EXCLUSIVE Asia takes ~60% of Netflix global non-English top 10 TV hours in 2025
PLUS Philippines’ Rein Entertainment on what’s next; Vigloo founder Neil Choi, and Shih-Ching Tsou on Left-Handed Girl
2026 radar: The signals we can’t ignore
... such as the evolution of microdrama from full-blown mania to rude (or maybe sensible) reality; the next wave of cross-border production alliances and what the quest for “international” really looks like; the hole in Thailand where THACCA used to be; what Asia’s telcos say about video content, and what they actually do; plus more...
Asian series dominate Netflix’s 2025 global nonEnglish TV top 10
Asian series topped viewing hours on Netflix’s weekly global non-English TV rankings for the year to 16 November, taking about 60% of the more than 10 billion hours spent viewing top 10 nonEnglish series around the world.
Asia bails, U.K. prevails
China’s acquisition of U.K. TV content continues to collapse, with exports falling 44% for 2024/5 compared to the previous year, Pact’s U.K. TV Exports report shows. Acquisitions from Asia overall remained on a downward slide, dropping 29% for the year. 18
New wave, new Japan
From high-impact dramas to cross-border storytelling, the Japan Pavilion at this year’s ATF celebrates innovation and international partnership.
Big eyes and US$130 billion hopes: Japan’s global anime industry soars
Growing overseas appetites make Japanese anime an export business – data shows a consumption tilt that is attracting big company investments.
Brought to you by Broadcast Program Export Association of Japan (BEAJ) 20 22
Sacrifice. Made Personal.
From grief to healing and, finally, to the quiet courage of sacrifice, Monochromatic Pictures’ acclaimed Korban trilogy reaches its most personal chapter yet. Directorwriter Jeevan Nathan and producer Audrey Anthoney reflect on what’s next for Aisyah, and for themselves.
What are you most optimistic about?
Life beyond mergers, markdowns and hoping for miracles...
ContentAsia’s new Opti-meter index asks content execs what they are most optimistic about as the New Year dawns.
Say ‘hello’ to Girl, Bye
Los Angeles-based Girl, Bye Productions, a full-spectrum studio specializing in highconcept, character-fueled unscripted content, will debut at ATF anchored by two womendriven, maiden productions: Manila Matriarchs and the just-completed, Project Empire
Brought to you by Monochromatic Pictures 25
Tracking the Trends
WBITVP’s approach to asia’s format landscape. With titles already in Japan, India and beyond, WBITVP is shaping a slate that reflects the region’s appetite.
Brought to you by WBITVP 29
Brought to you by Girl, Bye Productions 27
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Mio Imada
Andre Renaud, GVP, Format & Finished Sales, Warner Bros. International Television Production
what’s inside... (con’t)
Left Right: “The industry finally sees what I’ve been building for 20 years”
Left-Handed Girl – Taiwan’s Oscar submission for Best International Feature Film – is a turning point for Taipei-born New York-based filmmaker, Shih-Ching Tsou.
Swipe up: Inside Vigloo’s 2026 expansion plans
Korean vertical video platform Vigloo will double microdrama/vertical series production in 2026. Neil Choi, founder and CEO of Spoonlabs, which operates Vigloo, told ContentAsia about his plans.
Focus: Thailand
46
The value of Thailand’s content production sector will continue to drop, sliding to US$584 million in 2030 from US$916 million in 2019, Media Partners Asia (MPA) says. But there are other things to be optimistic about...
Acquired tastes: Pen-Ek Ratanaruang
Japan’s superpower: manga x anime x gaming
Thai director Pen-ek Ratanaruang serves amusing confusion in his new film Morte Cucina and dishes dirt in Tokyo.
Serial entrepreneur Fujimura Tetsu argues that the width and depth of Japanese IP resources make the country an entertainment industry leader. SG
Singapore’s Indie Producers Find Power in Short Form
Brought to you by AIPRO
Yamada Yoji @94: Mischief, Mastery and a warning for Japan’s film industry
“When no one is watching, do you still do what’s right?
Philippines’ indie Rein Entertainment asks tough questions in its movies and series, from Salvageland, which opened in theatres on 26 Nov, to premium series Drug War: A Conspiracy of Silence and Dose, which has KC Global Media on board as a co-production/distribution partner. ContentAsia speaks to founders Lino S. Cayetano and Shugo Praico about their why, how, and international growth ambitions.
has 52
At 94, Japanese director Yamada Yoji is still hungry for success. 50 54 The Hot Spot
2025 ContentAsia Awards’ best director, Itaru Mizuno, on mixing the unreal with ordinary life in The Hot Spot. 56 Ants
Director Yujiro Honma and producer Shin Yoshikawa on Ants, the 2025 ContentAsia Awards’ winner for Best Asian Original Game Show. 38
Morte Cucina
Matrimoney
On set, Singapore stories
Shugo Praico
Lino S. Cayetano
2026 radar
What we’ll be watching in the new year...
The Korea-Japan production relationship will continue to take hold as the two markets look at each other and realise that – despite the mismatch in operating styles – they may be stronger together. Among the latest titles in this bucket are Merry Berry Love, announced mid-November 2025 and scheduled for a 2026 release. The cross-cultural romantic comedy series brings Japan’s Nippon TV and Korea’s CJ ENM together for the first time. This collaboration sits within a broader push by Japanese media conglomerates to accelerate global expansion. This includes Japan’s export powerhouse – anime. In November, the Association of Japanese Animations highlighted its contribution to a content industry sector, and set bold growth targets: ¥20 trillion/US$129.4 billion by 2033 from ¥4.7 trillion/US$30.4 billion today. The poster alliance in the animated space at the TIFFCOM market in November was Yomiuri TV’s co-production, Pino & Shinoby, with Italy’s Studio Bozzetto; the series premieres in 2026.
The microdrama conversation will evolve from 2025’s shockwave into a concerted effort in 2026 to close the gap between financial projections and reality. Ultimately (maybe not in 2026 but certainly in the next few years), we will stop thinking that the power of high-cheeze theatrics will fix all industry ills, we will cease fixating on the ridiculous titles, and we will get beyond the pretence that microdrama invented the cliffhanger. Meanwhile, creators everywhere are giving this version of vertical video storytelling a go, giving rise to new slates in every country. Our forecast is that the genre will settle into its place in the broader entertainment ecosystem, filling snippets of consumer time, offering talent another working option, advertisers another way to sell, and platforms another service to boost value. How much will consumers in Asia – and particularly in Southeast/South Asia – pay? An age-old challenge. No cliffhanger there
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The effort to drive a T-Wave modelled on Korea’s K-Wave tops our watchlist for Taiwan in 2026.
Taiwan has spent the past few years attempting to turn itself into a magnet for international co-production, using a mix of government funding, public-private partnerships, a sprawling and massively popular annual pitching event in Taipei, and a merry dance across highbrand-value international film and television events around the world.
The issue in 2026 is not about willpower, of which the country has an abundance, or commitment to culture (abundance x 2, including cultural content being designated as a national strategic industry). It’s more about the ability to shapeshift into a creative industry that blends commercial reality with the country’s characteristic arthouse soul; and whether filmmakers are able to turn a slew of announcements about “international” projects into entertainment that actually finds this much sought-after but largely elusive audience.
Japanese public broadcaster, NHK, is also stepping beyond previously held drama production boundaries, closing 2025 in post-production on its first scripted collaboration with Singapore, which is also on an international expansion mission. The drama Lost and Found – filmed in Tokyo and Singapore – is scheduled to air on NHK and on Mediacorp in March 2026 as part of the 60th anniversary celebrations of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Singapore’s Shawn Thia and Japan’s Anna Yamada star in the six-episode series about an introverted Singaporean gamer whose world is upended when his online girlfriend disappears and, in his quest to find her, becomes embroiled in Tokyo’s web of scams, trafficking and illegal workers. Collaboration partners include Empire of Arkadia (EOA), which is handling global distribution with KC Global Media, production house TV Man Union (TVU) and Mocha Chai Laboratories. The series received funding from Singapore’s IMDA international co-production grant.
The six-year-old Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA), now under the newly appointed Sue Wang as chair and Erica Wang as CEO, is the island’s dealmakerin-chief, providing investment, matchmaking and market access that seems to be removing much of the friction traditionally associated with cross-border collaboration.
The most visible regional partners as 2025 draws to a close are Korea’s CJ ENM, which is part of the NT$960million/US$29.5 million Taiwan-Korea Entertainment and Cultural Content Fund created with TAICCA, Far Eastone (FET) and TVBS (the breakdown of financial contributions has not been disclosed); and Singapore’s Mediacorp (working with GrayScale and others). Telco FET, already an active investor in content with legs, has an additional fund to support international projects.
Taiwan’s newly established Joint Journey Creative (JJC) went live in November with a slew of partners, including Japan and Korea. Japan’s K2 Pictures and gaming company Lunta Ventures both signed MoUs with Taiwan that are supposed to – if they happen – support international expansion.
Anna Yamada and Shawn Thia star in Lost and Found
Mio Imada
EIGHT-TIME INDIAN TELEVISION ACADEMY–NOMINATED ADAPTATION OF THE MULTI-EMMY ® -WINNING DRAMA
LEADING ASIA’S FORMATS
THE LONG-RUNNING FORMAT FROM MULTI-AWARD-WINNING PRODUCERS STUDIO LAMBERT
INDIA
THE UNIVERSAL SCRIPTED FORMAT AND PROVEN GLOBAL HIT
GOGGLEBOX MONGOLIA
THE BIGGEST EVER SHOW ON AMAZON MX PLAYER
2026 radar
What we’ll be watching in the new year...
The results of CJ ENM’s end-2025 latest efforts to expand streaming platform TVing’s footprint beyond its domestic market will become clear in 2026. So too will the outcome emerge of the domestic Korea cut-price TVing/Wavve/Disney+ subscription bundles announced mid-November.
Much hope lies in CJ ENM’s multi-year deal with Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) for a branded hub on HBO Max across Asia Pacific in 2026. The WBD arrangment also promises original Korean drama co-production for global distribution; no details yet. The new partnership kicked off on 6 November with the premiere of the Studio Dragon drama, Dear X, on TVing and on HBO Max.
In a second expansion deal, TVing boarded Disney+ in Japan, where WBD has no footprint outside of its mega-licensing deal with market leader U-Next. Disney+ billed the content collaboration as a “major milestone in cross-border entertainment”. The Japan deal kicked off on 5 November with select TVing titles and will “over time” involve up to 60 TVing and CJ ENM shows, including Dear X
At home, the results of TVing’s alliance with would-be streaming rival Wavve were already becoming clear in the third quarter of 2025, when CJ ENM reported combined monthy users of 10 million and a 75% bump in ad revenues compared to Q3 2024.
Netflix, meanwhile, remains Japan’s streaming market leader, with 8.2 million subs and 47% of premium VOD viewership, according to Media Partners Asia (MPA).
Thailand’s biggest disappointment is the effective collapse of THACCA (the Thailand Creative Content Agency announced in early 2024) – a government-backed construct that could, perhaps, have been constructive although there were critics... The idea was to create a united agency in the vein of Korea’s KOCCA (still seen as the gold standard of industry bodies) and Taiwan’s TAICCA. Except it never really got off the ground before it imploded this year as part of a larger political unheaval, leaving a hole where high hopes had been. What happens next? Who knows. Definitely an issue on our radar for 2026.
Genre breakdown of filming activities in Thailand from January to September 2025
If THACCA was DOA, Thailand remains among Asia’s top filming destinations going into 2026 , with a cash rebate of up to 30% for foreign film productions with minimum local expenditures of THB50 million/approx US$1.5 million. The rebate amount depends on activities, including postproduction and for productions promoting tourism and “soft power”. According to the Thai Film Office, 395 productions, with a total budget of THB4,199.39 million/US$130 million, filmed in Thailand from January to September 2025. 46 of these were from India, followed by China (42 productions), Korea (40 productions), Japan (36) and the U.S. (33). The U.S. spent the most at (THB 1,667.35 million/US$51.5 million), followed by China (THB 311.57 million/US$10 million), Germany (THB 293.21 million/US$9 million), Hong Kong (THB 273.46 million/US$8.44 million) and France (THB268.20 million/US$8.26 million).
Number of Foreign Film Productions
Lake Pyar Season 1
Thailand at Busan International Film Festival Market 2025
2026 radar
What we’ll be watching in the new year...
intently to opinions on the opportunities... and some brutal truths. “In the 2024/2025 season, 44 new TV series premiered and 28 of them were cancelled,” Ergenekon said. The estimated budget for the season’s total 880 episodes was US$332 million.
Japan’s understated approach to premium production and Türkiye’s high-drama preferences may seem to be bedfellows from hell, but... successes like Nippon TV’s Mother continue to energise others and conversations closing 2025 and going into 2026 are nothing if not lively. Adaptations of manga are now on the table for Türkiye, along with unscripted IP and feature films.
Key questions like, “how do you turn a 10 or 11 episode one-hour series into an 80-episode x 90 mins Turkish drama” continue to be asked, and with some effort, answered. To even be considered for international sales, a Turkish drama needs to have at least 26 episodes, HECE Medya’s Ceren Ergenekon told a packed session in Tokyo in November during the TIFFCOM market.
But, at the very least, producers are showing up with eyes and ears open, listening
Top-rated Turkish dramas from the past 12 years include remakes of Lebanese series Al Hayba, along with remakes of Korean shows Doctor Cha and Good Doctor. “Remakes are very popular in Türkiye,” she said. The country produces 3-5 remakes a year.
Speaking about the adaptation of Nippon TV’s Mother, she said: “The lead character was a cold, distant woman, which doesn’t resonate with Turkish audiences. And there is no love story. A Turkish drama has to have a love story – if there’s no love story, you have to add one. And the leads were running away together for half of the series. How long can they run away for? So the remake had a challenge.
“But the story has one question that we could not get out of our minds: Who is the real mother? The one who gives birth or the one who raise as the child? It’s such a universal, deeply human question, and that’s why we went all in”. The Turkish remake has now been sold to about 40 territories. “Since then, many Japanese dramas have found life in Türkiye”.
In Singapore, national media platform Mediacorp expands its domestic subscription video slate, adding StarHub’s TV channels/video subscription and advertising to its meWatch online platform. From where we sit, it looks like StarHub could not be happier as it opens the possibility of shedding a segment that it just can’t or doesn’t want to do in favour of the bits (broadband, mobile, enterprise, cybersecurity, etc) that it can. From mid-November, Singapore consumers have been able to buy StarHub packages through meWatch from S$9.98/US$7.70 a month for the small sixchannel packs to S$30.56/US$23.50 a month for a choice of entertainment packs, including Entertainment+ pack (25 channels, incl. Animax, AXN, History, HITS, HITS Movies and about six news channels). The Premier League sports pack lands at S$40.74/US$31 a month. In a move that will surprise absolutely no one, both companies have killed off the universally despised contract model and the clunky set-top box. StarHub has been shedding video subscribers for years; its entertainment subs are now around 300,000 or less. meWatch numbers are not public.
Top of our 2026 radar? Our (hopefully trademark) honest look at the industry’s mood — and some very real panic. Questions being asked: Should people who have, more or less, made a living in video entertainment in the past stick out this crisis in the hope of some sort of recovery? Or should they, in the words of one writer on a lively if brutal LinkedIn discussion group, forget about it and “go to dental school”. Or figure out what the “creator economy” means other than a rebrand of influencer marketing, which really counts as advertising. Or a career in microdrama (maybe, if the money didn’t suck). Film industry analysts talk about a glut of projects looking for the light of day at the endless merry-go-round of markets. The theatrical business in key markets is desperate. Serialised content commissioners and executive producers talk about their search for new and different ideas; “I have money, I just don’t have enough ideas that will work for us,” one told ContentAsia. AI is being called a bubble, with stretched equity valuations and the likelihood of a “sharp correction” and spill-over effects into the real economy; the debate continues to rage between economists. Meanwhile, fear and loathing notwithstanding, creators are up to their eyeballs in AI tools and experimentation, and taking to YouTube with, among other things, a flood of video podcasts. Options for broadcasters, distributors, creators and everyone in between are endless – and compelling for the apparent removal of traditional gatekeepers and curators. Is this what audiences want? Clearly YouTube thinks so; YouTube premium costs more than Netflix (reference: Singapore – YouTube Premium individual membership = S$17.98/US$13.80, Netflix basic = S$15.98/US$12). To us, that’s telling.
Lake Pyar Season 1
Ceren Ergenekon
Nikhil Eapen, Chief Executive, StarHub and Tham Loke Kheng, Chief Executive, Mediacorp
2026 radar
What we’ll be watching in the new year...
Anne Jakrajutatip
Maximalist drama has dogged this year’s Miss Universe Pageant in Thailand. But the tears, trauma, arguments over whether the pageant’s national director for Thailand, Nawat Itsaragrisil, called Miss Mexico “damaged” or “dumbhead” pale against the corporate drama playing out. As this magazine went to print, the Thai office of accounting behemoth Grant Thornton is trawling through the books of Miss Universe Organisation (MUO) majority owner – the Bangkok-based JKN Global Group.
Grant Thornton’s entry into the fray follows two years of high excitement, including promises made and broken, stock exchange earnings filings (and other) deadlines set and missed, payment schedules that some investors seemed to accept until they didn’t, secretly taped and leaked videos, fluid alliances and fractious meetings with flip-flop results within hours, constantly renewed stock trading bans and threats of criminal action...
The drama kicked off in 2023 – less than a year after IMG’s October 2022 sale of the Miss Universe Organisation to the flamboyant transgender businesswoman and one-time media mogul, Anne Jakrajutatip. The total price tag: US$20 million – US$14 million for the acquisition of the entity and the other US$6 million for licence/rights agreements.
Signs that JKN would miss its first bond payment deadline emerged in Aug 2023. JKN Global filed for bankruptcy protection in November 2023. Almost exactly two years later, at the end of October 2025, Thai authorities, after some back and forth, put Grant Thornton in charge.
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The question in 2026 is what they will find as they comb through accounts, likely going back to before the company started defaulting on its multimillion-dollar loans.
Although she fought tooth and nail to hold onto the business she built from scratch, Jakrajutatip was pushed out as CEO of JKN in June 2025, accused by Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission of falsifying financials.
This followed a yo-yo series of events in which Jakrajutatip at one point succeeded in persuading the court to appoint JKN, under her leadership, to head the creation of a business rehabilitation plan acceptable to shareholders.
On October 29, less than a month before this year’s 74th annual pageant in Thailand, Jakrajutatip was replaced as CEO of MUO. This despite categorical denials only a few months before of rumours that a change was in the works. At the time, the organisation called speculation of her ouster entirely false. “We categorically deny any reports suggesting a change in leadership within the organisation,” MUO said in its official statement in June, adding: “There have been no modifications to our executive structure”.
By the end of October, Mario Búcaro – MUO’s VP for international relations since January 2024 and former Guatemalan diplomat – had taken over as CEO. Mexican businessman Raúl Rocha, who owns a substantial share in the organisation,
continues to serve as MUO’s president. Rocha agreed to pay US$16 million for a 50% stake in MUO in a sale announced in January 2024. JKN claims the purchase was agreed in October 2023, before its rehabilitation filing in Thailand. The timeline is critical to deflect scrutiny (and raised eyebrows) over whether JKN was actually allowed to enter into such agreements.
Faded into the background by now is the animosity between Jakrajutatip and the beauty pageant’s former president, Paula Shugart, dating back to 2023. Shugart, who resigned in November 2023 after 25 years with the organisation, said at the time that she was breaking her silence because of the “recent false and outrageous comments” made by Jakrajutatip. Shugart called the assertions “dangerous and reckless” and said they “degrade the Miss Universe brand and its titleholders”. By February 2024, the pair were locked in a public catfight involving suggestions of corruption and under-the-table dealing, allegations of defamation, and threats of legal action.
Against this backdrop, beauty queens took to the stage in Bangkok at 8am local time on 21 November for the finale. The ceremony was broadcast live around the world. Jakrajutatip must have been watching. From where, very few know.
THE HEART OF THE WORLD’S STORIES.
12TH SINGAPORE MEDIA FESTIVAL
26 NOV07 DEC 2025
Celebrating its 12 th year, the Singapore Media Festival (SMF) continues to be the Heart of the World’s Stories – where Asia’s creativity meets global opportunity. This year, SMF unites
film, TV, pop culture, and content through the Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) , Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF) , Singapore Comic Con (SGCC) , and Nas Summit.
ATF - where Asia's content industry meets the world.
Meet with more than 90 companies at the Singapore Pavilion.
03 – 04 Dec 2025 | From 4PM onwards
2026 radar
What we’ll be watching in the new year...
In April 2026, Vietnam’s CJ CGV releases Mr Hero, a family comedy drama directed by Vo Thach Thao (Cây Táo Nở Hoa) starring Thai Hoa (Hijack 78), aka Vietnam’s ‘king of comedy’. Although it took a back seat in noise around the film’s announcement, for Singapore’s Beach House Pictures (BHP), Mr Hero is another happy marker in a multi-directional expansion strategy from its factual roots. It’s also part of a broad and exuberant approach to Vietnam’s film environment, which by many accounts will continue to thrive into 2026.
“Tim Bui, the producer, brought us the Mr Hero project and we loved it and jumped on it,” Beach House Pictures’ founders Donovan Chan and Jocelyn Little said ahead of the company’s 20th anniversary celebration during ATF in Singapore.
Mr Hero, announced in November 2025, is an international collaboration involving HK Film, V Pictures and BHP, which has been majority owned by Fremantle since early 2024. The film follows a hapless father’s unexpected thrust into the national spotlight after faking a heroic rescue to impress his daughter. BHP has also invested in Vietnamese film Dumb Luck, which goes into production in 2026. “We’re very active in Vietnam, and we intend to be more active there,” Chan says. Reasons? The array of talent, relatively attractive box office returns, and the ability to be part of the conversation shaping Vietnam’s film business internationally. Even if the numbers are comparatively modest, “there is growth and it’s sustaining, which is fantastic. And it isn’t expensive to make films in Vietnam,” he says. “What I think is changing is that audiences, like any other audience anywhere else in the world, are becoming savvier...
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and more sophisticated in picking the films they want to watch”. BHP is taking a similar approach to partnerships in Thailand and Indonesia.
The question Chan and Little ask as they seek new alliances is: “What can we bring to the partnership that would be meaningful?”.
BHP’s film strategy kicked off for real about two years ago. This followed the 2021 acquisition of a majority stake in Don’t Cry Butterfly producer, Momo Film Co. Buying into Momo was part of BHP’s push into scripted.
BHP and Momo are currently developing their first premium series, Red Butterfly, based on a true story about an all-female gang run by two sisters in pre-independence Singapore. The eightepisode Chinese/English crime drama, announced in December 2024, has been commissioned by the CANAL+ group and STUDIOCANAL, and produced by STUDIOCANAL in partnership with BHP and Momo Film. Co-creators Constance Cheng (Rings of Power) and Kris Ong (Ajoomma) are writing the series, with Cheng on board as showrunner. The release date has not been confirmed.
Chan pinpoints the experience with feature documentary Elephant Odyssey as a turning point in BHP’s approach to feature film production. The IMAX feature releases in 2026.
“We’ve done feature docs before, for Netflix for example, in the true-crime space. But thinking about it theatrically was new to us,” he says, adding that the IMAX experience encouraged them
to explore other opportunities. “We decided that, hey, we understand how this works now, what can we bring to relationships that will work for both sides and then find projects that do that, like Mr. Hero and Dumb Luck. Then it makes perfect sense for us to be involved... we think theatrical, strategically with the right set of circumstances and script, should absolutely be a new thrust for Beach House’s business”.
Another new direction is BHP’s maiden venture into the “creator economy” with unscripted formats and “genre hybrids” for YouTube and other direct-to-audience platforms. The two titles kicking this off are Model Creator and Cr1me C0de; both still in the works. In the October 2025 press release, Chan described the creator economy as “one of the most exciting frontiers today”.
A proprietary AI toolkit is also being created “to enhance our ability to tell stories without taking away the important human and creator element,” Chan says. “We believe we have to harness AI to help us be faster, stronger, more efficient, but we can’t replace the human storyteller.”
Whatever BHP adds, factual remains a core focus and strength. “Factual has been a mainstay throughout our 20 years, and we’ll continue,” Little says. “We’re known for it.”
Donovan Chan, Jocelyn Little
Source: Netflix’s weekly Global Non-English TV Top 10, 30 December 202416 November 2025. Analysis and Chart: Conten tAsia
Asian series topped viewing hours on Netflix’s global non-English TV rankings for the year to 16 November, taking about 60% of the more than 10 billion hours spent viewing top 10 non-English programmes around the world.
Asian series dominate Netflix’s 2025 global non-English TV top 10
Audiences around the world watched more than 6.3 billion hours of Asian series on Netflix’s non-English top 10 rankings for the year to midNovember. This represents about 60% of the total 10.3 billion hours that viewers around the world spent watching non-English-language top 10 shows, according to our analysis of Netflix’s published weekly rankings from 30 December 2024 to 16 November 2025.
Squid Game drove the year’s biggest viewing weeks for Asia, but consistent performance by Korean series as a whole put Asia well ahead of Europe, which came in at an average weekly share of 24%.
Japan, with its powerful anime presence, was second to Korea. Indian and Thai titles popped up here and there. These series included Thai
blockbuster Mad Unicorn. Indian series included The Royals, Dabba Cartel, and Khakee: The Bengal Chapter season three.
Asia’s average weekly share of viewing hours for the year to mid-November was 57%, with a weekly high of 91% for the first week of the year when Squid Game seasons one and two topped the chart at a combined 530 million hours viewed.
Squid Game season two led the global charts with 417.1 million hours viewed in the week of 30 December 2024 to 5 January 2025. Season three followed with 368.4 million hours in the week of 23 June 2025 and 283.8 million hours the following week. These were the three highest weekly viewing totals recorded for any non-English series during the period tracked.
Other than Squid Game, the Korean shows
that drove Asia’s global performance for the year included The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call season one, When Life Gives You Tangerines, Weak Hero: Class 1 and Class 2 and Bon Appétit, Your Majesty. Other than live-action/manga-based Alice in Borderland, anime dominated global Japanese hits. Top shows included Dan da Dan, season one of The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity, and season three of One-Punch Man
Netflix’s 2025 Japan ace may well be Last Samurai Standing. The series premiered at #2 on the global non-English top 10 for the week of 10-16 Nov with 31.7 million hours viewed. (Ed’s note: Data for the week of 17 November had not been released by the time this issue went to print. The full report will be available to ContentAsia subscribers in early 2026).
Lee Jung-jae as Seong Gi-hun, Lee Byung-hun as Frontman in Squid Game S3
Photo
A series that tells stories of women from Asia who are breaking stereotypes and voicing their opinions loud and clear.
Asia bails, U.K. prevails
U.K. TV Exports report, released in November, shows. Acquisitions from Asia overall remained on a downward slide, dropping 29% for the year.
Both China and Japan recorded consecutive years of decline. China was down 25% in 2023/2024. Japan fell 25% in 2023/2024, followed by a 3% dip in 2024/2025.
India remains the U.K.’s strongest market in Asia, generating £20 million/US$26 million in 2024/2025 and placing 11th globally, although revenues were still down 11% from the previous year.
China ranked 16th worldwide, bringing in revenues of £10 million/US$13 million, followed by Japan at 19th with £7 million/US$9 million. South Korea acquired £4 million/ US$5.2 million worth of U.K. TV content in 2024/2025.
Across the broader Asia-Pacific, Australia held its long-standing #2 position behind the U.S., with revenues of £195 million/US$255 million. New Zealand ranked 10th globally, contributing £29 million/US$38 million.
Despite the ongoing volatility across global markets, U.K. TV exports returned to growth and crossed the £2-billion/US$2.63-billion threshold for the first time. “While conditions remain challenging, businesses are working harder for revenues and finding more innovative ways to window and sell content,” the report, compiled by 3Vision, says.
It also notes that library content is playing a
bigger role in driving sales. “The proportion of library TV sales increased by four percentage points to 44%, which suggests back catalogues are providing a budget-starved market with an
economic solution to finding great content.” The U.S. remained the largest destination for U.K. TV exports, rising 34% year on year, “despite U.S. media companies creating significant challenges over the past three years”.
20 YEARS FROM ASIA TO THE WORLD
New wave, new Japan
From high-impact dramas to cross-border storytelling, the Japan Pavilion at this year’s ATF celebrates innovation and international partnership.
Japan’s scripted entertainment industry is entering a pivotal phase, strengthening its position as one of Asia’s most active co-production partners alongside Korea.
As domestic live-action dramas seek greater international traction, Japanese producers and broadcasters are expanding beyond traditional formats toward globally adaptable, story-driven projects.
The momentum is fueled by collaborations with partners such as NHK, TBS, CJ ENM Korea, and Mediacorp Singapore, reflecting both ambition and adaptability in the international scripted space. While anime continues to dominate global viewing charts, live-action successes like Alice in Borderland have underscored Japan’s potential to create exportable drama IP –a priority now driving a new wave of co-development and format exchange across Asia.
The Japan Pavilion (Stand B12) at this year’s ATF builds on this momentum, showcasing its signature Japan Blue theme through an innovative new layout. Embodying the catchphrase “The Next Wave of Japanese Entertainment”, the pavilion incorporates the Seigaiha (青海波) motif, the traditional Japanese wave pattern. The pavilion’s design was created by Hidehito Izuhara, chairman of the Japan Design Association and acclaimed spatial producer.
Twenty-two leading Japanese media companies, including major broadcasters and production houses, will present their latest content offerings, spanning from cutting-edge animation to romcom, compelling variety shows and documentaries. With a 20% expansion in floor space from the previous year, the pavilion introduces a dedicated event area.
The highlight will be “Drama Gems from Japan”, the third installment of the successful Scripted Format presentation series, scheduled for 3 December 2025 (Wednesday) at 4pm.
Industry expert Victoria De Kerdrel from K7 Media will present and analyse 11 new dramas: Murderous Encounter from Nippon TV, Rondo behind the Final Curtain from Kansai TV, Small Bait, Big Love – Ebiko’s Hunt for Her Mr. Right from Chukyo TV, Synanthrope from TV Tokyo, The Moonlit Kitchen from Tokai TV, Just a bit Espers from TV Asahi, Learning to Love from Fuji TV,
Players from WOWOW, Forest from ABC TV, FOGDOG from Yomiuri TV, and Love is for the Dogs from TBS. Just a bit Espers and Forest, will receive special spotlight sessions where creative executives will share production insights and participate in a Q&A moderated by De Kerdrel. All titles are available for international distribution and format adaptation, offering diverse opportunities for global collaboration. The event schedule also includes specialised presentations: 3 Dec 2025 2pm TV Asahi: Masked Ninja Akakage Showcase | 3pm Osaka Four Stations Spotlight (Yomiuri TV, ABC TV, MBS, Kansai TV): Ookini! New Unscripted Formats Presentation | 4pm Drama Gems from Japan
4 Dec 2025 11am Four TV Stations from Nagoya (Tokai TV, Chukyo TV, CBC TV, Nagoya TV): The Center of Japan, Nagoya’s DRAMA Showcase! | 2pm WOWOW: SUIKODEN (Water Margin) & New Titles Showcase | 3pm Osaka Four Stations Spotlight (Yomiuri TV, ABC TV, MBS, Kansai TV): Ookini! New Scripted Formats Presentation | 5pm Networking Kanpai Hour at Japan Pavilion
The pavilion also offers unique networking opportunities, including the “Kanpai Hour at Japan Pavilion”, designed to encourage business discussions between Japanese content creators and industry professionals in a relaxed setting. Visitors can also experience “Kendama”, a traditional Japanese skill toy, with chances to win the coveted Mugen Musou edition. Throughout the exhibition, the Japan Pavilion maintains a professional yet welcoming atmosphere, complemented by premium coffee and matcha-flavoured chocolates. Industry professionals are invited to explore partnership opportunities and experience authentic Japanese hospitality at the Japan Pavilion, which is jointly operated by the International Drama Festival in Tokyo, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), and the Broadcast Program Export Association of Japan (BEAJ).
Brought to you by Broadcast Program Export Association of Japan (BEAJ)
From top: Forest, ABC TV; Just a bit Espers, TV Asahi; Victoria De Kerdrel
Masked Ninja Akakage, TV Asahi
(From L to R) Small Bait, Big Love – Ebiko’s Hunt for Her Mr. Right, Chukyo TV; Synanthrope, TV Tokyo; Love is for the Dogs, TBS
Growing overseas appetites make Japanese anime an export business –data shows a consumption tilt that is attracting big company investments.
By Patrick Frater
Big eyes and US$130 billion hopes: Japan’s global anime industry soars
The global market value of Japanese anime grew by 15% in 2024, to just under US$25 billion, according to data to be published in December 2025 by the Association of Japanese Animations (AJA).
That is a punchy figure in a country that is more familiar with deflation and a strong one for a sector that is not new, driven by fashionably new technology or that was previously overlooked.
But with the pirate flag and straw-hat symbol from One Piece now becoming icons of protest against authoritarian regimes in places as far apart as Indonesia, Nepal and the U.S., it seems clear that manga and anime are increasingly entering pop culture worldwide.
The theatrical performances of Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba – Infinity Castle Arc, which recently broke a 25-year record to become the highest-grossing foreign language movie in North America, and the recent Chainsaw Man – Reze
Arc, which topped worldwide box office on two weekends in October, further suggest that success is not limited to a single product. For younger demographics, anime is no longer seen as ‘alternative content’ and could be on its way to becoming mainstream.
“Overseas revenue is now climbing and has not yet reached the peak. We believe it has potential to expand to even more markets,” said Onouchi Megumi, an AJA committee member and CEO of Japan’s HumanMedia.
The AJA’s data shows that overseas revenues (using a broad definition that includes licensing and advertising) have grown by 75% since 2020 and the beginning of the Covid pandemic. Domestic Japanese revenues recorded 41% growth in the same period.
Indeed, the domestic growth of anime within Japan itself in 2024 was just 3%, meaning that the
genre’s accelerating overseas success is what is now driving the industry growth – and is attracting attention from government and fresh investment from giant corporations such as Sony, Toho and Toei Animation.
The AJA has a handy chart that shows that the overseas market overtook the Japanese one in
“Overseas revenue is now climbing and has not yet reached its peak. We believe it has potential to expand to even more markets.”
– Onouchi Megumi, HumanMedia
Chao
Demon Slayer Kimetsu No Yaiba - Infinity Castle Arc
In Numbers
The broad anime market measured by user spending and advertising value = ¥3.84 trillion/US$24.7 billion.
Overseas: ¥2.17 trillion/US$14.1 billion, and up 26%
Domestic: ¥1.67 trillion/US$10.8 billion) for the Japanese domestic market
Source: AJA’s yearbook presented at the TIFFCOM market in October 2025
2020 (due to lockdown consumption around the world), that the position reversed in 2021, but then reversed again to become a well-established trend from 2022 onwards. (With overseas business typically billed in U.S. dollars, the Japanese industry also benefits from the weakening of the Japanese yen.)
The Japanese government has designated anime as a core industry and part of its “Cool Japan” rebranding and outreach strategy. It suggests that anime could even expand to US$130 billion (approx ¥20 trillion) of value.
There’s plenty to indicate that Japanese companies have already seen this for themselves. They are gearing up to grow their international businesses through co-productions, diversified production strategies (including the limited use of AI) and greater corporate control of ancillary businesses such as licensing, characters and merchandising whose revenues currently accrue to overseas partners.
“We would like to see the domestic model (including merchandise and spinoffs) expand into the international marketplace,” said Onouchi.
Describing the strategy behind her company’s (fully hand-drawn) Chao, which won the jury prize at the recent Annecy animation festival, Tanaka Eiko, producer, president and CEO of Studio 4 Degrees C, said that everything was done to maximise the film’s international potential. Examples range from: controlling the international sales (20 territories licensed to date); an insistence on theatrical releases; a story for grown-ups; and even reducing
the size of the characters’ eyes to make them look less stereotypical of Japanese anime.
Bandai Namco Filmworks says it is doing many of those things already and aims to grow its overseas revenues to 50% by 2030. Owner of the Mobile Suit Gundam franchise, which currently stretches to 26 series and 34 theatrical films, the company recently used Epic Games’ Unreal Engine to digitally animate an English-language series spinoff that is exclusive to Netflix. It is also close to production start on an even larger Gundam series with Hollywood’s Legendary Pictures.
According to executive officer Ogata Naohiro, “in order to fill in the gaps between films” the company is also stepping up licensing, games derivatives and location-based entertainment. These include giant statues and pavilions in Fukuoka (Japan) and Shanghai (China) that have attracted over a million paying guests.
The sector giants have not been resting either. In addition to buying back all the overseas ancillary rights to its Godzilla live action franchise, Toho last year acquired GKids, a specialty U.S. animation distributor that has previously handled Studio Ghibli’s Oscar-winning The Boy and the Heron; Bandai’s Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX: Beginning and Studio 4 Degrees C’s Chao. And Toei Animation is in the process of elaborating plans that ambitiously could see it become bigger than the rest of the Japanese anime sector.
What is known so far is that it is building a new production facility in Osaka and aims to open another in Southeast Asia. While the location is
Japanese companies are gearing up to grow their international businesses through co-productions, diversified production strategies (including the limited use of AI) and greater corporate control of ancillary businesses.
not known, Toei Animation says it is investing over US$150 million in the two new plants. (The company’s main production unit is in Oizumi, Tokyo, and it has an offshoot in the Philippines, doing repetitive animation tasks, that it has owned since 1999.) On top of that, it plans to spend ¥109 billion/US$810 million on IP production, international licensing and distribution.
One Piece Straw Hat
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Sacrifice. Made Personal.
From grief to healing and, finally, to the quiet courage of sacrifice, Monochromatic Pictures’ acclaimed Korban trilogy reaches its most personal chapter yet. Director-writer Jeevan Nathan and producer Audrey Anthoney reflect on what’s next for Aisyah, and for themselves.
After charting the pain of loss in Korban I (Sacrifice the slow process of healing in Korban II, director-writer Jeevan Nathan and producer Audrey Anthoney are steering the final chapter of the Korban trilogy into deeply personal territory.
In Korban I, an aspiring young chef Aisyah has her world upended by the death of her mother, Tania; despite the support of her Māori boyfriend, Ari, she struggles to move on as she confronts the past she’s tried to leave behind. Korban II follows Aisyah to New Zealand in search of the secret behind her ultimate dish; when she unexpectedly loses her sense of taste, she’s forced to reckon with identity, faith, and cultural roots, navigating unfamiliar land and traditions to forge a new sense of belonging that unites Muslim and Māori culture, cuisine, and community.
Korban III is set to explore sacrifice not as a grand or heroic act, but as the quiet, daily choices that define who we are and what we hold on to. “Part I looked at grief, part II at healing, and the final chapter leans into the self, caregiving and the weight of expectations,” Jeevan says. He notes that Aisyah’s journey is always placed in “landscapes that test her inner world”. For part III, the team is exploring rural
caregiving notes part is
) and landscape “but
Japan, with its traditions of craft, food, and ritual, as a poetic backdrop for themes of care, solitude and intimacy, while also considering alternative environments from Korea to parts of Europe to carry the universality of sacrifice and family beyond a single culture.
Korban I (what Jeevan calls the “appetiser”) launched as a 8x15 mins web series in October 2022. Korban II “the main course” expanded into a limited series (6×45 mins) and premiered in May 2025, filmed entirely in New Zealand – a first for a Mediacorp Singapore Malay drama – and celebrated for its cinematic landscapes and cross-cultural depth. That international spirit extended to its cast: Rae Saleha reprised her role as Aisyah, joined by Evander Brown as Ari, Hans Isaac, Nurul Aini, Aaron Khaled, Aiman Hakim, and New Zealand talents Oribē Maipi, Niko Levi, and Denise Wiremu.
Korban III, “the dessert”, is planned as a feature film to close the arc.
For Jeevan and Audrey, each Korban chapter has been a creative evolution, from a web-series experiment that found international recognition to a cinematic co-production shaped by landscape and community. “We learned to stay bold in form,” Jeevan says, “but also deeply respectful of the cultures and people who host us.”
At its heart, Korban Like
remains Aisyah’s story, a Southeast Asian Muslim woman whose journey mirrors the universal search for meaning. “If part I was the wound and part II the scar,” Jeevan reflects, “then part III is about the life lived after both.” Like its protagonist, promises to be both rooted in Southeast Asian values, with themes that resonate far beyond – a reflection on the price of love, the pull of identity, and the enduring
Director-writer Jeevan Nathan and producer Audrey Anthoney
Korban III grace of survival.
(From L to R) Evander Brown (New Zealand), Rae Saleha (Singapore), Hans Isaac (Malaysia) and Nurul Aini (Singapore)
What are you most optimistic about?
“The mood in the market is much better [than it was just after Covid]. I’m seeing a lot of co-production... there’s the ability to work together. We are starting to see coproductions between Korea, Taiwan and Singapore working. That’s something I’ve never seen before...”
– Frank Smith, Co-founder/CEO, IFA Media
“People finding it in themselves to be more resourceful than ever. To overcome some of the challenges of the moment... people find ways. To prove this, this is our strongest year in Asia. Despite the challenges, there is some fantastic business to be done.”
– Sabrina Duguet, EVP APAC, All3Media International
“All the disruption is very scary... but it seems that competitors are now collaborating, and the idea of co-production and bringing down those fences and working together feels like it’s on the cards. So I’m hoping that’s here to stay. I think that gives us more chances to grow, and more diversity in content.”
“That content will always remain king and that however you consume content, you want it to be good...”
– Cathy Payne, CEO, Banijay Rights
“Co-production, because it opens up so many new opportunities for producers to access greater financial resources and combines the creative strengths of diverse partners. This results in content that is both richer culturally and commercially viable.”
– Virginia Lim Chief Content Officer, Mediacorp
“I’m encouraged that great stories keep coming... ”
– Avi Himatsinghani, Founder & CEO, Rewind Networks
Comments were gathered as part of ContentAsia’s Opti-Meter video series and have been edited for space. The full interviews release across social media platforms until the end of 2025.
“...about the integration of various martech AI tools into our OTT streaming service; about the integration of digital wallet payment gateways to enable payments from around the world; and lastly I’m very optimistic about the launch of vertical dramas on our GagaOOLala platform.”
Los Angeles-based Girl, Bye Productions, a full-spectrum studio specializing in highconcept, character-fueled unscripted content, will debut at ATF anchored by two womendriven, maiden productions: Manila Matriarchs and the just-completed, Project Empire.
Dedicated to authentic voices and emotionally intelligent narratives, Girl, Bye Productions (GBP) produces innovative entertainment that is as real as it is addictive.
“We set up Girl, Bye to break ground by doing something groundbreaking. And in terms of look, feel, storylines and production quality, we truly believe that’s what we have: something different,” says Girl, Bye Founder and showrunner, Cece Asuncion.
“The business of content and entertainment, in general, is in such a fluid state that audiences won’t stand for anything old or tired,” says Erika Aquino, New GBP Chair and EP. “We’re confident that buyers and audiences alike will find our slate to be thoroughly original, compelling, and so much more.”
“We’re thrilled and excited to present our full slate and a bit about ourselves at ATF,” says Asuncion. Top shows from GBP include:
Manila Matriarchs, exploring the lives of four dynamic women as they navigate family, personal ambitions and societal expectations, redefining what it means to be a modern matriarch in the ever-evolving landscape of contemporary Philippine society. Shot in the Philippines, HK, Japan, Canada and the USA. Length: 8x27 mins
Project Empire, an empowering competition series where 100 female entrepreneurs battle through high-stakes challenges to secure lifechanging investments from four powerhouse female angel investorsand a chance to build their business empires. Length: 10x48 mins
AsiaVision Song Contest: Heritage Through Harmony, is a dazzling live music event where countries from across Asia bring their voices to one stage – blending heritage and innovation – as global superstars Karylle and Apl de Ap of the Black Eyed Peas host the ultimate celebration of Asian music and culture. Length: 3x53 mins. In development.
Stolen Home, recalls the 1992 team of Filipino boys from the province of Zamboanga who electrified the world by winning the Little League World Series – only to have their victory stripped amid accusations of
We
believe the most powerful stories live in the space between different and the same. We spotlight outsiders – the dreamers, disruptors, and visionaries who challenge the mainstream and redefine what’s possible.”
–
Cece Asuncion, Founder and showrunner, Girl, Bye
fraud. Now, three decades later, survivors of the scandal revisit how a nation’s pride became its greatest shame. Documentary, Length: 1x75 mins. In development.
Precious Paula Nicole’s Pinishing School exposes the challenges that occur when LGBTQ+ identity thrives in nightlife but collides with conservative traditions and poverty. Here, Drag Race Philippines S1 winner Precious Paula Nicole takes on a new mission, scouting and mentoring the country’s next generation of drag stars . With the help of celebrity experts and influencers, Precious teaches baby queens the art and discipline of drag as a viable and respectable career option – while navigating the personal struggles they face with everyday life. Length 8x27 mins. In development
In House of Pride, a fixer-upper in Japan becomes the canvas for three gay friends in their 40s/50s to explore friendship, reinvention, and queer culture while renovating a house – and themselves—for the next chapter of life. Length: 8-10x23 mins. In development
“We believe the most powerful stories live in the space between different and the same. We spotlight outsiders – the dreamers, disruptors, and visionaries who challenge the mainstream and redefine what’s possible,” says Asuncion. “Their stories are layered, unexpected, and globally resonant. Because when we celebrate what makes us different, we discover how much we are the same”
Girl, Bye Productions is exhibiting at ATF stand H27. Joining Asuncion and Aquino are Sabrina Riddle, esq, and special cast members from Manila Matriarchs and Project Empire
Project Empire
Manila Matriarchs
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Three Body Universe boards Chinese sci-fi blockbuster Director appointed for Supernova Era 2026 shoot The Three Body Universe, the rights and production company behind the Three Body Problem film and TV franchise, has boarded upcoming blockbuster sci-fi film Supernova Era. The film’s producer, Conqueror Entertainment, has also appointed Li Yang to direct from late 2026. Like Three Body Problem, the Supernova Era film is developed from a work by bestselling and Hugo Award-winning Chinese novelist Liu Cixin, whose credits also include The Wandering Earth The full story is on page 12
atbooth FA-08
With titles already in Japan, India and beyond, WBITVP is shaping a slate that reflects the region’s appetite.
Tracking the Trends: WBITVP’s Approach to Asia’s Format Landscape
As broadcasters and platforms across Asia respond to shifting viewing habits and tighter commissioning cycles, the appetite for content remains strong. And formats need to offer emotional connection, production flexibility, and a clear identity to break through a crowded slate.
At Warner Bros. International Television Production, that clarity is shaping an offering that’s landing across the region, from premium reality and dating formats to high-concept game shows and emotionally resonant talent formats.
WBITVP’s activity across Asia this year reflects that strategy in action. In India, Discovery Communications has commissioned FBoy Island and a new season of Reality Queens of the Jungle, both high-energy, highcharacter formats that speak directly to audiences looking for bold, personality-led storytelling. And in Japan, The Bachelor has become a long-running success for Amazon Prime Video, with five seasons and a loyal following that continues to grow.
“The success of The Bachelor Japan proves that when a global brand is rooted in local culture, it doesn’t just land - it thrives,” says Andre Renaud, WBITV’s GVP, Format & Finished Sales. “We’re proud that the brand could deliver a new way of dating for audiences in Japan, showing the joy and excitement of romance.”
to artists who never got their break the first time. A Belgian version launched in 2024 returning in 2025 with strong ratings and showing how the series can resonate anywhere.
“Sing Again is a format that wears its purpose on its sleeve,” Renaud adds. “It’s not about reinvention - it’s about recognition. We’re proud to be able to represent this format internationally and for viewers to see talent return to the stage.”
Meanwhile, First Dates continues to be one of WBITVP’s most adaptable and travelled franchises. With over 25 local versions to date, the format lets love blossom right from the first hello.
That same thinking is behind WBITVP’s latest launches. Gameshow The Final Circle puts fifty contestants into a studio arena, blending logic, pressure, and pace. Meanwhile, 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing has now filmed three seasons in the U.S. and has been commissioned in Canada. Shot in a single 24-hour block, it’s a format designed for high entertainment and fast turnaround.
That same thinking is behind WBITVP’s latest puts fifty a and
The success of The Bachelor Japan proves that when a global brand is rooted in local culture, it doesn’t just land - it thrives.”
– Andre Renaud, GVP, Format & Finished Sales, Warner Bros. International Television Production
“When a show delivers a full series in a single day, and still has scale and drama, it’s found a sweet spot,” says Renaud.
“That kind of efficiency, paired with audience payoff, resonates with commissioners and budgets alike.”
Talent formats remain a key part of the picture, particularly those that can speak to heritage in new, fresh ways. Sing Again, originally from JTBC in Korea, gives a second chance
With 22 production companies in 15 countries and a slate that continues to perform across linear and streaming, WBITVP positions itself as a partner for long-term growth.
“We’re interested in building together,” Renaud says. “That could mean co-developing new IP, supporting a local version of a known brand, or reimagining something to suit a platform’s needs. But the goal is always the same: formats that connect and last.” Looking ahead, Renaud sees opportunity for WBITVP’s scripted formats catalogue in the region. “We already represent a strong slate of scripted titles, from layered relationship dramas to stories built around tension, moral dilemmas and unexpected connections. These are themes that resonate deeply with audiences across Asia, and there’s space to do more.”
As 2026 approaches, that message feels timelier than ever. In a fast-moving market, WBITVP is betting on clarity, connection, and content that knows what it’s delivering - and why.
24 in 24: Last Chef Standing
Left-Handed Girl –Taiwan’s Oscar submission for Best International Feature Film – is a turning point for Taipei-born New York-based filmmaker, Shih-Ching Tsou.
By Susan Hornik
Left Right: “The industry finally sees what I’ve been building for 20 years”
Taiwan’s Oscar submission, Left-Handed Girl, has opened doors Taipei-born New York-based writer, director and producer Shih-Ching Tsou “didn’t even know existed”.
“Suddenly, I’m in conversations with producers and financiers who are genuinely interested in my voice,” Tsou told ContentAsia in a one-on-one interview between Hollywood’s AFI Film Festival in October and the Asian World Film Festival in November. Netflix released the film on 28 November.
“People are approaching me with projects that centre on strong female characters, immigrant stories, or bold, intimate dramas,” she says.
Tsou first drew international acclaim as the co-writer, co-director and co-producer (with Sean Baker, writer/director of Oscar winner Anora) of Take Out (2004), an award-winning debut that earned a rare 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. She went on to produce Baker’s Starlet (2012),
Tangerine (2015), The Florida Project (2017) and Red Rocket (2021) – all of which premiered at major festivals, including SXSW, Sundance, Cannes and Toronto, and earned numerous accolades, including multiple Academy Award nominations. Left-Handed Girl is the first feature she has directed on her own.
Tsou is thrilled now to be invited into rooms as a director – “not as someone behind the scenes making things happen for others... It feels like the industry finally sees what I’ve been building for 20 years,” she says.
Left-Handed Girl is about a single mother (played by Janet Tsai) and her two daughters (played by Shih-yuan Ma and Nina Ye) who return to Taipei from the countryside to open a food stand at a bustling night market.
Making the film was both “healing and liberating,” Tsou says. “The film comes from a wound I
carried as a girl growing up in Taiwan; being told that using my left hand was ‘wrong,’ being asked to shrink myself to fit a mould, being treated differently simply because I was a girl. That experience isn’t just mine; it’s a collective memory many women recognise. In making this film, I wasn’t just telling my story. I was giving voice to a feeling so many of us were taught to swallow.”
Finding the money to start the production was Tsou’s biggest challenge.
“That was the real mountain. Left-Handed Girl lived inside me for more than 20 years, I kept waiting for the moment when someone would believe in it as much as I did. And in the end, I made it the way I’ve always made films – by sheer persistence, borrowing favours, and refusing to let the story die.”
Baker, who co-wrote, produced and edited the film, remains a strong influence in Tsou’s life.
Left Handed Girl
“Each of us brings a particular emotional language to the work. Being TaiwaneseAmerican gives me a certain sensibility, the way I understand silence, family, guilt, tenderness and contradiction.”
“Working with Sean for over 20 years taught me something essential: stay focused, stay flexible and stay resilient. You fight for your vision one day at a time, and you never take ‘no’ as the final answer.”
Tsou describes her director’s style as a “sensibility that sits close to Dogme 95 and socialrealist cinema, that raw immediacy, that refusal to prettify life.”
Being based in New York City strongly contributes to Tsou’s creativity. “Living in New York gives me a vérité edge as well, the freedom to be messy,
alive, unpolished. I’ve always been drawn to emotional truth over cinematic gloss, and I think that comes from years of working in tiny crews, wearing many hats, doing every job I could. It taught me to chase honesty first.”
Tsou has also been influenced by shows like Succession and Fleabag. “They’re wildly different, but both are fearless in their own way – sharp, intimate, emotionally precise. They dig into the messy corners of human behaviour with honesty, and that kind of truthfulness always inspires me,” she says.
Tsou has already been approached by international investors who want to back her next project. “People are now coming to me because they connect with my voice and my story.”
Asked what’s next, she says: “I want to do another feature, without question. That’s where my heart is. I’m drawn to stories that feel universal — films that can speak to audiences anywhere, no matter where they come from. I want to explore human experiences that linger: memory, desire and love that reshapes us quietly over time.
“I want to keep exploring intimate stories — about humanity, family,
“Living in New York gives me a vérité edge ... the freedom to be messy, alive, unpolished. I’ve always been drawn to emotional truth over cinematic gloss, and I think that comes from years of working in tiny crews, wearing many hats, doing every job I could. It taught me to chase honesty first.”
migration, and the quiet rebellions that define our lives. My next project may take place outside Taiwan, but it will carry the same spirit: finding light in the struggles of ordinary people,” she says.
Tsou doesn’t believe stories belong to one identity or nationality. “But I do think each of us brings a particular emotional language to the work. Being Taiwanese-American gives me a certain sensibility, the way I understand silence, family, guilt, tenderness, and contradiction.”
Acquired tastes: Pen-Ek Ratanaruang
Veteran Thai film director Pen-ek Ratanaruang is the kind of lovable rogue with whom film festivals love to adorn themselves. Both as examples of their craft (of course), but also in a knowing way that suggests that the festival programmers are in on the joke.
Ratanaruang’s latest feature, culinary murder tale Morte Cucina, debuted at a film festival in Spain’s San Sebastian, a city with a global reputation for cuisine, and popped up again in November in Tokyo, another foodie city.
The film’s plot is minimal, involving a woman chef who finds herself working for a man who abused her many years earlier. And, as revenge is a dish best served cold, she sets about using her kitchen skills to slowly bring him to his knees. She does not employ poison, but rather a folk-myth menu of foods and ingredients from the wrong season.
There is little more than that to the story, but Morte Cucina is a visual feast of food preparation sequences and mouthwatering dishes, borne of Ratanaruang’s reunion with ace cinematographer
Chris Doyle, with whom he worked previously on Last Life in the Universe and Invisible Waves
In a Tokyo festival talk-session, Ratanaruang gave no hint that there was any more depth to Morte Cucina than a sheet of rice paper. But a glass of beer to hand, his wry observations on filmmaking in general and candid recollections of past dealings with Japan were more than many local filmmakers would dare to venture.
He recalled being persuaded to approach Miike Takashi, the prolific Japanese director known for his gangster films, to appear as an actor in Last Life. Despite Ratanaruang being terrified of the glowering Miike, the decision was a masterful one. Not only did Miike agree to the role, he also handled casting and costume design for the host of Yakuza [gangster] characters. Then, when they got to Osaka for a week of location shooting, Miike additionally became locations manager and facilitator.
“Everywhere else in the world when you shoot on the street, you ask permission from the police.
Thai director Pen-ek Ratanaruang serves amusing confusion in his new film Morte Cucina... and dishes dirt in Tokyo.
By Patrick Frater
But in Osaka, you ask for permission from the Yakuza. So, Miike did all the permissions for us because he knows all the Yakuza. They really admire him, because he makes them look so elegant in his films”, Ratanaruang said. “Then in the evenings, with four bodyguards, we’d get taken to dinner by the Yakuza”.
But an encounter with Ratanaruang is frequently bittersweet. The inspired decision to call on Miike for production help was tinged with having to put up with his woeful thespian skills. “Miike really is a terrible actor. He always stands out,” Ratanaruang ventured.
Ratanaruang used the Tokyo talk session to explain his admiration for professional actors.
“To appear in front of a camera and pretend to be a person dying of AIDS or a father who is a child abuser, is already so brave”, he said. “And then, when the director says ‘cut’ they have to come back down to Earth”.
He lavished particular praise on Asano Tadanobu, the Japanese star of a dozen indie films.
“These days in places like Bangkok, you hear more Japanese or English on the streets than Thai. It’s actually very good. Your world expands... Borders don’t matter any more. Language doesn’t matter any more. We all communicate by the most common language in the world –broken English. Broken English is the best language .”
– Pen-ek Ratanaruang
Ratanaruang credits Asano with changing his directing style after deploying him in Last Life Scheduling conflicts meant that Asano was unable to join the production for the two weeks of rehearsals that Ratanaruang favours, and which the auteur normally uses to finalise the screenplay and dialogue.
Morte Cucina – a five country coproduction involving Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, France and Luxembourg – is the fourth completed feature film collaboration between Pen-Ek Ratanaruang and Australian cinematographer, Chris Doyle.
Speaking during the film’s postscreening Q&A in Tokyo, Ratanaruang said the non-linear structure emerged from the intention to tell two stories –“one was the story of the young girl who is taken advantage of and the other is about the older girl who met the guy and plots to kill him.
“I could not control much and instead had to watch what was happening. Asano is so attentive, so minimal, that he barely seems to be acting. But what he does shapes the style of the film. I learned that the camera is there not to capture action, but emotion”.
Another time on the same production, Asano halted preparations for a scene by asking for a comb. One was found for him. He pocketed it and never used it for the shot.
“He explained to me afterwards that the character was always so neat and tidy that it seemed obvious that he would carry a comb, just in case”, said Ratanaruang. “And having the comb helped Asano develop his character”.
Asano plays a brief supporting role in Morte Cucina as a pretentious art dealer who hangs a collection of empty frames in a gallery and suggests that viewers should supply their own meaning. A smudged fingerprint on one of the works illustrates the point perfectly and is an archetypically Ratanaruang moment of knowing humour.
When asked to explain some of the tangled and confusing storylines or weird and ambiguous characters in the film, Ratanaruang deflects.
“These days in places like Bangkok, you hear more Japanese or English on the streets than Thai. It’s actually very good. Your world expands,” he said. “Borders don’t matter any more. Language doesn’t matter any more. We all communicate by the most common language in the world – broken English. Broken English is the best language”.
“It was supposed to be two separate stories, and we thought that if we did it right the audience would work out that one story reflected the other story. The intention was to have two story lines, so that’s why the non-linear unfolding of the film is necessary,” he said.
Asked about plot development (and the ending), Ratanaruang said he generally starts writing with three or four characters.
“I don’t know why we ended the film like this. Normally we don’t create the story first. We create a few characters that we like, that we think you can watch for two hours.
“As the writing goes on, the characters start to create their own way, their own lives. Between these three or four characters they start to write the story for you. You are just following and taking care.”
Doyle said during the 2025 Tokyo International Film Festival that filmmaking was “all about family, it’s all about caring. It’s not about the colours and the decor and all that kind of stuff. Of course that helps, but if you aren’t making films with people who matter to you, who care about what they are doing and share something that couldn’t be shared any other way... except with people who are committed to each other, who love and trust each other... you see Bella [lead actress Bella Boonsang] trusts us, otherwise she wouldn’t have the confidence to be this astonishing presence on screen. It’s nothing to do with us, it’s to do with this cycle and this exchange of energy that is what a film has to be about”.
Morte Cucina
Serial entrepreneur Fujimura Tetsu argues that the width and depth of Japanese IP resources make the country an entertainment industry leader.
By Patrick Frater
Japan’s superpower: manga x anime x gaming
For the past decade, Korean entertainment has increasingly challenged English-language content for eyeballs, especially within East Asia. Japanese IP may now be emerging as an even larger source of material that is poised to go, not just regional, but global.
Major investment groups like Blackstone and T Rowe Price and multinational entertainment corporations such as Sony, Netflix and Disney have similarly taken notice and are making ever larger financial commitments to the Japanese sector.
In a 90-minute presentation at the recent TIFFCOM event in Tokyo, serial entrepreneur Fujimura Tetsu, laid out a detailed economic case for this shift and hailed Japanese IP as a “treasure chest” that has a “remarkable future” ahead of it.
Fujimura was formerly the founder of Japanese indie film company Gaga Communications before exiting in a 2004 sale to USEN group. Shortly after, he founded Filosophia as a consultancy and production group that sought to be a bridge between Japan and Hollywood
He credits his understanding of the potential of Japanese IP to two mentors: Avi Arad, the former toy designer who acquired the bankrupt Marvel comics firm, revived it and sold it to Disney for more than 20 times what he paid; and to Martin “Marty” Adelstein, a former screenwriter who became a partner at Endeavor and later founded Tomorrow Studios with ITV. As producers, both focused on high-end projects capable of global impact. That is a focus that Filosophia aims to emulate and to which Fujimura says Japanese IP is especially well suited.
Fujimura is an executive producer on the Netflix-driven live-action adaptation of One Piece, which is heading into a third season.
His thesis is built on the notion that films based on pre-existing IP have grown their share of global box office from 10-20% 45 years ago to nearly 90% today.
That shift favours all IP owners over those struggling to create wholly original works. And it favours Japanese IP owners, in particular,
because the country has a “triple whammy” of: i) manga (comics) ii) anime (animated films and TV shows); and iii) is a powerhouse of gaming firms dealing in both hardware and software.
Indeed, all of the top 10 films globally in 2024 were IP-driven, with two based on Japanese material (Sonic the Hedgehog and Godzilla Minus One). In the current year, Demon Slayer stands out as the fifth-highest earning film worldwide.
Using third-party data, Fujimura argues too that global rankings of fandom and the popularity of entertainment franchises place One Piece and The Elder Scrolls higher than Harry Potter or Barbie. And Japan’s Elden Ring and Grand Theft Auto rank above DC Comics and Star Trek
All three pillars of Japanese entertainment are growing, with manga, revived by COVID-era lockdowns and a shift to digital distribution, surprisingly, the fastest expanding. It is projected to reach US$42 billion of revenue by 2030.
Anime (see page 22) is projected to reach US$60 billion of annual worldwide revenue by
Fujimura Tetsu
2030, as it transitions to become what Fujimura calls a “global product” in an “era of borderless entertainment”.
And while game-to-film adaptations remain controversial among fans, the success of Japanese IP in this sector is significant.
Nintendo’s (animated) The Super Mario Bros Movie is heading to a second movie version. More Sonic the Hedgehog (live-action) features are in the pipeline. And Zelda, an Arad-produced liveaction adaptation of Nintendo and Capcom’s The Legend of Zelda, is set as a major release for Sony Pictures in 2027.
Manga remains a reliable source IP. It is the origin of Amazon Studios’ series project The Promised Neverland; of Netflix’s Death Note; and Claymore for CBS Studios/Propagate.
Japanese and U.S. firms are now operating together to mine more forms of Japanese IP for further large-scale movies. These include: toys
(Beyblade); graphic novels (Edge of Tomorrow); characters (Hello Kitty) and movie remakes (A Colt Is My Passport).
Fujimura says he counts 63 Japanese-sourced projects in development or production in Hollywood and “probably hundreds more”. But he acknowledges that many may fail to get to the start line.
Critical observers point to the sclerotic system of production committees, or risk-averse partnerships, that have long slowed decision-making in Japanese entertainment and hampered crossborder transactions; piracy, especially in the manga sector; and archaic working practices in Japan’s manga and anime sectors, where artists are aging, underpaid and not being fully replaced by younger generations of creators.
Japan’s slow-moving production structures may be out of touch with fan demand, while also leaving the sector open to piracy and challenges
Films based on pre-existing IP have grown their share of global box office from 10-20% 45 years ago to nearly 90% today.
from other countries and systems, notably artificial intelligence (AI).
In October, the Association of Japanese Animations finally issued an open letter calling on the Japanese government to clarify its IP laws and for AI companies to stop infringing on copyrighted Japanese content – or at least to be transparent about the materials they use to train their generative AI models – and to pay for usage.
While the numerous obstacles may mean that Japanese IP never reaches Fujimura’s lofty predictions, few analysts these days doubt that Japan’s potential is there.
And more investors are willing to take a punt on entertainment as Japan’s industry of the future. According to recent calculations by the Nikkei business newspaper, the value of Japan’s nine leading entertainment companies recently overtook that of the country’s leading automakers.
Focus: Thailand
The value of Thailand’s content production sector will continue to drop, reaching US$584 million in 2030 from US$916 million in 2019, MPA says. But there are other things to be optimistic about...
Thailand ranked as Southeast Asia’s third-largest screen-based entertainment market in 2024, generating just under US$1.4 billion in total revenue (including theatrical), according to data from Media Partners Asia (MPA).
The figures position Thailand well behind Indonesia, the region’s largest market with over US$2 billion in revenue, and marginally below Vietnam, which reached approximately US$1.42 billion.
Thailand remained slightly ahead of Malaysia at US$1.34 billion, and comfortably ahead of the Phil-
ippines, which closed the year at US$1.25 billion. Singapore, despite its significantly smaller population base, delivered US$671 million in 2024, underscoring its continued status as a highvalue, high-ARPU presence in the region.
MPA executive director, Vivek Couto, highlighted a material shift in revenue composition between 2020 and 2024, but said too that consumer spend on video recovered to pre-Covid levels in 2024.
TV revenues — comprising free-to-air advertis-
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ing, pay-TV subscription fees and advertising — contracted sharply, with their share of the total market falling from 83% in 2020 to 60% in 2024.
In those five years, premium VOD more than doubled its share, rising from 14% in 2020 to 35% by end-2024 as consumer spend and advertiser attention migrated from legacy television platforms to premium streaming services.
Theatrical revenues also expanded, with the category’s share almost doubling from 3% in 2020 to 5% in 2024, and tracking toward 7% of total sector revenues by 2030, according to MPA.
Couto projects a structural realignment of the market over the next six years, with premium VOD overtaking television as the dominant revenue stream by 2030.
Premium VOD is forecast to reach 58% of a US$1.5 billion market, while television’s share is expected to decline further to 35%, underscoring the continued shift away from legacy TV platforms toward digital, paid streaming ecosystems.
SVOD household penetration is forecast to rise across all five major Southeast Asian markets — Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines. Thailand is set to remain the region’s most penetrated SVOD market, reaching 36% in 2025 and climbing to 47% by 2030. Malaysia follows with 35% in 2025, rising moderately to 39% in 2030. Vietnam is projected to grow from 25% this year to 28% by 2030, while the Philippines will continue to trail, with penetration increasing only marginally from 13% to 15% over the same period. Despite Thailand’s strong premium SVOD trajectory, the outlook for the country’s content production sector is way less rosy.
MPA projects a contraction from US$659 million in 2024 to US$584 million in 2030,
with television remaining the dominant revenue source and animation gaining share. This reflects a dramatic erosion of value from US$916 million in 2019. Other than a slight bump to US$726 million in 2022, sector valuation has dropped every year since 2019.
Total OTT content investment in Thailand — spanning local originals and licensed acquisitions — is projected to reach US$195 million in 2025, according to MPA. This represents four consecutive years of streaming investment growth.
Netflix’s Thai content spend is expected to rise to US$50 million, up from US$46 million
in 2024, reinforcing its position as the leading premium SVOD investor in the market.
Netflix and domestic platform TrueID dominate premium OTT consumption, with a combined 48% share of the total 1.3 billion hours streamed in 2024. Netflix took 39% of Thailand’s total US$124 million premium VOD revenue in the third quarter of 2025, leaving TrueID trailing at 15% followed by Viu at 12% and Monomax and AIS Play tied at 7% each. Disney+ was behind those at 6%.
MPA’s Thailand data was part of the presentation for TCCF 2025 in Taipei in November.
Korean vertical video platform Vigloo is opening an office in L.A. and will double microdrama/ vertical series production in 2026. Neil Choi, founder and CEO of Spoonlabs, which operates Vigloo, told ContentAsia about his plans.
Swipe up: Inside Vigloo’s 2026 expansion plans
How many original vertical series will you make in 2026? How does this compare to 2025 and what other plans do you have for the new “Vigloo is accelerating its growth in key global markets into 2026, with plans to double production from the roughly 200 original vertical dramas we released in 2025. To expand further in the U.S., we are establishing our L.A. office by the end of this year. With this presence, we will strengthen collaboration with local production companies and actors, and further advance our localisation strategy through enhanced global co-production capabilities.”
compare to 2025 and what other year?
What kinds of stories, genres, or formats are you most committed to... and why? “In terms of genre and stories, definitely romance. In Korea, Japan, and the U.S., the core formula for successful short-form dramas is similar: fast pacing, strong conflict and emotionally charged storytelling. Romance delivers these elements most effectively, which is why we have focused on that genre to date.
“Preferences within romance, however, differ by market. In the U.S., romantasy, which is a blend of romance and fantasy, has become a major trend led by BookTok [the TikTok community built around books/reading] audiences. Sports and teen romance also perform well, and actor recognition is a significant viewer consideration.
“In contrast, Korean audiences prefer romance that reflects the sensibilities of love novels and dating reality shows, where on-screen visual appeal
Neil Choi, CEO, SpoonLabs
Matrimoney
Tetsu
plays a key role in viewer choice.
“We continue to closely monitor trends and viewer behaviour through internal data, surveys, and ongoing feedback to ensure we remain aligned with what resonates in each market. We are also producing genres such as mystery and thriller, where we see growing demand.
“Ultimately, our focus is on delivering content that connects and keeps viewers coming back for more.”
Who is Vigloo’s core audience, and how are you segmenting and prioritising different demographic or regional groups? “Our core audience is women aged above 35, who account for around 70% of total viewership. Our primary markets are the U.S., Korea and Japan, and we produce original vertical dramas in these regions. Approximately 70% of Vigloo’s revenue comes from international markets, so our strategy is centred on global expansion. We recently launched our service in India as well, extending access through local subtitles and dubbing.”
What shows have worked best so far? “Based on Vigloo’s real-time popularity ranking, which updates every hour, romance consistently performs strongest across global markets. In the U.S., romcoms such as Matrimoney and The Billionaire Cowboy’s Runaway Bride have remained in the Top 10 for several months, while romantasy titles like Mated to My Rival Alpha continue to hold Top 5 positions. In Korea, The Bedmate Game Sharehouse 2 – a scripted romance series inspired by dating reality formats – has maintained a Top 5 ranking not only in Korea but also in the U.S. and Japan since its launch in September. Overall, vertical dramas centred on romance show a high
preference globally, confirming sustained demand from audiences worldwide.”
How does Vigloo define its role/brand in the content ecosystem compared to other micro-drama and short-form platforms?
“Vigloo is built by a team that has long been part of the global success of K-content. Leveraging Korea’s storytelling and production expertise, we create entertaining and high-quality original vertical dramas designed to resonate with audiences around the world. While we localise for each market, our core strength lies in developing and delivering compelling dramas from concept to execution. This allows us to build a brand that keeps viewers engaged and coming back for more.”
How are you attracting and supporting creators — especially emerging voices — to develop distinctive content for Vigloo? “Vigloo champions bold, original voices – we’re hands-on with creators from day one, helping their visions shine in vertical drama. Through Zoom calls or in-person meetings, we work closely to understand the core of their ideas and refine them so they fit the ‘short but intensive’ entertainment that Vigloo delivers. Because vertical dramas are still a new way of storytelling, we actively welcome emerging creators and studios who are open to fresh formats. Under the Hood, which received strong audience response, is a great example of a collaboration with a rising creator, and partnerships like this help us continue discovering fresh voices.
“Our team includes professionals with deep experience in the entertainment industry, so we understand both the creative process and how to support the business side of it. As we expand in the
“What matters is not AI itself, but how creators choose to use it. Empowering creators to imagine more boldly, experiment more freely, and build a more sustainable creative ecosystem is the role we believe AI should play.”
– Neil Choi
U.S., including the opening of our L.A. office, we’re strengthening our network with both seasoned talent and new creators who want to break into vertical storytelling.
“We also maintain a transparent relationship with creators by sharing audience data and feedback, identifying what worked well and what could be improved. We strive to build creative partnerships that support growth on both sides.”
What’s the greenlight/commissioning process? “The first step is for our content team to source scripts through multiple channels. Our team, made up of experts with extensive experience in the Korean and global entertainment industry, such as CJ ENM and Disney, conducts an initial review and selects projects with strong potential. In the second stage, key decision-makers, including myself, review the shortlisted titles to
Mated to My Rival Alpha (left); The Bedmate Game 2
determine final production approvals.
“Throughout the process, we evaluate each project based on narrative quality, viewer engagement, and alignment with Vigloo’s content direction.
“What we define as “Vigloo-style” is content that instantly pulls the viewer and a story that the audience can get excited about. Only the projects that meet these standards move forward into production.”
What’s the acquisition process? “In the U.S. market, we have primarily focused on producing our own originals. However, we selectively source content that aligns with market trends, features strong genre appeal or popular tropes, and helps us test categories before developing our own originals. Going forward, we are actively looking into co-premieres and second-run content that has shown noteworthy performance on other platforms.”
How does audience behaviour data inform commissioning, scheduling and renewal decisions? “All of our decisions are data-driven. We analyse quantitative metrics such as viewership, watch time and revenue by title, as well as detailed indicators like drop-off points and completion rates. This helps us identify specific improvements in story structure or editing flow for future vertical dramas. For example, The Bedmate Game Sharehouse 2 recorded a 95% completion rate, reaffirming the effectiveness of the content format following season one.
“We also gather qualitative insights through user surveys and comment/ review monitoring to understand what genres, themes, and characters resonate with viewers and reflect these learnings in our content planning.
“Our goal is not simply to collect data, but to interpret the viewing experience so we can deliver content that is even more entertaining and more engaging.”
What’s your approach to AI-generated series? “AI is no longer just a buzzword – it’s a creative engine powering new frontiers in entertainment. At Vigloo, we’re proving that with our original series, AI doesn’t replace imagination but supercharges it. The two AI original series released on our app on 2 October are about 30 minutes in length, demonstrating that AI can be a tool that enables small studios and emerging creators to produce largescale or sci-fi genres.
“While we are still in the early stages of our AI journey, our in-house AI original drama, Met a Savior in Hell, has recorded meaningful paid viewership from global audiences, indicating demand for AI content.
“Our vision is built on the collaboration between AI and human creators. Human creativity is always at the centre, while AI serves as a supportive tool that expands and amplifies that potential.
“AI lowers barriers to creation, allowing more people to participate as creators and enabling a wider range of imagination and perspectives to be realised as content. Ultimately, what matters is not AI itself, but how creators choose to use it. Empowering creators to imagine more boldly, experiment more freely, and build a more sustainable creative ecosystem is the role we believe AI should play at Vigloo.”
What do you see as your biggest challenge in growing Vigloo’s audience? “The biggest challenge is earning viewer attention in a landscape with hundreds of microdrama platforms. Because the market is still in an early stage, expanding our audience amid this rapidly evolving environment is not an easy task.
“However, over the past year, Vigloo has continuously improved its performance by validating what kinds of stories truly resonate through data. By analysing viewer behaviour and optimising genre, format and style, we have seen steady growth in both key metrics and audience response.
“Our Q3 revenue in 2025 was more than double that of Q1, and over 70% of our total revenue in the first half came from overseas markets. It’s a fiercely competitive fight for screen time, but Vigloo combines the production expertise of K-content with rapid data learning and localisation capabilities to deliver high-quality storytelling – even in short formats.”
SG STORY:
Singapore’s Indie Producers Find Power in Short Form
The micro-drama wave is reshaping screens worldwide. Short-form storytelling has accelerated into a global movement defined by compact narratives, emotional immediacy and formats built for mobile consumption. Singapore’s Association of Independent Producers (AIPRO), supported by IMDA, is tapping the trend through Our Singapore, Our Stories: SG STORY, a campaign that empowers independent producers to create micro-dramas designed for today’s scrolling audiences.
The SG STORY slate became a testbed for vertical formats, cinematic framing and character-led narratives. The result: authentic Singapore stories that feel immediate, relatable and rooted in local experience, and that have reached more than a million viewers across TikTok and Instagram.
But SG STORY is more than a creative format exercise. Against a backdrop of tighter budgets and increasingly globalised platforms, AIPRO is underscoring the role of the independent sector in Singapore’s media identity. By keeping small studios and freelancers engaged, the campaign supports an ecosystem that develops and sustains the next generation of local storytellers.
As micro-dramas continue to evolve across Asia, SG STORY offers both a creative reference point and a timely prompt to rethink how stories are shaped and shared.
On set, Singapore stories
SG Story Call-for-Proposal winners
Yamada Yoji @94: Mischief, Mastery and a warning for Japan’s film industry
At 94, Japanese director
Yamada Yoji is still hungry for success.
By Patrick Frater
Yamada Yoji is 94, has 91 feature films under his belt as director, and remains sprightly, gently mischievous, campaigning and determined to keep working.
At the Tokyo International Film Festival this year, Yamada was presented with a lifetime achievement award and set as a counterpoint in an on-stage conversation with Lee Sang-il, director of Kokuho, a detail-obsessed drama film about frenemy actors who both play female roles in the kabuki theatre industry.
Kokuho has become the highest grossing liveaction film in Japan for decades, grossed over ¥16.6 billion/US$108 million to date, been named as Japan’s Oscars candidate and earned Lee the Kurosawa Akira Award from the Tokyo festival –an honour that Yamada received in 2004.
“Kokuho” means ‘national treasure’ and is a label that seems appropriate for both helmers.
Yamada’s latest effort, Tokyo Taxi, is a complete contrast, not least because it is a road movie comedy, that unusually for a festival selection, is a remake of 2022 French film Driving Madeleine And where Kokuho weighs in at nearly three hours, Tokyo Taxi whizzes by in 100 minutes.
Nevertheless, in Yamada’s hands Taxi is a criticand audience-pleasing charmer that is simultaneously a mannered slice of Japanese life, delivering reflections on the country’s ageing society, postWWII rebuilding and changing social mores.
For the purpose of realism and context, Yamada added a few domestic, food scenes that were not in Madeleine, but he said that he did not have to reconceive the story.
“I simply asked myself, if it were Japan, how would it go? A Japanese taxi driver and an elderly Japanese woman, their relationship would of course be different,” Yamada said. The elegant woman’s back-seat confession of marital rape and her eventual reaction to it are stunning in a Japanese context.
Yamada’s work has frequently explored mundane and everyday issues and Japan’s workingclass. He is best-known for the 48 Tora-san films in which Atsumi Kiyoshi portrays a travelling salesman who is unlucky in love. So, his probing of Lee was from a position of experience.
“Usually, when you have two male leads, a woman is between them in some sort of triangle. But [in Kokuho], something entirely different lies between them – homosexuality. It’s this irrational romantic force that becomes the very theme of the story and makes this film extraordinary,” he said.
“The actors need to know I’m watching,” he added, referring to his habit of standing right next to the camera when filming his own movies.
“They can feel the director’s gaze. I don’t understand how some directors give directions from a monitor, sometimes from another room.”
He acknowledged that was different to what Kurosawa advised, especially when filming kabuki theatre performances. Kurosawa once famously phoned public broadcaster NHK to complain camera proximity and movement during a performance that he was watching. “Kurosawa
believed that the camera cannot get too close to the object. Instead, there should be a distance,” Yamada said.
He acknowledged too that his technique contrasts with his own early attempts as an actor, when he was overwhelmed with self-consciousness. “The camera and the director create real tension. You feel that you are being watched. And that really left a strong impression on me.”
He turned more serious when asked about the current status of the Japanese film industry and described its problems as “a national issue”.
“When I entered the industry 70 years ago, Japanese cinema was vibrant and internationally respected — we had Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai, Ozu’s Tokyo Story, Mizoguchi’s Ugetsu. Now, Korea and China have surged ahead […] The Korean government backs its film industry. Japan should do the same. It’s a matter of cultural policy.”
Indeed, the government is taking some steps, such as introducing a location-shooting incentive scheme. And at a time when Japanese manufacturing is waning, the government has designated entertainment as a core industry.
But Yamada also acknowledged that some of the solutions to the problem he perceives are within the reach of filmmakers themselves.
“[Japan’s] live-action films are far behind animation. We live-action directors need to carefully consider analysing the structure [of anime films] and incorporate some of their elements.”
“When I entered the industry 70 years ago, Japanese cinema was vibrant and internationally respected. We had Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai, Ozu’s Tokyo Story, Mizoguchi’s Ugetsu. Now Korea and China have surged ahead... The Korean government backs its film industry. Japan should do the same. It’s a matter of cultural policy.”
– Yamada Yoji
“When no one is watching, do you still do what’s right?”
Philippines’ indie Rein Entertainment asks tough questions in its movies and series.
By Janine Stein
In the run-up to the 26 November premiere of his new movie, the neo-Western suspense drama Salvageland, Philippines’ director Lino S. Cayetano said much about wealth, freedom, morality and conscience.
“When rules don’t exist, you’re left with your conscience. When no one is watching, do you still do what’s right?,” Cayetano – previously a politician and the former mayor of Taguig – said in another pre-release conversation, this time in Taipei, at the TCCF event in November.
Salvageland stars actor and congressman Richard Gomez in his big-screen comeback after a seven-year break as a cynical police-force veteran on the brink of retirement. Elijah Canlas plays his son, an idealistic police officer, who clashes with his father when he attempts to help a woman flee from an abusive gang leader.
At one of the pre-release events, Gomez talked about the Philippines’ next generation of directors, and said Cayetano “is becoming one of the
best young directors of our country and I want to continue working with him.”
Filmed in the volcanic ash around Mount Pinatubo, Salvageland’s setting is vague: a world where rules don’t exist anymore, where characters are eaten up by a wasteland. Amid the action and gunfights, “Lino smuggled in a father and son melodrama,” says Salvageland writer Shugo Praico, who co-founded Rein Entertainment Productions with Cayetano and Philip King in 2017 and was joined later by producer Charm Guzman.
The Western genre film, with all the classic gunfights/lawless expectations of a Western, could be an analogy about where
Salvageland
“We wanted to show how this world consumes you. No matter how good we are, when we live in an evil world somehow this changes us.”
– Lino S. Cayetano
the country is heading, the filmmakers say.
“At its core, we wanted to talk about the conflict between wanting and fighting for change and accepting the status quo,” Cayetano says of the first feature he directed after more than a decade directing television series.
“When the movie ends, you ask yourself, ‘who’s right? Father or son?... We wanted to show how this world consumes you. No matter how good we are, when we live in an evil world somehow this changes us. We are still a product of our environment. And it becomes even more difficult to fight when you are in this environment,” he said in Taiwan in November.
Back in Manila, he talked about the old and the new, which he said “always collide for me... and it’s fun to watch the collision”. The film has a father “who wants a quiet life. When he sees something, he will close his eyes or look in
another direction. But he has a son who he raised correctly. So his son is fighting him, he doesn’t want it to be like before, he doesn’t want the status quo, he wants change.”
“Stealing is wrong. But what if you steal because your child is sick. What if the person you robbed was a bad, evil person? What if no one is looking?... what if we were all left to our own consciences? Are we still good people? That’s what each character goes through in Salvageland,” he said.
He was speaking a few weeks after the Busan International Film Festival, where Rein Entertainment Productions was part of the delegation supported by the Philippines Film Development Council.
Rein’s ramped up presence at industry events are part of the production house’s expansion plans as it heads towards its 10th anniversary in 2027. With a strong domestic partner network already in place, Rein’s next step is a broader regional and international footprint.
In addition to streaming platforms, the company is reaching out to “people like us who are passionate about telling stories, who are passionate about pursuing the best environment for writers and directors to collaborate in, because I think that was our strength in the Philippines... we want to find the best partners with whom we can tell our stories”.
Rein’s ideal story is “organic and real. It has to be something that when you look out your win-
dow, you see stories of passion and compassion and real stories that cross cultures, and that’s what we’re looking for. We’re in a constant state of story gathering and story development. And I think those are the kinds of partners that we want. We’re passionate about telling that story.”
Salvageland, produced by Rein Entertainment with Viva Films, follows TV series Drug War: A Conspiracy of Silence, which Rein presented at the ContentAsia Summit in September, and Dose, which was selected for Taiwan’s TCCF Series Pitch in November.
Directed by Praico and starring Ian Veneracion, Jane Oineza, Harvey Bautista and John Arcilla, Drug War follows a sharp-minded priest from a privileged background who works with a conscience-stricken policewoman to investigate the death of his missing protégé.
“We felt we were so blessed,” he adds. “For 10 or 15 years, we had a medium and a platform like ABS-CBN... Imagine you shoot something today, or you write something today, and in a few weeks, you know, 20 million people get to watch. But after about 10 years, we felt there were stories that maybe belonged to a different platform... Because when you do free TV, there’s always a limitation”.
“The idea was to be able to tell stories and make movies and series that were, for lack of better words, in our hearts, stories we wanted to tell,” he adds.
Their debut was with two original Bagman seasons, in 2017 and 2019. Both streamed on iWantTV and on Netflix in the Philippines. The series told the story of a neighbourhood barber caught up in a web of crime, corruption and political turmoil.
followed for WeTV in 2021.
A premium version/sequel of Bagman, announced in 2023, was co-produced by ABS-CBN International Production, Dreamscape Entertainment, Rein Entertainment and Nathan Studios. The eight-hour series is about convicted exgovernor, Benjo Malaya, who is forced back into the criminal underworld after he learns that his family is missing.
“We felt like we were in the right space, on the right path, with stories we couldn’t tell on regular TV,” Cayetano says. That led to a slew of commissions from ABS-CBN, Viva and Regal Films.
Currently in script development with a 2027 target delivery, Dose is an eight-episode stylised crime drama about two women – a rising triad queenpin and a relentless international police agent. The two forge an unlikely alliance to battle corrupt cops, ruthless crime lords and violent thugs.
Talking about straddling film and television, Cayetano highlights the “beauty of cinema... you are in a dark room with 100 people with no phones; you are able to do things that you are not able to do in television. Audiences will watch more intently, composition will have an impact... a hunch in their back or a shadow… you don’t have to show a tear on the face”.
Rein’s debut was well timed, coinciding with the rise of streaming and the exuberant approach by, among others, iflix and WeTV. GL series
Two years ago, the team was ready to start producing on its own with a group of investors. Today, Rein sources half the financing for a production and then partners with studios for the balance. Features include Elevator (2024), written/directed by Philip King, with Cineko Productions and Viva Films; and eco-horror film, Caretakers, directed by Praico, produced with horror specialist Regal Entertainment and distributed by EST N8.
Kylie Padilla and Andrea Torres, Productions and Viva Films; and eco-horror film, The with horror specialist Regal Entertainment and
Rein Entertainment Productions grew out of Philippines’ powerhouse, ABS-CBN, with founders King, Praico and Cayetano wanting to explore stories that didn’t fit the free-TV mandate in an environment with development schedules usually afforded only to premium series. The indie production company was established in 2017, with the blessing and support of ABS-CBN.
crime drama about two women – a rising triad people months,
“At Rein, we can incubate a project and an idea for six months, one year, two years, and that’s really the investment,” Cayetano says.
Cayetano constantly references stories with strong women, and highlights the contributions of Rein producer, Charm Guzman. In conversations about Drug War and Dose, he talks about the female leads. In Salvageland, it’s the whistleblower character. “The witness who had the courage to stand up is a woman”, he said.
Cayetano constantly references stories with strong women, and highlights the contributions witness and that’s what the son protected”.
“So that was the beautiful part of the story and that’s what the son protected”.
One Piece Straw Hat
BetCin, starring
Drug War
Shugo Praico
Unreal engines
Award-winning Japanese director, Itaru Mizuno, talks about mixing the unreal with the ordinary, creating a middle-aged alien with high-energy superpowers, erasing gender stereotypes and including internationally recognised elements in premium series, The Hot Spot.
Single mother Kiyomi Endo works at a hotel at the foot of Mount Fuji. Her daily reality is pleasantly monotonous. She goes to work, is cordial but not close with colleagues, and hangs out with childhood friends from her hometown. She thinks her older and unremarkable co-worker, Mr Takahashi, is annoying. Until one evening he saves her from what would almost certainly have been a fatal traffic accident... and, in the vein of Japanese series Rebooting, her whole existence is upended and her life becomes anything but ordinary.
It turns out that Mr Takahashi, played by Kadota Akihiro, is an alien. He asks her to keep his secret – which of course she doesn’t because by now she thinks he is both annoying and crazy. This changes when he snaps a coin in half in front of her and her friends. In doing so, a force for good in the world is unleashed and The Hot Spot earns its place on Nippon TV’s roster of premium titles with international reference points and ambitions.
The Hot Spot, written by Bakarhythm (Rebooting, Beethoven Netsuzou), aired earlier this year in Nippon TV’s Sunday drama slot, and streamed on TVer and Hulu. The series was acquired by Netflix and was the platform’s top show in Japan for three weeks in February and March this year, with top 10 rankings in other countries, including Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Director Itaru Mizuno, who won Gold for Best Director for The Hot Spot in the 2025 ContentAsia Awards, says the idea was to leverage some of
the elements of Rebooting to create a series with broader appeal for international audiences.
The award-winning Rebooting, released in 2023, is a high-concept time-loop series about an ordinary, single woman in her 30s living with her parents and younger sister. When she dies in a traffic accident, she finds herself in an afterlife that offers her the option of rebooting her existence, with the full memory of her old self. Rebooting won the ContentAsia Awards Gold Award in 2023 for Best Drama Series/Telefilm Made for a Single Market in Asia.
A fan of U.S. entertainment like E.T., Stranger Things and J.J. Abrams Super 8, Mizuno says his “style is to bring something that is not real, something unreal and unique, to ordinary life, that’s what we often do”.
In setting out to broaden appeal beyond Japan, the creative team chose to set The Hot Spot against the backdrop of Mount Fuji – an internationally recognised Japanese icon, Mizuno says.
The Hot Spot is also part of a broader conversation that shifts on-screen stereotypes of women’s stories.
“Until two or three years ago, every story with a female lead had to have romance or something like that,” Mizuno says. “Our point of view is ‘why do we need that?’. We had this stereotype of a female story – that we need romance and love and worklife balance. We tried to create something that works not only for women but for men too.”
The litmus test for The Hot Spot was whether the dialogue worked regardless of whether the characters were male or female. “That’s what we wanted to do... to depict a human life, not a man’s life or a woman’s life”. Erasing gender bias in this way is new for Japanese audiences, Mizuno says.
The production’s biggest challenge was credibly portraying the superpowers of a middle-aged male alien – for instance, running fast or jumping high – on a realistic budget.
“It had to feel natural,” he says. For this reason, ideas such as the alien fighting a bear in the mountains never made it past the paper stage. What was the bear replaced with? A long-distance run. “We changed the entire episode to a different story”.
Mizuno doesn’t have a favourite episode. “I like most of them,” he says. What about a favourite scene? Here he picks the opening sequence of episode eight. “Most of the series is a comedy, with a light tone and the aim to make the audience laugh and have fun,” he explains. “But in episode eight, the main character realises that the hotel is going to close, and she also realises how much she likes it. That was a very emotional moment and a very important sequence for the entire series”.
Setting aside some “tiny regrets”, Mizuno talks about the most unexpected response to the series – that many people, and women especially, thought this middle-aged alien was “kawaii” (cute). “We wanted him to be accepted as a cute middle-aged person, but we didn’t really know how it would work... the response was a surprise,” he says.
The Hot Spot also left a lasting impact on the three mountain towns on the foothills of Mount Fuji used to create The Hot Spot’s fictional world. These include Fujiyoshida and Fujikawaguchiko.
Mizuno says the series drove an increase in visitor numbers as fans went in search of locations used in Spot. Eager to build on this new-found popularity, town authorities resurrected a summer fireworks event that was stopped during Covid. And, in a final tribute, a commemorative manhole cover was designed depicting the series’ signature bench scene – a quiet moment between the two main characters. The cover is installed near Lake Shoji, close to the hotel used in the show. The town clearly hopes it will be their very own hot spot.
Hot the
“We wanted to depict a human life, not
a man’s life or a woman’s life.”
Itaru Mizuno, Director, The Hot Spot
The
Itaru Mizuno
Small world
When Japanese director Yujiro Honma first imagined the situation that would become the game show Ants, his vision was of a mass of people building a human pyramid. The picture was chaotic, comedic, a little ridiculous and strangely satisfying. “At a glance it looked so humorous and stupid, but also really compelling,” he says. Later, looking through his files for projects to pitch, he thought: “What if I turned them into ants? And built a humongous set?”
Honma started pitching Ants before the idea was fully formed. “I was developing it as I pitched,” he says. “I kept asking myself: What scene would surprise the audience? What would make them laugh? What would make them go, ‘Wow’?”
The breakthrough came when he flipped the usual competitive structure on its head. Instead of contestants battling one another, he had 100 people collaborate toward a single, absurdly simple goal – like transporting food items across a giant kitchen.
Which is exactly what Nippon TV did, creating a one-hour special that won the 2025 ContentAsia Award for Best Original Game Show made in Asia.
The competition show was further developed by Fremantle North America for global expansion. Earlier this year, Fremantle acquired international rights outside of Asia but including Indonesia, India and Singapore, where Fremantle has production offices.
For Nippon TV producer, Shinichiro Yoshikawa, the opportunity was clear. “We hadn’t made a huge game show at Nippon TV for about 10 years,” he says. “When Yujiro pitched Ants, it felt like the right moment to challenge ourselves again.”
From there, the show ballooned — literally. Every challenge required extensive prototyping. “Simulations were crucial,” Yoshikawa says. “But the fun part was that during testing, completely new ideas emerged.” One of these – the swinging pendulum — was discovered entirely by accident during a rehearsal.
As visually crazy as the set is, the heart of Ants lies in the human dynamics, and teams are deliberately varied — doctors, students, office workers... – to ensure unexpected interactions. “We put in a doctor to add something hopefully smart, some advice,” Honma says.
Japanese director Yujiro Honma and producer Shinichiro Yoshikawa talk about the making of Nippon TV’s unscripted original, Ants, winner of the 2025 ContentAsia Award for Best Original Game Show made in Asia.
“You don’t often see 20 or 30 people in one frame, all trying to carry a giant piece of candy,” Honma laughs. “They collaborate, they argue, they strategise, they disagree. It’s funny, but it’s also real human behaviour.”
Ants
Producer Shinichiro Yoshikawa (left), director Yujiro Honma
