It’s a fact — factual programs sell, a point not lost on organizers of the Asia Factual Forum, which will see producers convene next week in Singapore.

‘Eighty percent of the factual programming is dominated by North America and Europeans,’ says Craig Thompson, executive producer of Toronto’s Ballinran Productions, a coproducer of the event. ‘Asia is realizing the tremendous market potential and they want to get a part of the action by partnering with international television producers and broadcasters.

‘In my opinion, Canadians are missing the boat,’ he says, noting that only a handful of producers, such as the National Film Board, have copro’ed on docs with Singapore producers.

The three-day conference will promote the benefits of production in, and coproduction with, the Southeast Asian city-state. Execs due to appear include outgoing Alliance Atlantis EVP Norm Bolen; Michelle Bruce, director of business affairs at Discovery Networks; NHK’s Mika Kanaya; the NFB’s Sayedali Rawji; and Courtney Thompson, senior manager of development and production for National Geographic Channels International.

But the jewel of the conference, asserts Thompson, is Ruby Yang — director of The Blood of Yingzhou District (Oscar-winner for best documentary short in 2006) — who will talk about filmmaking, her China AIDS Media Project, and creating content that has universal resonance.