Ex-Endemol Shine, Discovery & Nippon TV Execs Team To Launch Asian Content Firm Empire Of Arkadia

Olivia Colman is gracing the red carpet at the 2022 BFI London Film Festival!

Rebecca Souw The Astory-produced “Extraordinary Attorney Woo” claimed the ‘Best Content Award’ Saturday at the fourth edition of the Asian Contents Awards in Busan. The hit show’s lead actress, Park Eun-bin bagged the best actress award, thrilling assembled local fans. The ceremony took place outdoors at the BIFF Theater at the Busan Cinema Center, on the sidelines of the Busan International Film Festival. With the venues filled to almost 80% capacity, the best of Asia TV, OTT and online content were presented with a total of 12 awards.

EXCLUSIVE: Bernie Ecclestone has slammed Formula 1 documentaries currently on the market and said audiences will prefer the “reality” of his upcoming series Lucky!, which Deadline can reveal has added a trio of broadcast and streaming partners.

Married At First Sight UK stars Whitney Hughes and April Banbury recently enjoyed a lavish night out in London together, following George Roberts' "arrest". Whitney, 31, and April, 33, donned matching pink outfits for their fun trip to M Restaurant, where they tucked into an array of delicious dishes and sipped cocktails. April, who recently broke her silence on husband George's alleged arrest, looked stunning in a pink satin midi dress featuring a thigh split, while Whitney wowed in a pink mini skirt and matching crop top.

AKMU‘s Lee Chan-hyuk will be making his debut as a soloist later this month with his first album, ‘Error’.Lee’s upcoming effort, titled ‘Error’ was first announced via social media earlier today (October 5). It will mark the musician’s first-ever solo project outside of sibling duo AKMU.A teaser image for Lee’s forthcoming record was also unveiled alongside the announcement, which features a cryptic photo of himself distorted by oversaturated film filters.

Hello Sunshine has added two senior executives. Stefanie Markman is joining the Candle Media company as General Counsel and EVP, Business and Legal Affairs, and Wifreddy Chiang as EVP, Finance and Accounting.

latest episode of her Archetypes podcast, Meghan explored the “Dragon Lady” trope and the accompanying unconscious bias which she said could be “incredibly dangerous. ”“The power and the impact of these stereotypes that have the ability to strip away the humanity of entire groups of people… it cannot be underestimated,” she said.  “People, all people, are multidimensional and layered.

The Snuts have been in this position before.

The Snuts have been in this position before.

Kim Kardashian is finally getting ready to launch her true-crime podcast The System: The Case of Kevin Keith.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Veteran media executive Fotini Paraskakis is launching Empire of Arkadia, an Asia-focused content company. The firm expects to unveil its debut slate in time for MIPCOM later this month. Paraskakis is joined in the venture by Japanese media executive Shigeko (Cindy) Chino and former Discovery APAC and EMEA president, Arthur Bastings. The trio describe Empire of Arkadia’s mission as bringing Asian-inspired stories, in both scripted and non-scripted sectors, to the international stage. They will lead with “forwarding-thinking stories that speak to younger generations.”

Naman Ramachandran Leading practitioners of the Asian theatrical business participated in a lively discussion on the future of the sector post-pandemic and the signs are encouraging. Speaking at the APOS conference in Singapore on Thursday, moderated by Variety Asia editor Patrick Frater, Stephen Laslocky, VP at leading research firm Media Partners Asia, provided a handy overview of the theatrical market in Southeast Asia. Laslocky said that Indonesia, the largest market in the region, would be back to 2019 levels of theatrical business by the end of 2022. “In Malaysia, the demand generally appears to be back, the issue was the pipeline just wasn’t so great, particularly this year. But next year, they think that’s going to improve for both local, which has done very well this year, and for foreign films next year,” Laslocky said.

After two years of holding in-person but stripped down editions of the festival, South Korea’s Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, October 5-14) is back in full force this year with a packed line-up of screenings, red carpets, parties, awards and industry events.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Gerhard Zeiler, president of International at Warner Bros. Discovery, has moved to reassure the Asia-Pacific region that it is an integral part of the group’s post-merger strategy. “Don’t believe that we don’t know how important Asia is for our company, he said Thursday. Zeiler was speaking at the APOS Convention in Singapore on Thursday. He cited examples of theatrical success for “Batman” and “Fantastic Beasts” in the region and investment in local production in the region. The reassurance may have been necessary following post-merger announcements that proposed changes in North America, Latin America and Europe ahead of Asia – despite recent external data showing Asia-Pacific as one of the world’s fastest growth regions.

K.J. Yossman Warner Bros. Discovery Intl President Gerhard Zeiler has set out the company’s post-merger strategy, re-iterating his belief in cinema as well as his commitment to “local stories,” despite the fact that HBO Max recently halted local original programming across a number of European territories, including in the Nordics, Central Europe, the Netherlands and Turkey. “If you want to be a global player, you have to have relevant local stories,” Zeiler said at the Royal Television Society’s (RTS) annual convention in London on Tuesday morning. “I mean don’t misunderstand me, the big kids will always be the Batmans, the Elvises, the Black Adams, which premieres next month here in the U.K.” He also pointed out that WBD invests in local films, citing productions in Japan and Germany, as well as streaming content.

decorated as an Honorary Knight of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) by Queen Elizabeth II, who approved the award prior to her death.The honorary award given to recipients who are not U.K. citizens is the second-highest rank in the order and is designated for individuals who have made “a pre-eminent contribution in any field of activity,” per the Honours’ website.