Asia-Pacific Broadcasting (APB) August 2015 Volume 32, Issue 6 | Page 9

NEWS & VIEWS August 2015 What’s New on TV n Lip Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is taking Asia by storm in Lip Sync Battle on Comedy Central. Sync Battle makes Asian debut SINGAPORE – Viacom International Media Networks’ (VIMN) original series and social media sensation, Lip Sync Battle, has made its way into Asia, following a landmark production deal with online media corporation Sohu.com. The agreement enables Sohu to produce 13 episodes of the Chinese format adaptation of Spike TV’s sensation — Lip Sync Battle China — that is based on the pop culture phenomenon of lip sync battling. The Chinese format will be made available on tv.sohu.com, 56.com and other Sohu- owned digital platforms, and is predicted to reach over 600 million users in China. Caroline Beaton, SVP of international pro- gramme sales at VIMN, added: “With China’s formidable pool of top music and entertain- ment talent, we are in no doubt the show will thrive in the market and become a firm favourite on Sohu’s digital platforms.” The Viacom original series is also doing battle in Asia on Comedy Central. Season One comprises 10 episodes, with an extended eight episodes. The first three episodes feature Jimmy Fallon vs Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Anna Kendrick vs John Krasinski, and Anne Hathaway vs Emily Blunt. n Hop on the Pirate Express with GO! Catch Captain Newt and his crew on board the ship Pirate Express every Saturday on GO!. SYDNEY – Littlies can now look forward to a “contemporary meets classic” with the original cartoon series Pirate Express from Sydney-based production house Sticky Pictures and Canada’s Atomic Cartoons on Australia’s GO! channel. The series for seven-to-11-year-olds recently won Best Musical Score and was nominated for Best Animated Series at this year’s Leo Awards, which celebrates excel- lence in British Columbia Film and Television. Donna Andrews, executive producer and CEO of Sticky Pictures, revealed: “It’s a big, bold comedy series full of adventure, laughs and a regurgitating penguin named Spewey. We can’t wait to share the non-stop antics of our motley Pirate crew with the GO! audience.” Follow the adventures of Captain Newt, a 12 year-old boy from Atlantis, and his crew on the seven seas, on board the ship Pirate Express every Saturday on GO!. n Toonami picks up Yo-Kai Watch in Asia HONG KONG – From Japanese creators Dentsu, Yo-Kai Watch now travels across South and South-east Asia on Turner ’s Toonami channel. The kids network has snapped up 65 half-hour episodes and is available on an exclusive basis in almost all countries around the region. Commenting on the acquisition, Toona- mi’s Mark Eyers stated: “In both Japan and Korea, the franchise’s success has extended way beyond the screen to become a gen- uine phenomenon loved by both kids and families. We can’t wait to see Yo-Kai Watch enthrall Toonami’s audi- ences in South and South-east Asia.” Toonami is cur- rently airing the quirky series as part of its Anime Siege primetime programming Catch Japanese anime block, which runs series Yo-kai Watch on weekends from on Turner’s Toonami channel. 9.30am. SOFT LIGHTING | REDEFINED The new ARRI SkyPanel line of LED soft lights is launching with the S60 and the smaller S30, in both fully tuneable and remote phosphor versions. Featuring versatile user controls and rugged build quality, SkyPanel delivers exceptional light output with a soft, uniform beam field and high color rendering. For more information please contact: ARRI ASIA Limited 2801-2 Exchange Tower, 33 Wang Chiu Road, Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong Tel : +852 2571 6288 / +65 9695 9970 [email protected] www.arri.com/skypanel 9