Charging forward into 2021 and into the realm of content connectivity, commerce and beyond, the programme line-up will see industry leaders discuss and provide insights on a range of topics from digital transformation to partnership announcements and an exclusive look at how China's Film & TV Industry has developed in 2020 with a 2021 forecast.

Leading the line-up are key Asian brands at the forefront of digital innovation and adoption. Dr Michael Gryseels, President of True Digital Group from Thailand and Archana Anand, Chief Business Officer of Zee5 will expound on the significance of sustainable models and investments in the digital economy while industry heavyweights such as WarnerMedia Entertainment Networks who are also doubling down on digital transformation efforts will be sharing strategies for manoeuvring the challenges in the year ahead.

At the forefront of partnerships in the new world, a panel discussion will see the Singapore Tourism Board, Studio Dragon and iQIYI come together to provide insights and share more about their latest partnership to promote the Destination Singapore story. Studio Dragon is best known for the popular drama series "Crash Landing on You", while NASDAQ-listed iQIYI is a streaming giant from China, with over 500 million monthly active users.

Yeow Hui Leng, Group Project Director of ATF says "Digital convergence and COVID-19 have changed the way content is consumed, and they have also inspired new ways of collaborating and story-telling. This 21st edition of ATF underlines its coming of age in a new era and we look forward to facilitating conversations and connections, as we head into 2021."

Grooming and discovering talents through In Development program

ATF has always been about providing talents, creators, and producers with a platform to launch their ideas further for development. This year, the intention is to offer an accelerated approach to content discovery and development regionally and globally through the ATF In Development program.

The In Development component comprises of its pitches and Speed Dating Program for co-production and commissioning. Producers and creators alike will be given the opportunity to pitch their projects to key decision-makers who include commissioning editors, distributors, co-producers, investors, and talent agencies.

Following are the commissioners taking part:- Justin Deimen of 108 Media (Animation / Format / Drama)- Agathe Vinson of Film Development Council of the Philippines and Mil Alcain of Film Philippines Incentives (Animation / Format / Drama / All Genres)- Chelsea Yang of Hunan TV (Format)- Chenfei Zhu of IQIYI, Inc (Animation)- Janet Zhang and Lulu Zhao of IQIYI Kids & Family (Animation)- Brenda Bisner of Kidoodle.tv (Animation)- Jesslyn Wong and Doreen Neo of MediaCorp (Drama)- Ray Wang and Cici Zheng of Reesee Entertainment (Animation)- Qing Fan of Tencent Video (Animation)- Richard Rowe of WildBrain (Animation)- Danna Stern, Tal Amram and Maya Biton of Yes Studios (Drama)

The pitches have proven to be an effective platform to spot ideas and nurture young talents from the Asian region. The ATF Formats Pitch calls for new and exciting originals from unscripted (non-fiction) entertainment formats. Lending a critical eye to the judging panel this year are industry heavyweights from 108 Media, Nippon TV, ITV studios, MongolTV and The Format People.

The ATF Animation Pitch calls for the most original, creative animated programs with edutainment value for the children in our lives within Asia. This year, experts from Kidoodle.tv, Toonz Animation India, Warnermedia Entertainment Networks and WEKIDS are part of the judging panel that will decide on the winner.

"The competition was tough, but we are so grateful that the experts recognised the potential for Weatherville and our network of other Southeast Asian creatives and developers have grown exponentially. With that, the potential to take the show to the markets have increased as well," saidDiana Yurinova, VP, International business development and distribution of Riki Group, winner of ATF Animation Pitch 2019.

The Chinese Pitch, which calls for original innovations in movie or drama formats that appeals to Chinese-speaking territories, is currently going through the judging process.

Winners of the pitches will be announced at ATF. ATF Online+ takes place from 1 to 4 December 2020, with on demand available up till 28 February 2021. ATF Online+ is part of the Singapore Media Festival (SMF). For more information, please visit www.asiatvforum.com.

Industry luminaries who will be speaking at ATF:http://www.acnnewswire.com/clientreports/5349/Annex.pdf

About Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF) 2020

Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF) - the region's leading entertainment content event - is the platform of calibre to acquire knowledge, network, buy, sell, finance, distribute and co-produce across all platforms. It is the premier stage in Asia to engage with the entertainment industry's top players from around the world. It's where the best minds meet and the future of Asia's content is shaped.

ATF facilitates opportunities to discover vital trends, crucial statistics and significant foresight particularly in TV's digital, kids and formats arenas. Its business match-making programme open doors to new connections in the region. With over 5,700 international buyers and sellers from more than 60 countries and regions, ATF presents valuable business prospects for top-of-the-line benefits. For more information, please visit www.asiatvforum.com

About ScreenSingapore 2020

ScreenSingapore - Southeast Asia's definitive marketplace for filmmakers, producers, distributors, financiers and film buyers to explore co-production opportunities, seek financing, make deals and learn about the changing film landscape.

In 2020, ScreenSingapore will once again host the Southeast Asian Film Financing (SAFF) Project Market and Conference, in partnership with the Southeast Asian Audio-Visual Association (SAAVA) and Ties That Bind: Asia/Europe Producers Workshop (TTB) to connect promising filmmakers and producers from Southeast Asia and Europe with international coproducing partners, festival programmers, distributors, commissioners, and financiers. For more information, please visit www.screensingapore.com.sg

About Reed Exhibitions (RX)

Reed Exhibitions is a leading global event organiser, with more than 500 events in 30 countries. In 2019, Reed Exhibitions brought together more than 7m event participants from around the world generating billions of dollars in business. Today Reed Exhibitions' events are held throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Africa and organised by 38 fully staffed offices. Reed Exhibitions serves 43 industry sectors with trade and consumer events. It is part of RELX, a global provider of information and analytics for professional and business customers across industries. For more information, please visit www.reedexpo.com

About the Singapore Media Festival (SMF)

The Singapore Media Festival, hosted by the Infocomm Media Development Authority, is one of Asia's leading international media events, where the industry meets to discover the latest trends, talents and content in Asia for film, TV and digital media. Taking place from 26 November to 6 December 2020, the Singapore Media Festival brings together the Asian Academy Creative Awards (AAA), Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF) and ScreenSingapore, and Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF). SuperGamerFest will also be held in conjunction with SMF. For more information about the Singapore Media Festival, please visit www.imda.gov.sg/sgmediafest.

Press ContactNinemer Public RelationsDanielle LohSenior Account ManagerT: +65 9176 7502E: danielleloh@ninemer.com

Janice ChewAccount ManagerT: +65 9685 7508E: janicechew@ninemer.com

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