“AXN is an international brand born in Asia,” explains Michael Grindon, President, Sony Pictures Television International (SPTI), which is responsible for all of SPE’s television, mobile and digital distribution businesses outside of the US.“We knew that action and adventure was popular in this region; we obviously wanted movies to be an important part of the mix, and we also wanted to screen new series from the US and elsewhere. The anime component now has a channel of its own, Animax, and programming like The Amazing Race Asia is being produced.”Grindon points to the amount of production activity occurring in the region, including movies like Stephen Chow’s CJ7 and Bollywood’s Saawariya. “Apart from Japanese anime, we’re looking at live-action anime in that market. We have an active production business in China and are looking to expand our facilities in Singapore. Then via our international licensing business, we’re looking to take that international content elsewhere around the world. On the channel side for the coming year we’ll be looking to grow our newest channels, AXN Beyond and SET (Sony Entertainment Television.)”