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A milestone year with global participation at ATF’s 25th Anniversary

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 Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF), Asia’s Co-Production & Entertainment Content Market, celebrated its Silver Jubilee with a congregation of 4,628 trade professionals from 59 countries and regions, including a 10% increase in buyer attendance of 1,004 buyers, cementing ATF’s position as a must-attend event for the Asian region on the global calendar.

Yeow Hui Leng, Group Project Director of ATF said, “As the curtains close on ATF 2024, we are heartened by the unwavering commitment of industry players who continue to view Asia as a key hub for growth and innovation. This year’s vibrant exchange of ideas, strategic partnerships, and groundbreaking content showcases underscore ATF’s pivotal role as the bridge between global markets and Asia’s dynamic entertainment ecosystem.”.

A total of 16 pavilions led by various content agencies from around the world were presented at the market, in addition to the strong presence of studios such as Fremantle, IMAX, Jio Studios, LG U+, Yuewen, Youku and many more.

Celebrities from around the region also made appearances to promote their latest content. These included the debut of Daylight Entertainment’s new coming-of-age drama series, Our Generation, with special appearance by Chinese artistes Zhang Linghe, Shen Jiayu & Wu Sheng; actor & singer, Wang Yilun, made an appearance at the Linmon Media content showcase session to promote the upcoming costume drama he stars in, A Dream Within A Dream; artistes Vic Chou, Hsieh Hsin-Ying & Hsueh Shih-Ling took to the stage to discuss Taiwan’s most anticipated sequel The World Between Us II; and Metro Manila Film Festival Best Actor winner Ian Veneracion, joined Rein Entertainment in its launch of its newest Filipino action-drama series, Drug War: A Conspiracy of Silence.

Playing a key role in content development, ATF 2024 saw an unprecedented six in-development programs, of which four were brand new pitches. Focused on new areas of attention, including a push to invest in IPs that revolutionises business models, a total of 38 ideas/companies/people found the opportunity to present their concepts and ideas to 50 commissioners/producers/etc.

This, in conjunction with a myriad of deals and partnerships were announced, including:

  • ABS-CBN introduced ABS-CBN Studios which offers a range of production services for TV C Film.
  • Central TV acquired two international formats, The Wishing Tree and The Job Interview, both set to premiere in Mongolia in the spring of 2025.
  • Colossul Studios and Robot Playground Media announced co-production for newly launched anime-inspired series Gabriel and the Guardians.
  • FLY Entertainment, IAmCasting, Synagie, Hoods Inc. Productions, and Aux Infinite Studios announced their collaboration for SuperStreamer Asia, a first-of-its-kind innovative TV competition in Singapore where live streamers battle for the ultimate title of streaming supremacy.
  • Linmon Media and Mediacorp entered a strategic partnership to drive closer collaborations in production and facilitate exchanges of creative and production talent between China and Singapore.
  • Mediacorp marked its first pre-sale deal in Chinese drama – the series Emerald Hill is set to debut on Netflix and meWatch simultaneously.
  • Oceanus Media Global and Curtin University signed a MOU to collaborate with on creating a curriculum for virtual production and to strengthen co-production capabilities.
  • Oceanus Media Global and Filmforce Studio Malaysia announced co-production for action film, Bandit, boasting a budget exceeding S$5 million, positioning it as one of the most ambitious endeavours in Southeast Asian cinema.
  • StudioCanal, Beach House Pictures (a Fremantle company) and Momo Films partners to co-produce and develop explosive and stylish crime drama series, Red Butterfly.

Attendees from the market floor, including exhibitors, buyers, and participants, shared their feedback about the market and conference:

  • Anna Yim, Head of Global Marketing, Gyeonggi Content Agency (GCA): “ATF is one of the best C biggest markets in Asia where I was able to connect with new buyers, sellers C partners. Although this was my first time at ATF, I was very surprised by the turnout at the pitching session we held, where it also allowed me to find out the interest towards K- content from attendees from all over the world.”
  • Bennett Pozil, Executive Vice President, Head of Corporate Banking, East West Bank: “ATF in all candour, is one of the favourite events that I go to each year. It brings together a great cross-section of media professionals, not just from Southeast Asia, but also from all over the world. If I can only pick 1 event to attend each year, I’d say ’ATF’.”
  • Christian Vesper, CEO, Global Drama and Film, Fremantle: “Asia is a very important part of our global strategy. A lot of content trends come from Asia these days, so I think that there are a lot of opportunities in terms of production resources and locations. With Asia being such a big market, and a new market for me, it is very helpful that ATF is where everyone is in one place and a great platform to understand what this part of the world is looking for in terms of entertainment and series.”
  • Francis Smith, Partner G Head of Co-Production, IFA Media: “I believe why ATF works so well is because it has a good combination of business hustle and creative meetings (business model). It provides opportunities to meet liked-minded people, as well as people to talk about new ideas, which is an important element for creativity, while being underpinned by a very clear business approach.”
  • Jaymar Castro, Writer, ABS-CBN Studios – Hysteria – Winner of ATF x EST N8 Horror Pitch 2024: “Attending ATF allowed me to be exposed to content from not only in Asia, but also from all over the world. ATF serves as an important platform to connect industry professionals for us to share our culture, stories and unique perspectives.”
  • Maria Kivinen, Sales Manager, Yle, the Finnish Broadcasting Company: “Other than being the place for buying C selling content, ATF serves as a platform to find unique co- production opportunities. I have met with many new partners, especially from Korea C Taiwan, where we have already made business deals with. I believe that after ATF we will have even more unique collaborations and co-financing opportunities. ATF is definitely a must-attend event if you are looking to work partners in Asia.”
  • Sairaa Punjabi, Deputy Vice President of Programming, Net Mediatama Televisi: “It was my first time attending ATF and I was very surprised by the opportunities, the people that I was able to meet, and to learn about projects/programmes that I didn’t even imagine we would have considered looking at before. The possibilities of what we may acquire for our channel has expanded after exploring and speaking with exhibitors C sellers at ATF, which is very exciting for us.”
  • Teresa Krall, Creative, Michael Dolinsek Filmproduction – The CORE––One Thousand and One – Winner of ATF x Mango 1% Formats Pitch 2024: “Attending ATF was very rewarding as it allows us to connect with others, see other pitches and ideas, as well as gain new perspectives for existing ideas which I found very inspiring.”
  • Uttam Pal Singh, Head, Kids Business, South Asia, Warner Bros. Discovery: “ATF is a very important event for buyers like myself – I was able to meet studios, IP owners, content producer & creators, from not just in Southeast Asia, but from all over world in one place and that is what makes ATF a must-attend event. On top of meeting some of our existing business partners face-to-face, I also managed to identify new IPs where we will likely bring the discussion further.”