BBC KOREA LAUNCH
BBC Studios is launching ‘BBC Kids’ in Korea as a monthly subscription service on Genie TV Kids Land, a dedicated IPTV service for young children, in collaboration with telecoms and internet service provider KT. Through the partnership, BBC Studios Asia will bring a wide range of children’s content to Korean audiences, in one place for the first time. The service will feature a mix of content in English language as well as a variety of popular titles dubbed into Korean for the first time. Titles available include seasons 1-4 of BAFTA- and Emmy- award-winning pre-school animation series “Hey Duggee” on Genie TV Kids Land among IPTVs. Series 4 is exclusive to this service in Korea, “Andy’s Global Adventures,” “Yakka Dee,” “Go Jetters,” “Sarah & Duck,” and “My World Kitchen.” The service will be available for KRW5,000 ($3.70) per month.
SONG’S BONDS
Song Kang-ho (“Parasite,” “Snowpiercer”) stars in “Uncle Samsik,” a political thriller series set to launch on the Disney+ streaming platform from May 15. Set in the 1960s, the show follows an ambitious idealist who is driven to turn his country’s industrial fortunes around. He attracts the attentions of Uncle Samsik, a shady fixer and social chameleon. The pair form an uneasy alliance, navigating the complexities of the established system, united by their shared goal of a prosperous future.
Written and directed by Shin Yeonshick (“Cassiopeia,” “Romans 8:37”), the show also stars Byun Yohan (“Mr. Sunshine,” “Six Flying Dragons”). The streamer will release the show’s first five episodes on May 15, followed by two episodes a week until a three-part season finale on June 19. It will also be available on Hulu in the U.S.
BUNNY BOUNCE
Box office in Hong Kong over the four-day Easter weekend (Friday to Monday) bounced by 22% compared with the same time last year. According to data from Hong Kong Box Office Ltd., theatrical revenues reached HK$36.8 million ($4.72 million), compared with HK$30.1 in 2023.
The chart was led by “We 12,” a local film starring the members of Hong Kong’s Cantopop boy band Mirror. The film earned HK$13.2 million ($1.70 million) over the long weekend, comfortably ahead of “Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire” (with HK$9.82 million) and “Kung Fu Panda 4” (with HK$5.38 million).
FREE FLOWN
Radio Free Asia, a U.S.-government funded broadcast and online news operation, has closed its editorial office in Hong Kong. The company said on Friday that it has shut down its bureau as a reaction to the new Article 23 National Security Law which came into effect on March 23. RFA will keep its media registration in the city.
The law, which is addition to the National Security Law injected into Hong Kong’s mini constitution in July 2020, imposes severe punishments for interference by foreign forces deemed to threaten national security and criminalizes the possession or disclosure of state secrets. These can include economic and social issues. It also criminalizes sedition.
The Hong Kong government has criticized RFA, the BBC and other news organizations for their reporting about the new law. It says that it was its constitutional duty to enact the new law, rejects claims that Article 23 restricts personal freedoms or is substantially different from security laws in other developed territories.
WARNER CONSUMER
Vikram Sharma has been named group VP, head of consumer products, APAC, effective April 1. Sharma will report to Robert Oberschelp, head of Warner Bros. Discovery Global consumer products, and part of Warner Bros. Discovery’s revenue & strategy division headed by chief revenue & strategy officer Bruce Campbell.
Sharma will lead the APAC region of WBDGCP following longtime global consumer product executive Julian Moon’s previously announced retirement after 33 years with the company. He will be based in Singapore and continue to work closely with WBD’s head of APAC, James Gibbons.
Sharma has been with WBD for five years, working and leading teams in consumer products and licensing, ad sales, and partnership roles. Previously, he spent nearly nine years in similar roles with increasing responsibility in India and Southeast Asia at The Walt Disney Company.
SHANGHAI SWING
The Shanghai International Film Festival has confirmed the dates for its 2024 edition. It will take place June 14-23 and hold its Golden Goblet Awards ceremony on June 22.
In addition to the main competition section for feature films, the festival will operate: a short film section targeting films of five minutes in length; a science-fiction film week; the SIFF Young x Shanghai Young Filmmakers Support Program; and a market section that will also play host to seminars and conferences.
NO YOLK
Syracuse, New York-based The Dazey Phase has come on board as international sales agent for “Egghead & Twinkie,” a coming-of-age comedy film about coming out of the closet. Claiming to be the first feature film funded by TikTok, the film was directed by Sarah Kambe Holland and recently won the best comedy vanguard feature prize at the Austin Film Festival. The Dazey Phase first joined as consulting producers during the film’s post-production phase. The company was founded in 2021 by siblings Jake (“And Just Like That…”) and Eva Casey (“Stronghold”) with Danielle Benedict (“Hell Is Empty,” “Aloo”) joining the following year as head of business strategy & operations.