Fotini Paraskakis Launches New Asian Content Outfit

Fotini Paraskakis, formerly of The Story Lab, is joining forces with Nippon TV alum Shigeko (Cindy) Chino and ex-Discovery Asia chief Arthur Bastings in a new firm focused on Asian content.

Empire of Arkadia (EOA) aims to bring Asian-inspired content to the global stage, focusing on key territories such as Korea, Japan, Taiwan, India, China and Southeast Asia. The venture has bases in London, Singapore and Tokyo, with expansion to Seoul and Los Angeles early next year. It has a slate of projects already in the works from Japan, Korea, the U.K. and Europe.

Paraskakis was previously managing director of The Story Lab and Endemol Shine Group in Asia. Chino was most recently with the international business development unit at Nippon TV. Bastings, who previous ran Discovery in AsiaPac, runs a start-up accelerator out of Singapore and California.

“This is the perfect time to launch a company focusing on content for future generations; it really is an exciting and transformational period in the content industry, where literally anyone from anywhere has the opportunity for their stories to be seen worldwide,” Paraskakis said. “We will bring the best upcoming creators and Asian inspired stories with highest international appeal to market, fully focusing on fulfilling demands for Gen Z content, stories that speak to audiences worldwide and that will stay with us all as we move into the future.”