And Low and Angel Heart.
CJ E&M’s content sells well in China, Japan and Southeast Asia, but Oh also sees potential for the company’s drama titles in India. In terms of overall prospects, she says: “The linear market still has a lot of demand. But the OTT market is expanding nowadays in line with viewers’ needs.” She adds: “The ATF is a great opportunity for us to meet most of our partners from
“Our animation sells well in the West and East while our formats are studied much by China and have been selling in the recent years,” Chino says, adding: “Having launched the GEM channel with Sony Pictures Television Networks this October, many of our dramas and entertainment programmes will reach Southeast Asian and Hong Kong viewers through this channel.”
“Much of Asia’s finest content is on display at the ATF, where more than 150 companies from across the region will be among the exhibitors.”
Overall Chino is upbeat about the market potential for Asian content, but she stresses the importance of understanding client needs: “We see new demand coming from the emerging countries such as Vietnam. They are hungry for entertainment, but as with the other Asian markets, localisation is key and we need to be sensitive to their unique requirements.
We have also received hugely encouraging projections for the first series of Wild City, which appears to have real global appeal.”
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NHK’s Sayumi Horie: keen to form partnerships within Asia
Japan’s NHK is working on a 4K production with the BBC called Wild Japan
New services, including internet platforms, are launching day-to-day and have a great appetite for a high volume of content, but their interests are quite differentiated so we hope to deliver our contents to the right place in the most effective way.”
ATF 2015 Sapporo Show Daily 01(DAY01~DAY02) Size: 244W X 164H Scale 1/1 Toei Animation’s Dragon Ball Super, which was licensed to Toonami on the eve of ATF
Nippon TV’s The Kindergarten, successful for over 17 years in Japan
Chino says the ATF is “an opportunity to reach out directly to our Asian buyers. Besides our local clients, we see Westernclients stationed in Asia playing an important role as a bridge for localisation. We would like to reach out to these players to facilitate establishment of our successful programmes in Asia.”
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7
FILM M AKE R
The Emerging Cinema of South East Asia:
Filmmakers to Watch
It has been a long road for Southeast Asian cinema. With a celluloid history that stretches back to the turn of the 20th century, Southeast Asia collectively enjoyed a brief golden age of in the post-war 1950s, producing dozens of films a year. The success,
however, was short lived, as the art of filmmaking took a back seat to the more pressing troubles that overtook the region. But there is a new generation of Southeast Asian directors quietly experimenting and honing the art of
celluloid storytelling for both local and international audiences. Young, talented and deeply inspired by the diverse cultures of the region, these filmmakers are beginning to bring local and international attention back to Southeast Asia.
1
Lucky Kuswandi 35, Indonesia
Known for his gusto with tackling taboo subjects in the Indonesian film industry, Kuswandi’s work has been appraised by The Wall Street Journal as “original and uncharted.” Indeed, his first motion picture, Madame X (2010), is about a transgender superhero. It was later nominated for awards in Hong Kong, and won the achieved the Best Film title in the Mix Copenhagen Film Festival. Variety lauded it as “an assured first feature… as much fun as it sounds.” But Kuswandi is not all about fun; his works also broach controversial and progressive topics. As a victim of the May 1988 riots, his films pay particular attention to themes of personal identity and the voices of the underrepresented. His 2008 documentary, Miss or Mrs.?, which was screened at the Berlin Film Festival, is about Indonesian women fighting for their sexual rights. Kuswandi has turned down a U.S. scholarship opportunity to continue working on bringing audiences Indonesian-made features. The promising director is currently writing the screenplay of his third feature film.
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2
Davy Chou 32, Cambodia
Chou is an ambitious Cambodian-French filmmaker who resurrected the memories of local cinema pre-Khmer Rouge regime where close to 400 films were lost or destroyed, through his first documentary feature, Golden Slumbers (2012). It was later selected in more than 40 festivals, including the Forum Berlinale, and released theatrically in France and the United States. His short film, Cambodia 2099, about dreams and time-travel, received the best prize at Curtas Vila do Conde in 2014, no easy feat considering that he wrote the script in five days. His films have been said to be rooted in Cambodian origin and “feel”. Besides bagging a string of other awards in Philippines, Taiwan and Poland, Chou has also inspired his fellow countrymen to take active interest in filmmaking and movie-going. Diamond Island, his latest feature in preproduction, has already won the Arte International Prize at the Busan Film Festival.
3
Mattie Do 33, Laos
Mattie Do is the only Laotian woman to direct a feature film to-date. With background as a makeup artist, she was exposed to the sets of several independent productions abroad. Upon arriving back in Laos, she began working on a reality TV program. Her first feature, Chanthaly (2013), a horror film, was screened in international film festivals and provided insight into one of Asia’s most obscure cultures, while staying true to the dynamics of a proper scare-fest and a “taste for blood”, critics allege. In 2013, she was chosen to represent Lao film at the Cannes Film Market as part of the Institut Français’ La Fabrique des Cinemas du Monde. Do’s work has not just propelled the development of national cinema for Laos, but she also has intentions to reach more audiences globally with the first Lao-American co-production, Jamie M. Dagg’s River, which is slated to release in 2015, and another upcoming horror feature, Dearest Sister (2016), which is co-produced with France and Estonia.
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FILM M AKE R
4
Ian Lorenos 33, Philippines
Self-described as a “geeky-jock filmmaker from the Philippines”, Ian Lorenos was first introduced to the world of cinema through art workshops he attended at university. His first screenplay, The Leaving, was selected to participate in the 5th Berlinale Talent Campus in 2007, and eventually emerged as a finalist, securing US$10,000 in a seed grant, with an invitation to participate in the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival. In 2012, Alagwa (Breakaway), an exploration of urban legends surrounding child and human trafficking, won ten awards and 16 nominations, including at the 2013 ASEAN International Film Festival Award. Born and raised in the heart of Manila’s Chinatown, the Chinese-Filipino maintains strong connections to his culture and heritage, which in turn heavily influenced his style of filmmaking. Lorenos is currently working on an upcoming feature film on a group of friends facing down a quarter-life crisis.
5
Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Photo Credit: Walker Art Centre
45, Thailand
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Also known as Joe, the Thai writer-director is known for his fantasy drama Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010), about a man on his deathbed that fuses together mystical elements including a runaway buffalo, a princess and an animate catfish. The accomplished film won the Cannes Palme d’Or award and currently holds a favorable Metacritic score of 87%. His other films Tropical Malady (2004) and Blissfully Yours (2002) have clinched awards at Cannes. His most recent film, Cemetery of Splendor, has already met with acclaim at film festivals around the world, including at Cannes. Joe tackles difficult themes like sexuality, inspired by his own homosexuality, and other subjects such as nature, dreams and Western perceptions of Asia. What is most intriguing about his films is that some of them share the same fictional worlds, and display unorthodox narrative structures like placing the titles or credits in the middle of a film. He directs his films with the belief that like the word “queer”, anything is possible.
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Ham Tran
6
41, Vietnam
Photo Credit: Lao Động
Ham Tran is the Vietnamese-American filmmaker behind the tragic 2004 short, The Anniversary, about brothers separated by the war between the North and South. The powerful story explored themes that resonated deeply with Vietnamese, and with cinemagoers; the film picked up 25 international awards and was a semi-finalist at the 2004 Academy Awards. This was followed up in 2007 by Journey from the Fall, a full-length dramatisation on Vietnamese boat people and reeducation camps. Speaking about his particular style, he claims to draw inspiration from families, their relationships, and the journey of self discovery along difficult roads. More recently, Tran had turned his attention to levity, premiering comedy caper, How to Fight in Six Inch Heels, in San Francisco. He is currently working on scripts for two new projects, but remains tight-lipped.
7
Wan Ping Looi 38, Singapore
Inspired by the films of Andrei Tarkovsky, Looi started out as a directory of photography for notable independent films, including Anthony Chen’s Haze in 2008, that resulted in a Best Cinematography award at the Timishorts Film Festival. His first feature film, White Days, picked up by festivals in Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, and as far aways as Rome, Berlin and Santiago. Recognising the challenge that faced other young Singaporean independent filmmakers, he co-founded 13 Little Pictures, a collective that facilitates collaboration between the nation’s emerging cinematographic talent. His latest project, Three Flats, is a documentary explores the contrasts of national ambitions and personal struggles of three single women, set against the backdrop of the ubiquitous public Housing Development Board flats that have become something of a Singaporean icon. Three Flats was selected to compete at the Singapore International Film Festival in 2014.
The 5th edition of ScreenSingapore will see a new feature the Southeast Asian Film Financing (SAFF) Project Market. Formed under the partnership of ScreenSingapore, organised by Reed Exhibitions, Southeast Asia Audio Visual Association (SAAVA) and Ties that Bind, the SAFF Project Market is Southeast Asia’s first regional co-production project market. It is curated to assist 10 shortlisted projects to meet with potential investors, distributors and collaborators to explore how they can bring these projects to fruition. Visit the SAFF Project Market to find out more about the 10 shortlisted projects, and join the ScreenSingapore Conference on 4th December to learn more about co-production and film financing.
35
Wild Kratts (9 Story Media Group)
Products Ne ws
9ers Entertainment HIYA | Jin-ho is a teenage boy who aspires to be a K-Pop star, but success is snatched from his grasp when his management company falls victim to financial fraud. Determined to help his younger brother achieve his dream, Jin-sang, an ex-convict, sets out to bring the fraudster to justice. Will the two estranged brothers in Hiya ever reconcile?
all3media International Indian Summers | Set against the magnificent landscape of Shimla, Indian Summers is a period drama that explores the lives of the British social elite, at a time where Indians were fighting for independence from British rule. The drama unfolds as both sides intricately intertwine in a game of power, politics and passion.
Indian Summers (all3media International)
Sing It On (Banijay International)
Wild Kratts | Wild Kratts is a half hour animated action comedy from the creators of the hit shows, Kratts’ Creatures and Zoboomafoo. Join Chris and Martin Kratt as they embark on a wild adventure, travelling to different corners of the world to rescue their animal friends with the help of their Creature Power Suits.
HIYA (9ers Entertainment)
9 Story Media Group
Banijay International Sing It On | Sing It On is a docu-reality series which is inspired by the movie, Pitch Perfect. Produced by Grammy® Award-winning singer-songwriter John Legend, the show follows singing groups around the country as they juggle school, rehearsals and relationships while vying for a spot at the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella.
Captain Alatriste | Set in 1623, Captain Alatriste is a historically accurate retelling of the Spanish Match, the illfated betrothal between the royal families of Spain and Britain. Based on the bestselling novels by Arturo Perez Reverte (“The Nine Gates”), Captain Alatriste is told through the eyes of Spanish master swordsman and streetwise soldier Diego Alatriste.
Land of Gremlins (Blue Ant International)
Captain Alatriste (Beta Film GmbH)
Beta Film GmbH
Blue Ant International Land of Gremlins | Discover Madagascar’s most extraordinary fauna, such as the endangered Silky Sifaka lemur and Ploughshare tortoise, in Land of Gremlins. With 90 percent of all life on Madagascar found nowhere else on earth, there is no other amazing zoological record than this natural wildlife sanctuary.
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CJ Entertainment The Advocate: A Missing Body | When Byeon, a hotshot lawyer, was asked to prosecute a murder case where the only evidence was a large pool of blood, he prepares a false witness to ensure his win. But just when he victory is around the corner, an unexpected event changes everything. Uncover the mystery in The Advocate: A Missing Body.
Kuu Kuu Harajuku (DHX Media)
Fake, Stolen and Sold! (Deutsche Welle)
LIMITLESS (CBS Studios International)
LIMITLESS | LIMITLESS is the television sequel to the blockbuster thriller of the same name. Brian Finch is a loser who accidentally discovers the brain-boosting power of a mysterious drug, NZT. Coerced into joining the FBI, Finch has to use his extraordinary drug-enhanced cognitive abilities to solve complex cases for them, while keeping his own dark secrets hidden.
The Advocate: A Missing Body (CJ Entertainment)
CBS Studios International
Deutsche Welle
DHX Media
Fake, Stolen – Sold! | Fake, Stolen – Sold! exposes the sinister side of the art world. From theft and extortion to counterfeits and forgery, the series paints thrilling stories of high-profile heists and uncovers the secrets of master counterfeiters. Discover the mystery and intrigue where high culture meets criminal genius.
Kuu Kuu Harajuku | ‘Kuu Kuu Harajuku’ is an animated series about a band called HJ5: Love, Angel, Music, Baby and their inspirational leader G. The girls are crazy talented, but each time they start a gig, something wild happens before they are able to finish the first bar.
Young And Holy | Young and Holy explores the life of young male Lamas, who are predestined to lives immersed in the ascetic religious training required to become leaders and “living Buddhas”. Deeply respected by devout Tibetans, the Lamas devote themselves entirely to their mission to spread and pass on the holy traditions of Buddhism.
Globo Precious Pearl | Precious Pearl won the 2014 International Emmy Award in the telenovela category. Millionaire Franz Hauser miraculously survived an assassination attempt by his brother and against his family’s wishes, fell in love with Amélia. The lovers were separated after an evil scheme and it is up to their daughter, Pearl, to overcome the conflicts that prevented her parents’ union. Precious Pearl (Globo)
Young And Holy (Discover China Production Limited)
Discover China Production Limited
37
Products Ne ws
Goldbee
A is for Apple (Gusto TV)
Mako Mermaids | Dive into the mystical world of Mako Mermaids. Sirena, Nixie and Lyla are cast out of their mermaid pod after they failed to guard the magical Moon Pool from land-dweller Zac who gained amazing powers and a fish-like tail. The three young mermaids must now get legs and venture onto land to reclaim Zac’s powers or risk being outcasts forever.
Mako Mermaids (Goldbee)
Gusto TV
Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat (Indiacast Media Distribution Pvt. Ltd.)
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Transformers Robots In Disguise (Hasbro Studios)
Hasbro Studios
Tristana (Luk Internacional S.A.)
Tristana | Touted as Luis Buñuel’s 1970 Masterpiece, Tristana is a dark love story which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. This psychological thriller follows Tristana’s transformation from an innocent orphan, who starts to find her voice and seek independence, into a cynical and bitter reflection of herself.
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Mondo TV S.p.A.
The Adventures in Duckport (Mondo TV S.p.A.)
Luk Internacional S.A.
Transformers Robots In Disguise | Autobots, roll out! Transformers: Robots in Disguise, picks up story after Transformers Prime. Optimus Prime summons Bumblebee to assemble a new team of young Autobots to save earth from a new breed of evil Decepticons. With his team being relatively inexperienced, Bumblebee needs to rise up to the challenge coach and unite his team to chase and capture their enemies.
The Adventures in Duckport | Featuring the adorable Suzy’s Zoo character set, The Adventures in Duckport follows the exciting and whimsical adventures of Suzy and her friends as they interact with, and show respect and love for, the elder members of their community. Ever helpful, the friends do their best to save the day every chance they get, even if they end up in a pickle doing so!
DAY 1 MGM
Moses and the Ten Commandments (Record TV Network)
Shades of Blue (NBCUniversal International Distribution)
From Dusk till Dawn (MIRAMAX)
Spectre (MGM)
Spectre | A cryptic message from the past sends James Bond to Mexico City and Rome, where he meets the beautiful widow of an infamous criminal. After 007 uncovers the existence of sinister organization SPECTRE, he embarks on a mission to enlist the help of the daughter of an old nemesis. As Bond ventures toward the heart of SPECTRE, he discovers a chilling connection between himself and the enemy he seeks.
NBCUniversal International Distribution Shades of Blue | In Shades of Blue, Jennifer Lopez is a New York detective who falls in with a group of dirty cops, taking bribes and protection money to provide a better life for her daughter. When she’s caught by the FBI and forced to inform on them, she’ll have to walk the fine line between love, loyalty, honor and betrayal, and try to keep it together for her daughter’s future.
SER Film Production
Record TV Network Moses and the Ten Commandments | Spanning over one hundred years of history, Moses and the Ten Commandments is a retelling of one of the most famous events of the Bible: the story of Moses. Each episode is alive with intrigue, suspense and the triumph of faith, always conveying the sense that the same God of Moses is present among us even today.
Talpa Global
Superkids (Talpa Global)
The Little Bride (SER Film Production)
The Little Bride | Zehra, a fourteen-year-old girl with huge dreams, becomes an exchange bride to the young son of a clan leader. Now a child bride to a wealthy family, she is unable to behave like most girls her age. How will Zehra adapt to her new life and will she be rescued?
Superkids | Superkids is a talent show that gives gifted youngsters the stage they deserve. In this positive talent competition, kids showcase a wide-variety of astonishing skills, including singing, dancing, playing an instrument, ice skating, executing a magic trick and performing a comedy sketch. It’s genuine feel good entertainment for the entire family.
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DAY 1
Sheep and Wolves (Wizart Animation)
The Assembly Game (Televisa International)
Products Ne ws
Supergirl (Warner Bros. International Television)
Lightning Quiz (Workpoint Entertainment)
Warner Bros. International Television Supergirl | Born on Krypton but raised by her adopted family on Earth, Kara struggles to keep her identity secret, even as she uses her superpowers to protect her adopted home from clever villains with powerful hi-tech weaponry and a sinister extraterrestrial menace. Combining the heart, humor and spectacle, SUPERGIRL brings a strong female hero to television screens at long last.
Harvey Beaks (Viacom International Media Networks)
Gangaa (Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd)
Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd
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Gangaa | Gangaa is an inspiring story of a child widow who is characterized with the indomitable spirit and will to survive. She is considered to be a threat to age old customs of the society. However, her spirit and resilience ensure that she emerges a winner. Gangaa is sure to make way into the viewers hearts with innocence, enthusiasm and the zest to live life to the fullest.
4-7 April 2016 // Cannes // France
MIP
*
tv
Just like Ben Silverman, thousands of talented people bring content to life. Come and mip them. Ben Silverman, Founder & CEO , Electus
Join them miptv.com
4 days 11,000 participants 20,650 m2 1,632 exhibiting companies 100 countries 3,915 buyers
(including 1,050 VOD buyers)
*MarchĂŠ International des Programmes : Your content, your community. Any screen. The global TV and digital marketplace in April.
Visit us at ATF on stand D21