ATF Online+ 2021: Asian platforms & storytelling

The opening ceremony will be a physical event taking place today at Marina Bay Sands, followed by all business activities taking place at the digital extension ATF Online+. The on-demand sessions will be available up till June 2022.

Yeow Hui Leng, Group Project Director of ATF: ‘Asian storytelling and brands are capturing the imagination and attention of global audiences. 2021 is a good year for Asian content with a slew of well-received content released. As a pivotal entertainment content market serving the Asian region for the last 22 years, ATF is proud to be part of the exciting ecosystem championing the best of what Asia has to offer’.

Despite the context, the region is showing a good evolution in terms of streaming services with new players being launched in the different countries. This is one of the main topics of this year’s ATF: how Asian streamers are gaining relevance by expanding its services, launching new services under different business models, and adapting quicker to the local cultures.

During ATF, several local operators will take the scene: Chen Xiao, SVP, iQiyi and Kaichen Li, Head of WeTV & iFlix, Tencent and and Wang Xinyi, CCO, OPG BesTV+ Streaming Media, all from China; Angeline Poh from MediaCorp (Singapore), Barrett Comiskey, founder, Migo (Indonesia) and Terence Leong, Group CCO, KKBOX and Joanne Tsai, CEO, Taiwan+, both from Taiwan.

Themed “Re-imagining TV: Vision 2022”, ATF Online+ will also celebrate the Asian storytelling, while convening decision makers and senior executives to make sense of a dynamic landscape that has been innovating, converging, and re-positioning to monetise. Key Industry Leaders of the “Fireside Chats” will be Hyejung Hwang, CCO, TVING and Lee Tae-Hyun, CEO, Waave, both from South Korea; and Ashok Namboodiri, Chief Business Officer - International Business, Zee (India).

Production will also have space with Covid-19 significantly reshaping the processes: Erika North, Head of Asia Pacific Originals, Amazon Studios, Wonwoo Park, CEO and Chief Creator of DITURN, and Arjan Pomper, COO, ITV Studios, among others, will provide insights and exclusive developments into programming priorities for 2022. Production capabilities, including virtual production and AI in filmmaking, could become key differentiators for content creators moving forward.

Other top events wil be the “Speed Dating with Commissioners: Co-Production”, including representatives from Alibaba-Youku, China Bridge Content, Discovery, Kidoodle.TV, Tencent Video, WildBrain, 108 Media and ZDF Enterprises; “ATF Pitches: Nurturing Industry Talent” with seven industry judges for the “Animation Pitch” that have shortlisted 6 projects from Kanaban Graphics (Japan), One Animation (Singapore), PT Aneka Cahaya Nusantara (Indonesia), Parijat Animation Films (India) and Studio Amarana (Indonesia); six “Formats Pitch” finalists; the “Chinese Pitch” and the “SEAScreen Project Market”.

 Fabricio Ferrara and Alberto Buitron