Nippon TV targets more remakes for female-led drama formats after success of Mother
Going Home follows police officers seeking to identify unnamed bodies
Japanese broadcaster Nippon TV will be at Mipcom next month with two new scripted formats featuring strong women in the lead roles as it looks to repeat the success it has seen getting Mother remade internationally.
Inspired by a real police unit in Tokyo, procedural series Going Home follows officers tasked with identifying unnamed bodies and returning them to their families and partners. Among the investigators are two women who each carry personal burdens from their past and work to reveal the truth behind each death.
Secret Makeover, meanwhile, blends mystery and suspense to tell the story of a top fashion stylist who is tasked with styling a single mother and caregiver named as the successor to the CEO of a real estate development company who died in mysterious circumstances.
Nippon TV has seen its scripted format Mother, which originally aired in Japan in 2010, adapted in Turkey, South Korea, Ukraine, Thailand, China, France, Spain, Saudi Arabia, Mongolia and, most recently, the Philippines.
The news comes as Japanese broadcasters increasingly eye the international market https://www.c21media.net/department/countryfile/riding-the-scripted-j-wave/ for opportunities to remake their dramas, having built a reputation for exporting innovative unscripted shows.
The titles being brought to Mipcom by Nippon TV will also include unscripted formats Man or Mannequin? and Unstoppable.
Nippon TV unscripted format Man or Mannequin?
“Secret Makeover and Going Home are scripted formats with stories about female protagonists who gather courage to change the irrational world and face unsolved mysteries as well as personal burdens from the past,” said Sayako Aoki, head of scripted at Nippon TV.
“As we have seen with our mega hit formats Mother and Rebooting, there is an appetite for scripted formats with strong women at the helm of the story. It is our goal that our new formats will also resonate with audiences around the world while keeping them engaged with a fast-paced story packed with unexpected plot twists.”
