HOOQ FILMMAKERS GUILD ANNOUNCES FINAL PILOTS AND ADDITIONAL 5 WILDCARDS

HOOQ – the largest Video on Demand service in South-East Asia, has announced six titles for pilot development from its inaugural HOOQ Filmmakers Guild 2017. 

The confirmed 2017 selections are Bhak (India), Suay (Thailand), Haunt Me (Singapore), How To Be A Good Girl (Singapore), Aliansi (Indonesia) and Heaven and Hell (Indonesia).  The six were selected from some 500 submissions received by HOOQ over a two-month period from all over South East Asia.
The six entries that have been earmarked for pilots span a range of genres.

India’s winning entry, Bhak, is a colourful dramedy that follows the adventures of two ambitious young filmmakers in the Bollywood film industry.  Written by Arjun Chatterjee and Shreyom Ghosh from Big3 Media, it explores themes of passion, betrayal and love.

Suay, a Thai crime thriller by Marcelo von Schwartz, follows the story of ladyboy go-go dancer Lola, who receives a cut-off ear belonging to her best friend and mentor, Carly.  She is then forced to draw upon her past identity as a tough male private detective and descend into the underbelly of Bangkok.

Supernatural drama Haunt Me, by Oman Dhas and Goh Ming Siu from Third Floor Pictures, follows the story of Kwong, a widower, who after his father’s death, moves into his family ancestral home and discovers his family's secret sacred destiny; guiding lost souls to the other side.

The other Singaporean entry, How To Be A Good Girl, comes from Abundant Productions and follows former socialite turned ex-convict, Frances Lee, who is looking to reclaim her life after time behind bars.  

The Indonesian winning entries reflect two ends of the genre sprectrum. Aliansi is an offbeat comedy by Muttaqiena Imaamaa.  It follows the story of a down-and-out Jakarta-based creative executive, who gets a chance to start over when a mysterious millionaire approaches him to create advertising campaigns – to convince the public that aliens are real.  

By contrast, Bobby Prabowo & Eric Tiwa’s Heaven and Hell, takes us into the world of the Eastern Indonesia mafia.  When a gang war about to break out in Darmaga Batu, his adoptive hometown, Chris contemplates leaving the violent world of crime, until he realizes, the only way he can protect his jailed father, is by becoming the head of the crime world.

HOOQ has also selected five more submissions for script development. The selections are Crazy in Love (Indonesia), Golden Star (Philippines), Merit Score (Thailand), ReLie (Thailand) and Trips (Singapore).

While these submissions are not ready to be developed into pilots, they hold enough merit and potential to become compelling stories that will appeal to audiences around South-East Asia. HOOQ is investing in the potential of these ideas by developing them into scripts.

While these submissions are not ready to be developed into pilots, they hold enough merit and potential to become compelling stories that will appeal to audiences around South-East Asia. HOOQ is investing in the potential of these ideas by developing them into scripts.

 “The HOOQ Filmmakers Guild has really highlighted the immense talent out in Asia and the selection process for the top six pilots announced earlier was not an easy task.  The fact that we could pick out five more brilliant ideas on top of the six we already chose for pilot development means this region is a hot bed for creative talent. We are excited and committed to developing these talents and helping them turn their vision into your next favorite series!” Said Peter Bithos, Chief Executive Officer of HOOQ.

The five submissions bookmarked for script development are as follows:
 Merit Score by Lit Samajarn from Thailand follows the story of 25-year-old entertainment diva and mean queen Nadia, who meets an untimely end in a movie accident. Determined to do whatever it takes to get into Heaven, she has to improve her meagre merit score, secure enough brownie points and karma in the next 30 days.

 The other Thai submission is ReLie by Nirattisai Ratphithak. This thriller revolves around a wildly popular mobile game app that becomes all too real for a group of university students when the players begin dying one by one. To stop the deaths, they need to figure out who the murderer is, but doing so leads them to face the unexpected truth that is much bigger than what they would ever imagine.

 From Singaporean Xavier Ong comes Trips, about a down-on-his-luck model who joins a host club so he can earn enough money to marry his girlfriend. However, he soon finds himself being drawn deeper and deeper into a world where love and money are nebulously entwined and the only way to survive, is to lose yourself.

 The Philippines is represented by Jed Cyril Punongbayan of We Love Motion Inc. under Go Motion Productions. He created Golden Star, the story of a 48-year-old mother of three who tries to secure a better future for herself and her family by entering the tricky world of show business.

 Finally, Indonesia’s Mahakarya Pictures and Aditya Testarossa present Crazy In Love, an offbeat romance about plain jane Kinanti, who gets a peculiar gift from a mysterious stranger – a lip colour that will make fall in love with her through a single kiss. When Aaron, a famous celebrity, accidently kisses her, Kinanti's destiny changes completely.

The HOOQ Filmmakers Guild drew nearly 500 submissions for original content from across the region.

Judging was based on the relevance and potential appeal to Asian audiences, demonstrable creativity in storytelling and most of all, a well told Asian story with an original point of view.

Judge Puttipong Promsaka Na Sakolnakorn commented, “The number of submissions was far more than what any of us were expecting”.  The submissions spanned a range of genres and styles, from science fiction to supernatural and even historical dramas.  The dominant genres submitted were drama, horror/supernatural and comedy, with science fiction and fantasy a close fourth.

 “I was deeply amazed by the quality of the submissions, so much so that it made judging really difficult!” said judge Mouly Surya, director of ‘Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts’.  “It was affirmation to me that Asia truly has immense talent when it comes to filmmaking.”

 This sentiment was echoed by her fellow Indonesian judge, actor Nicholas Saputra, “Not only were their submissions for the HOOQ Filmmakers Guild fantastic,” he said, “they are so energetic, creative and bursting with ideas and serves as a reminder to all seasoned filmmakers to never lose that spark inside of us.”

 Judge Erik Matti, an award-winning veteran in the Filipino film industry, was impressed by the entries,  “The submissions took screen craft to another level. The level of detail and the amalgamation of brave ideas, Asian culture and stunning creativity brought out some of the most amazing submissions I have ever seen.”

HOW TO GET HOOQ
It’s easy to get HOOQ’d.  Customers can simply download the HOOQ app from Apple Store or Google Play, sign up or log in, to access HOOQ’s extensive library of Hollywood and Asian hits.  Find out more and sign up today for a 7-day free trial at www.hooq.tv and pay for the subscription through credit card.

HOOQ gets exclusive SVOD rights tp Marvel's Inhumans, Marvel's Runaways and Marvel's Cloak and Dagger

HOOQ – the largest Video on Demand service in South-East Asia, gets exclusive SVOD rights to bring three of Marvel’s latest series – Marvel’s Inhumans, Marvel’s Runaways and Marvel’s Cloak and Dagger – on the same day as the US telecast on their platform for the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore, via a newly inked deal with The Walt Disney Company South-East Asia.

While the first chapter of Marvel’s Inhumans has been released last week worldwide in IMAX® theatres, the following episodes will then be available on HOOQ from the end of September with additional exclusive content, not seen in IMAX ® theatres. Next up will be Marvel’s Runaways which debuts on digital on November 21 st , 2017. Marvel’s Cloak and Dagger will be released later on in 2018. All these will have all episodes screened same day as the US telecast.
These 3 new series will join the collection of Marvel movies and series already on the HOOQ platform – the recent Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2, Agent Carter, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Marvel’s the Avengers, Thor, Iron Man, Iron Man 2, and Captain America – The First Avenger.


This exclusive deal comes shortly after HOOQ announced their collaboration with Disney, earlier this year to bring their latest movies onto the platform via Transactional VOD (TVOD).

“HOOQ is always looking for new ways and partnerships to bring exciting and quality content to our viewers. This tie-up with Disney, which now allows our viewers to catch their favourite series Inhumans, Runaways and Cloak and Dagger on the same day as the US telecast is something we are very proud of and brings the world of Marvel’s superheroes closer to Asia. Marvel’s series’ now available on HOOQ is the first of many things to come with this tie-up and we will continue to push boundaries, to evolve and stay committed to delivering unique, compelling and edgy stories to millions of our customers in the region,” said Chief Executive Officer of HOOQ, Peter Bithos.

“We are excited to extend our collaboration with HOOQ in bringing these iconic Marvel shows day and date with the US telecast to digital audiences across Southeast Asia. We are pleased to offer our Marvel fans yet another platform to enjoy their favourite TV shows" said Amit Malhotra, VP and GM of Media Networks, The Walt Disney Company Southeast Asia.



Marvel’s Inhumans is the latest series from Marvel Studios and its first chapter is shot completely in IMAX® cameras. After the Royal Family of Inhumans is splintered by a military coup, they barely escape to Hawaii where their surprising interactions with the lush world and humanity around them may prove to not only save them, but Earth itself.

Marvel’s Runaways will be the first TV adaptation of the Marvel comic of the same name, where a group of teenagers find out not only do they have superpowers, but that their parents are supervillains. Torn between filial piety and being heroes, they will face adversaries like never before.

Marvel’s Cloak and Dagger, also follows the characters of the Marvel comic of the same name. Heroes Tyrone Johnson and Tandy Bowen share a symbiotic relationship as a crime fighting duo since they are Light and Darkness incarnate.
These series are all set within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

HOW TO GET HOOQ
It’s easy to get HOOQ’d.  Customers can simply download the HOOQ app from Apple Store or Google Play, sign up or log in, to access HOOQ’s extensive library of Hollywood and local hits.  Find out more and sign up today for a 30-day free trial at www.hooq.tv.  You can also get HOOQ bundled with Globe At Home and Globe postpaid and prepaid plans.

HOOQ celebrates 2nd anniversary with new partners

HOOQ – the largest Video on Demand service in South-East Asia—celebrates its 2nd anniversary on April 19. The event was attended by HOOQ executives, celebrity guests headed by Xian Lim and hosted by Celebrity TV and Radio Host Tim Yap.

HOOQ has had a productive and successful two years since its inception, delivering the best of both Asian and Hollywood entertainment to homes across Asia.

HOOQ has subscribers in the millions, all of whom can enjoy over 30,000 hours of quality entertainment, and this will be increased with new partnerships from Paramount Pictures, BBC Worldwide and Endamol Shine.

Further to this, HOOQ today announced a new service that delivers movies fresh from the cinema to your home – Transactional VOD (TVOD).  This allows blockbuster movies to hit the service within three months of their theatrical release.  To top it all off, customers subscribing to the current Subscription VOD (SVOD) service will be able to enjoy one movie from the TVOD library each month as part of their SVOD subscription at no additional cost!

“Securing new partners such as Paramount pictures, BBC and Endemol Shine are a testament to the fact that HOOQ has the right formula to deliver quality entertainment to Asian homes, with a balance of the best Asian films and dramas alongside solid Hollywood blockbusters and series.  We have never been more elated and will continue to push boundaries to evolve and stay committed to delivering the best entertainment to our customers with new services such as TVOD that bring movies to your homes quicker than ever before – even as part of your SVOD subscription,” said Chief Executive Officer of HOOQ, Mr Peter Bithos.

A FORMULA FOR SUCCESS
Built in Asia for Asia, HOOQ’s formula has been to be a subscription video-on-demand service, which continuously innovates and delivers the best quality entertainment.  Whether it is HOOQ’s world first download capability for Hollywood, its weekly pricing or its ad-free freemium model, HOOQ has continue to evolve its business model for Asia.  This has proven successful, with the platform securing millions of subscribers across Asia.  This success comes from HOOQ’s strategy of combining the best Asian and Hollywood content with a solid distribution partner network of the top telcos and broadband providers in the region including AIS, Airtel, Globe Telecom, Telkom, and Telkomsel, just to name a few.

“In the Philippines, we made sure to put together the best Filipino content for our subscribers with a combination of the top local studios and independent filmmakers. This combined with HOOQ’s strategy of serving premium Hollywood content, as well as our key distribution partnership with Globe has contributed to making HOOQ the regional leader,” says Ms. Jane Cruz-Walker, HOOQ Philippines Country Manager.

LATEST MOVIES FROM THE CINEMAS NOW FOR RENT ON HOOQ
HOOQ’s new TVOD service not only gives access to movies from the cinemas to your home, HOOQ subscribers will get access to watch any 1 TVOD movie per month as part of their current subscription, while additional movies can be rented for just P125.00 each.  There will be new movies uploaded each month from studios such as Sony Pictures, Warner Bros., Disney, Dreamworks and Pixar with titles such as Arrival, Underworld: Blood Wars, Fantastic Beasts and How to Find Them, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, just to name a few.  With this  new feature, HOOQ customers can now enjoy the largest library of Hollywood and Asian hits, TV series same day as the US, as well as the latest movies fresh off the cinemas!

WHAT TO LOOK FORWARD TO ON HOOQ
In the Philippines, HOOQ has inked exclusive deals with Regal Entertainment and Viva Communications for digital rights to their new movies within 3 months of theatrical release.  Recent hits such as Camp Sawi, Bakit Lahat ng Guapo May Boyfriend & I Love You to Death have already debuted on HOOQ and are consistently in the top 10 list of most watched content by subscribers.  Mano Po 7, Die Beautiful, The Escort, and My Rebound Girl will be on HOOQ within the next quarter, with newly released movies to follow throughout the year.

In addition, HOOQ is bolstering its line-up of Hollywood studio partnerships consisting of Sony Pictures, Warner Bros., Disney, Dreamworks, Lionsgate, Miramax, Starz and over a hundred Asian studios. New hit series are now available from Endamol Shine and BBC including Secret Diary of a Call Girl, Mistresses and Wolf Hall.  The full catalog of DC shows are now also on HOOQ, including Legends of Tomorrow, Arrow and Gotham.  Meanwhile Supergirl, Lucifer and Powerless are available to stream within 24 hours of US airing.

HOW TO GET HOOQ
It’s easy to get HOOQ’d.  Customers can simply download the HOOQ app from Apple Store or Google Play, sign up or log in, to access HOOQ’s library of top Hollywood and Asian hits anytime, anywhere and on any device include computers, smartphones, tablets, set-top boxes, smart TVs via Google Chromecast and all Apple devices.

Globe At Home customers can get up to 6 months access to HOOQ with plans P1,299 and up, while Globe mobile customers can also get up to 6 months trial on selected prepaid and postpaid plans.   You may also visit www.hooq.tv to sign up for a 7-day free trial.

HOOQ named best mobile app in GLOMO Awards in Barcelona

HOOQ, Asia’s largest video-on-demand service has just been named Best Mobile App in the Media, Film, TV or Video category at the Global Mobile (GLOMO) Awards 2016 in Barcelona.

HOOQ customers have been indulging in a diverse and expansive selection of over 35,000 hours of movies and TV series with hot favorites and award-winning series such as Gotham, The Flash, Mad Men, Ash vs Evil Dead, Nashville and awesome blockbusters, Spider-Man, Kill Bill and Harry Potter.

The GLOMO Awards highlights the greatest achievements and innovations across the mobile industry and include more than 40 awards over eight categories. The awards showcase the very best and most compelling apps in the field of multimedia; those that are primarily innovative but also driving eyeballs and audiences from the fixed screen to the mobile screen. The other nominees for the category included; Fjord & Vocento S.A. for ABC mobile web; Magisto for Magisto Video Editor & Mak; Netgem for EETV; and PTCL for PTCL Smart TV App.

“It’s been a great year for us and we are very proud for this award as a validation of our hard work in building an app here in Asia for Asia.  What better gift to us as we celebrate HOOQ’s first birthday!  We look forward to an exciting 2016 and are working very hard to bring to all our customers an even better experience to keep them HOOQ’d!” said Peter Bithos, Chief Executive Officer of HOOQ.    HOOQ launched a year ago in the Philippines, with Globe Telecom as its exclusive telecom partner.

With HOOQ, you can catch the best of Hollywood blockbusters and all-time favorite local dramas on any Internet-enabled device.  Simply download the HOOQ app from the Apple Store or Google Play, sign up or log in, and your device is ready to access HOOQ’s library of Hollywood and local hits.  Viewing movies and TV series on HOOQ is made even better with Chromecast support, now available on the iOS and Android apps.

Sign up today for a 30-day free trial on www.HOOQ.tv, or get up to 45 days of free trial with Globe GoSURF 99 and below for prepaid customers and up to 90 days of free trial for prepaid and postpaid customers availing of GoSURF 299 and up. Broadband customers also get HOOQ for free on Globe Home Broadband Plan 1299 and up.

Get HOOQ up with the new action-thriller "Mad Dogs"

If you're a fan of Ben Chaplin, Steve Zahn and Billy Zane, now is the best time to catch the group in the all new thriller series, Mad Dogs.  The Belize laden plot thickens when these set of friends together with Micheal Imperioli and Romani Malco  went on a holiday with Milo (Billy Zane) and discovered to their dismay, the truth about Milo's character. Their vacation turns into a nightmare of deception, lies. murder and trouble.

Guarantees no commercial and fast streaming you can avail of Mad Dogs at HOOQ, Asia’s biggest video-on-demand service. Just by downloading the HOOQ app on your android, apple store or google play,  get ready to watch the series with popcorn on your side and you are set to go!

HOOQ partners with Sony Pictures Entertainment and brings you the exclusive premiere of the critically acclaimed Mad Dogs, same day as the US telecast last Jan. 21 at Makati Diamond Residences.

Mad Dogs premieres worldwide on January 22 and HOOQ will be the first and only digital platform in Southeast Asia to offer the series on the same day as the US.  Catch this must-watch series created for the digital platform with all 10 episodes dropping in at the same time!  In addition to this latest action thriller, HOOQ customers can also indulge in a diverse and expansive selection of over 35,000 hours of movies and TV series with hot favorites and award-winning series such as Gotham, The Flash, Mad Men, Ash vs Evil Dead, Nashville and awesome blockbusters, Spider-Man, Kill Bill and Harry Potter.

“2015 has been a great year for us and we have promised our customers to deliver a host of new and exciting TV series ranging from in-season series to same day as the US telecast.  What better way to start 2016 than to share with all HOOQ fans yet another world premiere exclusive to HOOQ!  Mad Dogs promises suspense, lies, deception, secrets and murder!  This dark comedyof wild adventures will definitely get you HOOQ’d! said Peter Bithos, Chief Executive Officer of HOOQ. 

Based on the British show with the same title from 2011. Mad Dogs follows Steve Zahn,  Micheal Imperioli and friends in a gorgeous Belizean villa where the gang is gathered to celebrate the early retirement of their buddy Milo, played by Billy Zane.  Things quickly spiral into a labyrinthine of lies, deception and murder that will put the best of friendships to the ultimate test!

You can soon catch Mad Dogs and all your favorites on any Internet-enabled device.  Simply download the HOOQ app from the Apple Store or Google Play, sign up or log in, and your device is ready to access HOOQ’s library of Hollywood and local hits.  Viewing movies and TV series on HOOQ is made even better with Chromecast support, now available on the iOS and Android apps.
Get a 30-day free trial to watch Mad Dogs and thousands of other movies and TV shows by signing up at www.HOOQ.tv.  Once your trial expires, you can either pay the P149 subscription fee monthly through credit credit or charge it to your Globe bill by texting HOOQ149 to 8888. Tattoo Home Broadband users can also get HOOQ’d for free on plans P1,299 and up, while new Globe GoSurf customers can get free HOOQ from 45 up to 90 days.