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HOOQ Big 3 Media TV pilot

Generating original TV pilots + supporting a new wave of creative talent.

Client: HOOQCreators: Big 3 Media, Ministry of Funny

The brief

HOOQ, the largest video-on-demand service in South-East Asia, was looking for original TV pilot ideas to provide fresh local content to their subscribers.

In 2017 they launched the HOOQ Filmmakers Guild, an annual brief through our creative network for commercial directors, producers, script writers and filmmakers to submit compelling stories told through a series format.

It’s a ground-breaking initiative which gives a voice to emerging filmmakers and brings Asia’s edgiest stories to audiences hungry for good quality local shows.

The process

We’re currently running our third series of the Filmmakers Guild, having already generated hundreds of creatively diverse ideas across eight key markets in Asia for the first two series.

A total of 11 pilots have been produced and streamed on the platform, with the most outstanding pilot each year commissioned into a full TV series.

Judging is completed by a panel of industry experts including actors and filmmakers, and based on three key factors: the relevance and potential appeal of the TV pilots to Asian audiences, demonstrable creativity in storytelling and a well told Asian story with an original point of view.

HOOQ Big 3 Media TV pilot BTS
HOOQ Big 3 Media TV pilot BTS

The winning pilots

The first Filmmakers Guild led to the production and release of six original pilots, with Big3Media selected to turn their idea, Bhak, into a full series. The show sees two young filmmakers, sick of being pushed around by Bollywood, decide to take matters into their own hands. This leads to a vicious and hilarious roller coaster ride of frustration, passion, betrayal and love for Indian cinema. This episode went on to win the Grand Jury Prize for ‘Best TV Pilot’ at the Academy Award qualifier Rhode Island International Film Festival in 2018. You can check out the full series on HOOQ now.

The following year saw five pilots moved through to production, with Singaporean slapstick comedy She’s a Terrorist and I Love Her currently in production for a full series. It’s a dark comedy about a down-and-out man who enters a sham marriage for a quick payout, only to find that his wife is an extremist hell-bent on blowing everything up.

Click here to watch trailers for all of the winning pilots.

The feedback

"The HOOQ Filmmakers Guild is unique in its mission to push boundaries in storytelling across Southeast Asia. Through Genero we’ve been able to generate hundreds of truly original creative ideas and deliver fresh, diverse stories to our audience. We’re blown away by the quality of the submissions year-on-year and proud to support the immense local talent in the region through this ongoing project.”

Allison Chew, Head of Brand, Communications & Original Productions, HOOQ

The work

2017 Trailers

2017 Winning pilot – "Bhak"

2018 Trailers

2018 Winning pilot – "She’s a Terrorist & I Love Her"

2019 Promotional video


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Big 3 Media

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Award winning creators Shreyom Ghosh and Arjun Chatterjee co-wrote and directed 'Bhak'. The pair are based at Big 3 Media in Mumbai, after meeting at NYU Tisch School of the Arts.

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Ministry of Funny

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Ministry of Funny is Terence Chia (Luff Media) and Haresh Tilani, who wrote and directed 'She's A Terrorist & I Love Her' for HOOQ. They combine comedy and technology for satirical, intellectual and maniacal goals in Singapore and beyond.

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