Korea & Vietnam partner for drama co-productions

Korean media group CJ E&M has signed the country’s first partnership deal with Vietnam’s state broadcaster VTV for the ongoing co-production of dramas.

The first project the two will work on together is Forever Young (working title). Across 36 episodes, the series tells the story of a wealthy Vietnamese girl who comes to Korea to study and lives with students from other countries. The drama is set to begin airing on VTV3 for five months starting in December. CJ E&M’s channel M is also planning to broadcast the drama to ten countries in the region. 

Under the partnership, CJ E&M will provide its experts for script development, art and post-production. On the Vietnamese side, top producer Hai will direct the project, and VFC, VTV’s drama production entity, will provide production infrastructure.

“Moving beyond sales of already completed contents, CJ E&M is advancing a new model of global collaboration for the market,” said Sung-su Kim, the CEO of CJ E&M. “Our work with VTV on Forever Young is particularly meaningful as the first TV content to be co-produced by the two companies. With its strong young adult demographic, Vietnam contains high growth potential for the cultural content market, and we are excited about the opportunity for continued cultural exchange and cooperation.”