Japanese Producer Masakazu Kubo Receives 2018 MPA Asia Pacific Copyright Educator Award At CineAsia
HONG KONG/SINGAPORE: Mr. Masakuza Kubo, Director and Board Member Shogakukan Inc., and Senior Vice President Shogakukan-Shueishan Productions Co. Ltd., received the Motion Picture Association (MPA) Asia Pacific Copyright Educator (A.C.E.) Award today at CineAsia’s annual distribution and exhibition conference. Mr. Kubo was recognized for the leadership role he has played educating people about the dangers of piracy and the need to better protect film and television content online.
Mike Ellis, President and Managing Director, Asia Pacific, MPA, said, “2018 will be remembered as the year when the Japanese film industry, with international support, made an impassioned stand to stem the tide of rampant piracy. Chief among those voices calling for action was Masakuza Kubo, a person who has dedicated his life to Japanese film and television, and a long-time champion of protecting the works and livelihoods of Japanese filmmakers. This award is timely and most deserved.”
Accepting the Award, Mr. Kubo said, “The Asia Pacific is now the largest movie market in the world and it is up to the leaders of the film industry to raise awareness of copyright and spread respect for creators amongst consumers. I would like to focus my efforts on achieving these tasks. And to do this, I will be looking at copyright protection methods, such as site blocking, to combat online piracy, as well as other potential methods. Thank you all for your time, and thank you for this award.”
Masakuza Kubo graduated from the Waseda University School of Education. He has spent his career working for the Japanese publishing and entertainment conglomerate Shogakukan in various creative, editorial and production capacities. Mr. Kubo spent many years contributing to the success of the incredibly popular comic Coro Coro, which was then adapted into the Doraemon television and film franchise. He now serves as a Director and Board Member of the company. He has developed a keen interest in the protection of creative content and currently serves as Vice Chairman of the Intellectual Property Association of Japan. He is a visiting professor at the Beijing Film Academy, a corporate executive at the Anime Times Company, and serves on the Executive Committee of the Tokyo International Film Festival.
The MPA A.C.E. Award is presented during an awards event at CineAsia, held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and attended by over 350 people representing the exhibition and film community in the Asia Pacific region. CineAsia is the only international convention dedicated to Asian cinema exhibition and distribution and is now in its 24th year.
Past recipients of the MPA A.C.E. Award include Australian film industry leader Graham Burke (2017), Indian distributor and industry leader Rajkumar Akella (2016), Indonesian filmmakers Sheila Timothy (2015) and Maya Barack Evans (2014), Philippines’ filmmaker and lawyer Joji Alonso (2013), Tropfest founder John Polson (2012), Malaysian film producer and recording artist Norman Halim (2011), Australian actor Roy Billing (2010), Hong Kong film producer Raymond Wong (2009), Thai producer and director Jareuk Kaljareuk (2008), and New Zealand actor Temuera Morrison (2007).
On December 12, during CineAsia’s Executive Summit, Mike Ellis was presented with a Special Recognition Award. Presenting the award, Kurt Rieder, Executive VP, Theatrical Distribution at Twentieth Century Fox International, said, “I’ve known Mike as a collaborator, boss and friend, and I can vouch that no one works as hard as he to support the studios’ business in the region. These days, Mike and his regional team align advocacy and enforcement, fostering a trade-barrier free environment to protect and promote both studio and local screen content.”
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About the MPA:
Promoting & Protecting Screen Communities in Asia Pacific
The Motion Picture Association (MPA) and the Motion Picture Association International (MPA-I) represent the interests of the six international producers and distributors of filmed entertainment. To do so, they promote and protect the intellectual property rights of these companies and conduct public awareness programs to highlight to movie fans around the world the importance of content protection. These activities have helped to transform entire markets benefiting film and television industries in each country including foreign and local filmmakers alike.
The organizations act on behalf of the members of the Motion Picture Association of America, Inc (MPAA) which include; Paramount Pictures Corporation; Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.; Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation; Universal City Studios LLC; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures; and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. The MPA and the MPA-I have worldwide operations which are directed from their head offices in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. and overseen in the Asia Pacific by a team based in Singapore. For more information about the MPA and the MPA-I, please visit www.mpa-apac.org.
For more information, please contact
Stephen Jenner
MPA Asia-Pacific
(65) 6253 1033
June Tan
MPA Asia-Pacific
(65) 6253 1033