Producers Unveil New Shows and Program Strategies

The International Film and TV Market, an important program of the 17th Shanghai Television Festival, has attracted hundreds of TV executives, producers, distributors and professional buyers from all over the world.

Both domestic and foreign broadcasting groups and prestigious film/TV companies, such as Shanghai Media Group, Walt Disney and NHK, participated Tuesday by unveiling their latest productions and plans.

Brandcore Entertainment promoted its highly anticipated TV drama Ad Mania about the life of high-flying advertising executives, staring heartthrobs Raymond Lam and Joe Ma. The series track the ups and downs of talented advertising executives and how they suffer from incompetent bosses, unfair knockbacks, brutal competition, temptations and moral dilemmas. The drama is slated for release later this year and its second season will be aired next year.

Beijing-based Hope Century Motion Pictures showcased the heartwarming 30-episode drama Families of the World by renowned director Gao Xixi.

Following the success of his historical drama Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Gao trained his lenses on the ordinary but touching life of a funeral worker, showing his perseverance, sacrifices and devotion to the job.

The Walt Disney Company also gave a taste with a brief introduction and video clips of its new animated TV series to be screened next year. They included Kung Fu Dragon, Young Magician and Class Break. Replete with distinctive Chinese elements, they will cater to the tastes of local audiences.

Producers from Dragon TV outlined their new criteria for TV dramas to be screened on the channel. From next year it will present around eight series targeted at urban women audiences aged from 25 to 40 years. The new schedule sidelines some of traditional fare of war epics and rural dramas.

"What we want most is creative and thought-provoking reality TV series," said Su Xiao, deputy director of Dragon TV. "The series should be based on the real life situations of city dwellers and deal with hot social issues."

Next summer a sequel to the popular TV drama Du Lala\'s Promotion and a new light-hearted family drama about the delicate relationship between a husband and mother-in-law will be aired on Dragon TV.