For founder & executive producer of Refinery Media, Karen Seah, breaking the glass ceiling as a Singapore-born Asian producer while juggling costs and coups is all in a day’s work.
In the early 2000s, we had all the big boys of unscripted reality series headquartered here, all American-based or Australian-owned companies. They were behind all the popular shows — including The Amazing Race, Biggest Loser, Contender, MasterChef and even the first version of Apprentice Asia. They are all gone now because they did not understand that there was no way to sustain the types of budgets they were spending each season. It did not matter how good the ratings of their shows were because after a few seasons, they could not afford even themselves.
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When Refinery Media started in 2009, we understood that original content was the right way to go, as well as producing at a cost that was sustainable. Even though we have produced big format shows like Asia’s Next Top Model, we maximised our local formulas and sensibilities when it came to production costs. I would not say there are a handful of reality series producers in Singapore. There might be a couple, but we most certainly dominate this space.
Rather than thinking of myself as a female producer, I prefer to think of myself as an Asian producer first. If I am able to push boundaries as a Singapore-born Asian producer and succeed in creating amazing shows for the global audience, only then will I feel I have pushed a more pressing agenda for the Asian community at large. If my story and what I set out to do can inspire and encourage more people to produce great content, then it should not just be about gender alone. After all, this article is going to sit inside a men’s magazine.
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In the reality format space, people generally like watching lighthearted, aspirational shows in the category of fashion, food, travel and lifestyle. The reason is because people relate to some of the casts featured and they aspire to be like them or at least, live vicariously through them. Therefore casting the right people is extremely key. You need to cast people that are likeable and potentially unlikeable. We cast a variety of different types and personalities and there is no one cookie cutter type we look for. Sometimes the lack of soft skills means the individual has the propensity to be blunt or confrontational, which is great for reality television. However, all of them must have the hunger, drive and determination to win at all cost.
When we started, nobody wanted to know or care about a locally made independent production or show format. Everyone only cared about the big US reality format. It was tough for SupermodelMe to go up against Asia’s Next Top Model. By that time they came, we had done our third season of SupermodelMe. Our story is the David versus Goliath story where ultimately, they could not get the format right, even after going through four different production houses producing each season. In the end, the network who was doing a competing show came and asked us to produce Asia’s Next Top Model for them.
We ultimately re-versioned and improved Seasons Five and Six for the network and gave them their best ratings since the first season. However, nowadays, local original formats are taking front stage again. I think we will see more and more of this wave. We have been asked to develop more original content this year and I personally feel that it is about time.
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More so than ever, Asian faces are leading as main cast or characters on the screen and this is a great thing for us. To me, discovering talents and putting them on a reality show is a process that ultimately creates a new influencer or star after the show has concluded.
When I look for talent, it depends on the show I am casting for. If it is for a modelling show, then their skills as models and their ability to do different types of modelling and even act is basic. But above that, her ability to express herself, be open and vulnerable on camera is very crucial. After all, in Asia, it is inherently not in our culture to be very vocal and open to say exactly what you think and feel.
We have been lucky how 2020 ended for us, and 2021 has started strong too. We have several key projects this year of which we are very excited to announce. More details to follow soon! While we remain mainly as reality show producers, we have stepped into the space of television drama and films, and we will definitely be exploring more of that too. We have also expanded our operations and opened an office in Vietnam — so hopefully the borders will open up very soon!
This story about Refinery Media Founder Karen Seah first appeared in the May 2021 issue of Men’s Folio Singapore.
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