TV and film producer Jessica Kam has devoted her career to giving a global platform to Asian film and TV producers, writers, and actors. In her former role as senior vice president of original production at HBO Asia, Kam oversaw Invisible Stories, a six-part dramatic mini-series about marginalized and alienated characters in Singapore. The star, Yann Yann Yeo, earned an International Emmy Award nomination.
She also brought shows like Food Lore and the Golden Bell–nominated Folklore to HBO’s worldwide audiences. Kam went on to become the head of content for Asia Pacific at Walt Disney Company. There, she oversaw Moving, a Korean supernatural action and adventure series.
“We had the platform and it was great,” Kam tells Pancouver over Zoom. “I had an opportunity and the pleasure of working with quite a lot of great talents around the region.”
Now, the Hong Kong-born Kam is executive vice president and business head of CreAsia Studio, which is owned by French multinational Banijay Entertainment. She produces content for all platforms, ranging from free-to-air to streaming services.
“Now, I’m on the other side,” Kam says. “My focus is mainly Southeast Asia.”
Kam will be on a panel entitled Rising Southeast Asia at the East by Northwest (EXNW) summit in Vancouver. The Racial Equity Screen Office organizes the annual event, which will be held from Friday (July 18) to Sunday (July 20). Kam will be joined by three other leaders in the Southeast Asian film and television industry—Film Development Council of the Philippines chair Jose Javier Reyes, Mokster Films executive Nelson Mok, and Thailand Creative Content Agency member and International Committee head Pantham Thongsang.
Watch the trailer for Invisible Stories, which Jessica Kam brought to HBO.
Kam highlights diversity of Southeast Asia
Approximately 700 million people live in Southeast Asia, including 280 million in Indonesia alone. The Philippines and Vietnam each have populations over 100 million.
Kam emphasizes that Southeast Asian countries have their own zeitgeist. The Philippines is mostly Catholic, whereas Thailand is a Buddhist country and Indonesia and Malaysia are mostly Muslim.
“Their television censorship is already very different and the kind of shows that are allowed or that are kosher in the different countries is very different,” she notes.
For example, boy-meets-boy love stories remain among the top entertainment exports from Thailand. But some boy love stories are a no-no in Muslim countries. Meanwhile, horror enjoys tremendous popularity across Southeast Asia. And it’s particularly well done in Indonesia, she notes.
“Indonesia’s horror is mainstream,” Kam adds. “People bring their kids to watch horror. It’s not just animation.”
Moreover, she sees opportunities to adapt scripted Southeast Asian horror and crime stories for other markets. One such model is the U.S. espionage thriller Homeland, which is based on an Israeli series, Prisoners of War. In addition, Kam has a keen interest in producing new formats for non-scripted Southeast Asian shows.
Watch the trailer for Moving, which Jessica Kam oversaw at Disney.
Parent company holds world-famous IPs
Banijay is the world’s largest international content producer. It holds IPs for such formats as Big Brother, Survivor, MasterChef, Fear Factor, and Mr. Bean.
Kam points out that the Big Brother format originated in the Netherlands in 1999 before being adapted for different international versions. MasterChef originated in Britain in 1990.
As the production arm of Banijay in Southeast Asia, CreAsia Studio first seeks a commission from a local channel or local platform in the local language. From there, Banijay Entertainment considers adapting content in other parts of the world.
To date, Kam feels that most Southeast Asian producers have not packaged their stories in ways that make this easy to do. However, she knows how to do this, given her experience with entertainment powerhouses such as HBO and Disney.
“It’s just not a skill set or practice that is commonly done,” Kam says. “But I feel that there are just as many good storytellers in Asia as anywhere else.”
Event details
The Racial Equity Screen Office will present East by Northwest (EXNW) from Friday (July 18) to Sunday (July 20). For tickets and more information, visit the website. Follow Charlie Smith on Bluesky @charliesmithvcr.bsky.social. Also, follow Pancouver on Instagram @PancouverMedia and on Bluesky @pancouver.
