Pioneer Productions in South Korean JV

LONDON/SEOUL: Tinopolis Group's Pioneer Productions has teamed up with South Korea's PAAN Media to form Buzz Media, a joint-venture production company.

Based in Seoul, the new prodco will develop and produce a variety of factual programming for U.K., Korean and international broadcasters. Content will include 4K natural-history and science titles, as well as character-led access docs and factual-entertainment formats. The company is already in advanced development on a pair of series for Korea and the global market.

Kirstie McLure, Pioneer's managing director, will oversee Buzz Media's operations and has named Patrick Youngtaek Suh CEO to supervise the day-to-day running of the company.

Pioneer first began collaborating with PAAN Media in 2014 when it brokered a tri-continent co-production deal for the three-part series Treasures of the Earth.

McLure remarked: "Pioneer is incredibly excited to be entering into a joint venture with PAAN Media. Korea is such a dynamic and forward-thinking market. Its talent base and CGI capabilities are incredible and they are way ahead of the game in terms of 4K, making it the perfect time to form a bridge between the two territories. Creating innovative factual content is in our DNA and working with PAAN Media over the past year on Treasures of the Earth has really opened our eyes to the opportunities available to create and harness more synergy. Not only will the joint venture compliment everything that Pioneer is doing with content, it will also take us to new technological frontiers and cement our presence in Asia."

Youngtaek Suh added: "We are honored to be participating in such a great venture with Pioneer. With their longstanding heritage in creating innovative specialist factual and factual content and our Korean capabilities in various fields of broadcasting, we are determined to make Buzz Media a successful company that takes content to new heights."