ATF & ScreenSingapore Present Conference Lineup

SINGAPORE: The Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF) together with ScreenSingapore have lined up four days of conference sessions, including a one-day pre-market conference on December 3.

David McGregor, the managing partner of technology, media and entertainment for telecommunications (TMT) at Ernst & Young (Australia) will take part in a session showcasing Asia’s version of ad-supported on-demand video streaming featuring Tommy Lee, the head of business content module at SK Planet (South Korea). Regarding formats in Asia, Vivian Yin, chief representative and deputy general manager at Star China International Media Ltd (China) will provide some highlights. Also, Mike Beale, the director of international formats at ITV Studios (UK) will be sharing the latest on formats news and what they think will be the next big format. “We have a number of ITV Studios’ international hit formats in production in Asia. The ATF conference gives us the opportunity to discuss our entertainment and factual entertainment formats that have seen global success and can also appeal to Asian audiences,” said Beale.

Attendees can also expect to hear from some of Asia’s most desirable buyers. With the changes in programming expected in China, Beryl Yan, the head of the program strategy department at Hunan Satellite TV (China), and Summer Zheng, the director of formats at Zhejiang Satellite TV (China), will join Shenthil Ranie, content acquisition manager for entertainment at Samsung South East Asia (South Korea), and Lee Soo Hui, the head of the media business unit at Starhub (Singapore), to consider what the implications are. Yan commented, “Fast social development makes the Chinese market a unique one. Localization is extremely important to a format success in China, to which the key would be the combination of international production support and Chinese wisdom in the creative process. Real cross-media formats are gaining increasing attention and Hunan TV is ready to take a first bite.”

Documentary commissioners in the region will also be taking part in a panel to discuss their acquisition plans and their expectations from production companies. Maggie Rhodes, the director of acquisitions and co-productions for National Geographic Channels International (UK), said, “National Geographic Channel is excited to participate for the first time in this year’s ATF conference. The strength and breadth of content being produced in Asia is first class and we look forward to collaborating with the region’s best production minds to generate insightful shows with captivating characters and compelling storylines that appeal to audiences around the world.”
 
Additionally, ATF will also be launching MIPAcademy, a full-day program of master classes and workshops led by leading industry players.

Co-located with ATF, ScreenSingapore will be touching on a broad range of topics, including film financing in the Southeast Asia region. Investors and financiers from North Asia—Shinjiro Nishimura, producer at Nikkatsu (Japan), and Choi Yeonu, the VP of international film financing and production at CJ Entertainment (South Korea)—will both be on hand to speak about their respective plans for Southeast Asia. “The world, now being connected into a single culture, asks for new contents that may satisfy the palate of a wide audience. That is why we seek for solutions in co-production,” said Choi.
 
There will also be sessions with film personalities Anthony Chen, the director of Ilo Ilo, and Shekhar Kapur, the well-known director of the Oscar-winning film Elizabeth, as well as a Village Roadshow Entertainment Group Asia-sponsored program on the morning of December 5.