Yasuo Matsuo

TV Kids
Weekly, March 25, 2008

CEO

Adness
Entertainment U.S.

Airing for
more than 35 years, the live-action kids’ series Kamen Rider boasts more than 840 episodes and 22
movies to date in its home country of Japan. Adness Entertainment is betting
that the concept can be as successful around the world and last year
established its U.S. headquarters in Los Angeles to focus on developing a new
version of the show, Kamen Rider Dragon Knight, for international viewers.

“We toned down
the original production to make it suitable for a 6-to-14 demographic worldwide
audience,” says Yasuo Matsuo, the CEO of Adness Entertainment’s U.S. office. “We
are taking advantage of local state-of-the-art studios to enhance footage of
the original series to match the quality of our production. We are also
enhancing special effects to match the current production standards. With this,
we are adding a taste of Holly­wood for the property to be widely accepted.”

Matsuo says
that the new version also targets a younger audience than the original. In
addition, “the U.S. version will have a more engaging story line and will be
simplified for kids to understand.”

Matsuo is
optimistic that the series will appeal to international broadcasters, given its
enduring appeal in Japan. “The production is well executed, filled with action
to attract kids who can imitate and play as Kamen Riders. The series has a wide
range of audiences from small kids to fathers. Fathers who used to watch Kamen
Rider still like the show,
so naturally, their kids start watching the program.”

In addition to
sealing broadcast deals, Adness’s U.S. office is developing a merchandising
campaign for the series to ensure the broadest possible exposure. “It has a
wide range of merchandising and promotional possibilities,” Matsuo says. “Kids
watching the series buy licensed products, which helps to widen the series’
exposure by drawing attention from other kids that are unaware of the series.”

Matsuo notes
that negotiations for licensed products are at an “advanced stage” in Latin
America, where Adness is currently pitching the series to broadcasters. For
Europe, Adness is looking at working with some third-party distributors for
broadcast and merchandising deals, while the priority for the U.S. is scoring
TV placement and developing out a rollout strategy for toys.

As Kamen
Rider starts to pick
up steam, Matsuo says, the company will look to take on some Japanese anime
properties and increase its production slate.

—By
Mansha Daswani