The ‘Hallyu’ or ‘Korean Wave’ once captivated audiences worldwide, but today, ‘Thai content’ is making an impressive and intriguing ascent. From internationally acclaimed Y-series that have captured the hearts of viewers across Asia and South America, such as 2gether: The Series, I Told Sunset About You, KinnPorsche The Series, SOTUS The Series, and My School President, to the spine-chilling Thai horror films that have left audiences trembling both domestically and internationally, like The Medium—a collaboration between Thailand’s GDH and South Korea’s SHOWBOX—and The Cursed Land, which was screened at the Bucheon International Film Festival 2024 in South Korea and the New York Asian Film Festival 2024. Additionally, the film How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies has grossed over 1 billion baht across Asia, while The Paradise of Thorns has been selected for its international premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival 2024 in Canada. These examples highlight the rapid growth of the Thai content industry in recent years, underscoring its potential and the significant opportunities that lie ahead. The Thai content industry could indeed become a vital mechanism for exporting Thailand’s cultural wealth to a global audience on a wider scale.
Furthermore, the Thai content industry serves as a powerful tool for promoting Thailand’s soft power to an international audience. From an economic perspective, data from the Creative Information Center (CIC) by the Creative Economy Agency (Public Organization), or CEA, in 2021 reveals that Thailand’s creative industries in the content sector—which include broadcasting, film and video, publishing, and software (games and animation)—were valued at an impressive 100 billion baht. Therefore, with further development, Thai content has the potential to become a rapidly growing and consistently thriving industry.
In addition to generating significant positive impacts on related sectors such as tourism, cuisine, and fashion, the inherent potential of Thai creatives—who consistently produce outstanding work infused with creativity and diverse, engaging content—enables deeper connections with audiences. This capability has driven Thai content to gain increased viewership domestically while also capturing the attention of global markets and significantly expanding its international audience base.
Content Lab 2024: Nurturing Thai Creatives from Screen to Market – A Comprehensive Journey in Film, Series, and Animation
The Creative Economy Agency (Public Organization), or CEA, as the leading organization driving Thailand’s creative economy, initiated the ‘Content Lab’ project for the first time in 2023. This project aims to enhance the skills of Thai content creators, enabling them to export their work to target countries on the global stage. Through intensive training, lectures, and hands-on practice, the project also provides teams with the opportunity to present their projects to investors, thereby extending future business opportunities. Following the launch of the ‘Content Lab,’ the project received positive feedback from industry professionals and businesses, garnering strong support from content industry partners both domestically and internationally. The project was successful, with 13 teams from the Film & Series category participating in business matching with over 30 leading studios, film producers, and streaming platforms from across the country and abroad.
Building on this strong foundation, CEA is continuing its success this year by expanding the ‘Content Lab 2024’ project, which aims to elevate Thai content and propel it into international markets. The project will enhance the development of creative skills through incubation programs that are more closely aligned with the needs of the content industry. The expanded initiative includes four incubation programs and one business program, with the process currently underway:
- Content Lab: Newcomers – A program designed to develop emerging filmmakers nationwide and prepare them for entry into the Thai content industry. The program selects new filmmakers and series creators from three regions: the Northeast, Central, and Northern regions. Selected applicants participate in an 8-day incubation program under the guidance of a group of mentors overseeing each region’s projects, culminating in the Final Pitch round, where they present their work to a panel of judges. Five winners from each region receive development grants of 20,000 baht each. The program has now reached its final stage in the Northern region.
- Content Lab: Mid-Career – A program designed to develop film and series projects for mid-level professionals such as producers, directors, and scriptwriters. The program focuses on honing skills and techniques to meet market trends. The selection process has been completed, and the 10 final teams will have the opportunity to present their pitch packages and video pilots to investors for commercial production during the Content Project Market event scheduled for October 2024.
- Content Lab: Animation – This program, a collaboration between the CEA and the Thai Animation and Computer Graphics Association (TACGA), is dedicated to the development of animation projects. A total of 10 teams that successfully complete the training will receive certificates and a grant of 100,000 baht for the development of their pitch decks. Additionally, they will have the opportunity to present their projects to investors at the Content Project Market in October 2024. They will also receive a travel grant to facilitate networking and project presentations to investors at international content markets between October and November 2024, such as Kre8tif in Malaysia, Taiwan Creative Content Fest (TCCF), and Asian Animation Summit (AAS) in Taiwan, among others. Furthermore, there will be an opportunity to compete for additional grants of 125,000 baht each, with three grants available for the development of pilot animation projects.
- Content Lab: Advanced Scriptwriting – A scriptwriting skills development program for professionals, featuring instructors from both Thailand and abroad. The selection results have been announced, and the finalists will now have the opportunity to meet with professional scriptwriters, including Kim Hyomin, a renowned scriptwriter with extensive teaching experience in the South Korean film and series industry, and Choi Ran, a mystery genre scriptwriter. These instructors will share their experiences, inspirations, techniques, and tips for creating memorable characters. The program will continue with special classes to enhance skills in creating pitch decks, presenting projects, and developing scripts that meet commercial demands and are suitable for business negotiations. The final class will be a masterclass, offering participants the opportunity to exchange experiences and techniques with experts before presenting their work to a panel of judges. Twenty selected works will advance to the Content Project Market.
- Content Project Market – A business opportunity program akin to a major Thai content marketplace, offering participants from Content Lab: Mid-Career, Content Lab: Animation, and Content Lab: Advanced Scriptwriting, as well as external creators, the chance to present their projects to investors and businesses. Twenty film, series, and animation projects with commercial production potential will be selected to participate in business negotiations and present their work to over 50 domestic and international investors at the Content Project Market, scheduled for 24 – 25 October 2024 at True Digital Park (East), 6th Floor.
Dr. Chakrit Pichyangkul, Executive Director of the Creative Economy Agency, stated, “The Content Lab 2024 project has expanded its scope this year to further develop the skills of Thai creatives, aiming to elevate Thailand’s film, series, and animation industries. It also provides opportunities for Thai creatives to showcase their talents on the international stage, contributing to the sustainable growth and revenue generation of the creative economy. We are confident that Content Lab will serve as a model project for developing creatives in the film and series industries — producers, scriptwriters, and directors — equipping them with the skills and knowledge to meet global market demands and compete on the international stage, while also building a global network for Thai content creators.”
