Tuesday, 2 December 2025
 

ReelShort inks multi-year exclusive partnership with AR Asia Productions; new deal fast-track Asia-Pacific expansion as microdrama engagement hits new highs

U.S. microdrama platform ReelShort has inked a multi-year global partnership with Hong Kong-based AR Asia Productions to fast-track expansion in the Asia-Pacific region.

The agreement comes as ReelShort’s top shows, including “True Heiress vs. Fake Queen Bee”, hit record views. “True Heiress” has attracted 395.2 million views, with shows like “Found A Homeless Billionaire Husband for Christmas” not far behind at 391.1 million and “How to Tame a Silver Fox” at 382.3 million.

The deal makes AR, founded in 2022 by Anne Chan with partners former HBO Asia boss Jonathan Spink and Ronan Wong, ReelShort’s exclusive agency responsible for broadening the reach and accessibility of ReelShort’s micro dramas and vertical formats across the region.

“The concept no longer needs to be proved. Microdrama has moved to another level,” Chan said today just ahead of tomorrow’s opening of the ATF Market in Singapore.

Joey Jia, who founded ReelShort owner/operator Crazy Maple Studio in the U.S. in 2022, described the deal as a “milestone in our global strategy”.

Other titles involved in the agreement include last summer’s “Breaking the Ice” (342.4 million views), “Money, Guns, and a Merry Christmas” (266.9 million); “Move Aside! I'm the Final Boss” (297.6 million); and “Bound by Honor” (202.2 million), along with “The Double Life of My Billionaire Husband”, which has surpassed 500 million views.

Scale and breadth make JioStar a global media leader;
"We are a country, a nation unto ourselves,"
says CEO Kevin Vaz

Befitting the media giant that he describes the one-year-old Indian media company as having become, JioStar group CEO Kevin Vaz delivered a simple, but powerful, presentation this morning ahead of tomorrow's opening of the three-day ATF market in Singapore. Backed by Reliance Industries, India’s biggest corporation, JioStar was formed almost exactly a year ago from the merger of JioStar and the previous Disney properties of StarTV and Disney+ Hotstar. The result is a behemoth.

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Audience applauds AI vertical adaptation; Tencent boss Jeff Han showcases 2026 slate, commits to continued investment in Chinese, Thai & Indonesian originals

Mainland Chinese platform Tencent Video has committed to continued investment in original content – including in Southeast Asia – for its WeTV streaming platform and today showcased a robust series slate for 2026. Speaking at the Leaders’ Dialogue ahead of the ATF market, which runs through Friday, Tencent VP Jeff Han also said the platform would continue to experiment with new formats, and drew audience applause at the first look video of an AI-generated Thai adaptation of an English-language microdrama. Han also drew more than a few raised eyebrows for the boundary-pushing variety show “Love (X)”, a China-Thailand collaboration and for Indonesian series “Sex, Love & 10 Million Dollars” from Hitmaker Studios.

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Hong Kong films dominate inaugural Golden Singa Chinese Movie Awards in Singapore

Hong Kong-produced films “Papa”, “The Last Dance” and “Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In” dominated the inaugural edition of the Golden Singa Awards presented in Singapore last night (1 Dec). With some 400 guests in attendance, the ceremony replicated many of the tropes and rituals of prize contests in mainland China, where the largest TV audience for the new awards is almost certain to be found. Coming so shortly after the Golden Rooster awards in mainland China and the Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan, it is unclear why the fourth quarter of the year needs another award ceremony dedicated to Chinese-language movies. And it was a surprise to see a debut event included within this week’s Singapore Media Festival, which is headed by the much longer-running Singapore International Film Festival and the Asian TV Forum (ATF).

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FEATURES

Big eyes and US$130 billion hopes: Japan’s global anime industry soars

The global market value of Japanese anime grew by 15% in 2024, to just under US$25 billion, according to data to be published in December 2025 by the Association of Japanese Animations (AJA). That is a punchy figure in a country that is more familiar with deflation and a strong one for a sector that is not new, driven by fashionably new technology or that was previously overlooked.

“When no one is watching, do you still do what’s right?” – ”Salvageland” director Lino Cayetano

In the run-up to the 26 November premiere of his new movie, the neo-Western suspense drama “Salvageland”, Philippines’ director Lino S. Cayetano said much about wealth, freedom, morality and conscience. “When rules don’t exist, you’re left with your conscience. When no one is watching, do you still do what’s right?,” Cayetano – previously a politician and the former mayor of Taguig – said.

Heroes journey: Beach House Pictures ramps up film backing, fast-tracks multi-direction expansion

In April 2026, Vietnam’s CJ CGV releases “Mr Hero”, a family comedy drama directed by Vo Thach Thao (“Cây Táo Nở Hoa”) starring Thai Hoa (“Hijack 78”), aka Vietnam’s ‘king of comedy’. Although Singapore’s Beach House Pictures (BHP) took something of a back seat in the noise around the film’s announcement, “Mr Hero” is nevertheless another happy marker in a multi-directional expansion strategy that ramps up as the company turns 20.

Sacrifice. Made Personal. – Monochromatic Pictures’ “Korban” season three promises the Malay series’ most personal chapter yet

From grief to healing and, finally, to the quiet courage of sacrifice, Monochromatic Pictures’ acclaimed “Korban” trilogy reaches its most personal chapter yet. Director-writer Jeevan Nathan and producer Audrey Anthoney reflect on what’s next for Aisyah, and for themselves.

Brought to you by Monochromatic Pictures

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