From the left: ABC JAPAN: President, Executive Officer Masayuki Nishide, ABC TV: Director Jun Iwata, IMAGINUS : CEO Jinnie Choi, COO Hyun-jin Yu
Japanese broadcaster Asahi Broadcasting Group Holdings Corporation (ABC Japan) made a deal for the Drama Joint development partnership with Korean premium content production studio, IMAGINUS Co., Ltd. (IMAGINUS), through Asahi Television Broadcasting Corporation (ABC TV) .
The two parties will enhance their production expertise through regular workshops in Osaka, Tokyo, and Seoul. These workshops will bring together the talents of Japan and Korea to develop new hit dramas for the Japanese market and to capture the global audience.
In addition to reputed variety shows, ABC TV has positioned drama as a new pillar of its content business. From April 2023, its nationwide network drama series are airing for the first time in 28 years. ABC TV focuses the original dramas centered policy, which applied Japan's leading screenwriters with rich in creativity in the past series. In this partnership, ABC TV develops the brand-new Japanese drama series, which also can travel around the world, with IMAGINUS: Korea's best group of creators, including producers, directors, and screenwriters.
IMAGINUS is a global content production studio founded by former Studio Dragon CEO Jinnie Choi. The studio is creating a number of works, including “Can this LOVE BE TRANSLATED?” and realized the series widely accepted not only in Japan but also overseas. This partnership is also the first attempt at full-scale drama development with a Japanese broadcaster.
Mr. Jun Iwata, ABC TV, Director for Content Production, says “We are thrilled about this partnership with IMAGINUS, the best creative team in Korea. I strongly believe the creative chemistry between the two companies will create a totally new style of drama, neither simply Korean nor Japanese, and this new creation deliver a story that attracts firstly Japanese audience, but all over the world.
Ms. Jinnie Choi, CEO of IMAGINUS, says “I feel that it is very significant that both companies were able to establish a partnership between Korea and Japan through content. We are also very pleased to have the opportunity to collaborate with creators of ABC TV, who are producing many hit contents in Japan. Based on the know-how of both companies, we will create stories that can deliver new and differentiated emotions to Japan viewers.”
ABOUT ASAHI BROADCASTING GROUP HOLDINGS CORPORATION
Founded in 1951. As a leading media company headquartered in Osaka, it includes Asahi Television Broadcasting Corporation (ABC TV), which focuses on terrestrial digital broadcasting, and ABC Frontier, Inc., responsible for the content business. Its primary businesses are television, radio, and e-commerce. ABC TV produces the No.1 rated show in Japan, “Who is the Real Celebrity?”, “M-1 Grand Prix,” and other hit titles, such as "The Before and After," "In The Middle of Nowhere," and "Can You Share A Table?".
ABOUT IMAGINUS
Founded in 2021. It is a global content studio founded around creators. It has 10 content label subsidiaries and one joint venture with INNOCEAN. Centered on creators with many years of content production experience, know-how, and expertise, we plan and produce content that can be deployed not only in Japan but also globally. Currently in production, IMAGINUS leads the titles such as "CAN THIS LOVE BE TRANSLATED? (Netflix) " and "TEMPEST(Disney+)."
