Ron Howard's production company to mentor Taiwanese screenwriters in TAICCA program

朗·霍華的製作公司將在 文策院 計畫中指導台灣編劇

Imagine Entertainment, Sixty Percent Productions join TAICCA to present content development lab


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA) has announced EMERGE, a Chinese-language content development program in which Academy-winning director Ron Howard’s Imagine Entertainment will mentor Taiwanese filmmakers as they develop series.

One of the goals of the program, according to TAICCA, is to introduce the time-tested Hollywood content development process to Taiwan and help filmmakers take advantage of the opportunities that have arisen with the popularization of streaming platforms. “While this surge in demand has created opportunities for local productions globally, it has also created a pipeline for discovering and identifying new talent to feed the demands of the marketplace."

TAICCA added that EMERGE will give Taiwanese creators the chance to “maximize their talents to meet the challenges of a competitive global market.” Five teams of filmmakers will work with Imagine Entertainment, as well as Sixty Percent Productions, a Hong Kong-based company specializing in Asian content, in an intensive 20-week workshop to develop their stories.

In a video introduction, Howard said that he and his team “have relied on these great collaborations and relationships with creative talent, and we’ve all grown from these working relationships. Whether it’s a series or a movie, we know that it is hard work, but also collaboration, that produces truly memorable and successful programs.” He added, “We’re excited by this opportunity to share what we know and also to learn from talented writers and directors from Taiwan.”

TAICCA CEO Izero Lee (李明哲) was quoted as saying, “The current state of the international content market has intensified the competition between content produced in every country. Therefore, if Taiwan's film and television industry can increase its output of high-quality original content, it can increase its chances of successfully tapping into commercial markets.”

Lee said that TAICCA looks forward to having Imagine Entertainment and Sixty Percent Productions “share their unparalleled insights on the international market with the local industry.”

The program is open for application until July 31. Writers or writing teams that submit their in-development Chinese-language series will be selected by Imagine Entertainment and Sixty Percent Productions to participate in the program.